23 superb retro images of Portsmouth fans getting autographs from their Fratton Park heroes and before selfies were a thing: gallery

With your pen in one hand and a piece of paper in the other, or even an autograph book, all you had to do was poke your hand through the crowd and hope that said player would scribble his name down. We’ve all done it. and probably have the evidence either tucked away somewhere or on display still in a corner of the house!

Nowadays, a selfie seems to be the go-to approach when meeting Pompey’s current finest. A quick smile for the camera and, bang, it’s on Snapchat, WhatsApp, Instagram, Twitter or whatever else there is for the whole world to see, if needs be!

Who knows what future fans will be using in 10-20 years time when their idol walks by en route to the Fratton Park dressing room or at an open training session. Your guess is as good as mine.

But before then let’s look back at some old school autograph hunting by Pompey fans with the help of the The News’ picture archive. Hopefully, the images will bring back some happy memories for many and you never know, you might even spot yourself among the crowd craving a player’s signature.