'Fratton Park was spine-tingling, absolutely incredible': The magical day Danny Rose was persuaded to join Portsmouth

And that ‘spine-tingling’ Fratton Park evening convinced him to ditch League One to become Paul Cook’s first signing of the summer of 2016.

After claiming the League Two title at Northampton under Chris Wilder in 2015-16, the out-of-contract central midfielder was being strongly pursued by the Blues.

According to Rose in new book Played Up Pompey Four, he was invited to Fratton Park along with other transfer targets to watch the play-off semi-final first leg against Plymouth in May 2016.

The game finished 2-2, with the Blues ultimately eliminated after losing the Home Park second leg. Regardless, Rose was desperate to sign.

‘I had been to Fratton Park before, of course, but that May 2016 evening was different. It was spine-tingling, hairs on the back of your neck. Absolutely incredible,’ he told Played Up Pompey Four.

‘Pompey had plans to do transfer business early for the following season and, as a target, their chief executive Mark Catlin had invited me to attend a League Two play-off semi-final first leg against Plymouth Argyle.

‘It finished 2-2, with Marc McNulty and Gary Roberts scoring, yet the atmosphere left a real impression - nothing like I had ever experienced before other than attending Old Trafford.

‘In League Two at that time, Pompey was the best club you could represent and that evening was so profound that, even if the contract wasn’t great, I still would have joined. Imagine playing in front of that crowd week in, week out. That night I decided to become a Blues player.

‘Having arrived at Northampton three-and-a-half months earlier from Oxford on a short-term deal, I was playing some of the best football of my career under Chris Wilder when I began to hear whispers of potential interest from the Blues.

‘My team-mate Ricky Holmes, who previously played for them, had held a conversation with Mark Catlin along the lines of: “You’ve got to sign this lad I play with”.

‘I was contracted to the Cobblers until the end of the season and, following 15 appearances in their title success, they tabled a decent offer to extend my stay. However, after that Fratton Park trip, my mind was made up as long as the deal was adequate. I would happily sacrifice League One football to join Pompey.

‘There were other potential signings also present among the 17,622 crowd that night, including Hallam Hope, who I later played alongside at Swindon Town.

‘I was present with my agent and we were scheduled to meet Cookie after the game. However, he’d been sent off in the first half so the timing was no longer right, not that I needed any convincing.

‘I actually flew to Marbella with the Northampton lads early the following morning, who were well aware of where I had been the previous night, urging me to stay. Although Ricky’s words struck home: “Rosey, if Pompey want you, then go”.

Rose would secure the fourth promotion of his career in the 2016-17 season, with Cook’s men claiming the League Two title.

He featured 64 times and scored five goals before leaving for League Two Swindon in January 2019 - where he won yet another promotion.

Rose added: ‘Following Pompey’s elimination after the second leg at Home Park, I drove from our Swindon home to the training ground with my wife and children to meet Cookie and Robbie Blake, who made us feel so welcome.

‘With two offers on the table, negotiating went backwards and forwards, but once we agreed terms at Pompey, it didn’t matter what Northampton did, and I signed a two-year deal in June 2016 - becoming Paul Cook’s first recruit of the summer.’

Played Up Pompey Four is priced £18.99 and available from the Pompey Store and Waterstone’s in Portsmouth, Fareham, Chichester, Petersfield and Whiteley.

It can also be ordered online from Amazon. For player-autographed copies, email [email protected]

The paperback version of Played Up Pompey (£5.99) and Played Up Pompey Three (£13.99) are also still available - email [email protected]