Battle to be in Alan Ball's Portsmouth team of 80s far from straightforward

After Bally (or is it Ballie?) won my reader poll to find your favourite Pompey boss of all time, I speculated as to what the best XI would have been from all the players he selected in his 1984-89 spell.

My line-up was Knight, Swain, Hardyman, Blake, Gilbert, Kennedy, Dillon, O’Callaghan, Hilaire, Biley, Quinn.

And I named Neil Webb as the only player really unlucky to miss out.

Others, of course, had different views.

No-one made any changes to my back five but the Pompey History Society did ask for an honorary mention for Mick Baxter, the giant of a centre-half who was one of Ball’s first signings but who never played for us.

Tragically, he became ill, and he died four years later.

A symbolic place on the bench is Mick’s.

Next, Ross Henley threw a spanner in the works that made an almighty clang that could be heard at the top of the Eastern Road.

What did he do? He suggested Mark Hateley.

Ah, I said, but Bally was boss from the start of the 84-85 season, by which time Hateley had been sold.

Ah, said Ross, but Hateley played in the May 84 game v Swansea that Ball was caretaker manager for after Bobby Campbell was sacked.

I had no answer to that, and Darren Troughton also included Hateley.

One change to my XI came from ‘Pompey80s’ on Twitter, who put Barry Horne into midfield in place of Kennedy.

John Tucker includes Webb and Paul Mariner in his XI at the expense of Hilaire and Biley in mine – adding that he loved Biley but felt a Quinn/Mariner partnership would be better for team shape.

Are there others worth consideration?

Oh yes... and we will explore their credentials next week.