THE HISTORY OF
PICKWICK YOUTH FC
Pickwick Youth FC was born from just a few volunteers and has quickly grown into a driving force in youth football in Portsmouth. With a long history, the club has seen hundreds of players develop from under 7s to under 16s and beyond.
THE HISTORY OF
PICKWICK YOUTH FC
Pickwick Youth FC was born from just a few volunteers and has quickly grown into a driving force in youth football in Portsmouth. With a long history, the club has seen hundreds of players develop from under 7s to under 16s and beyond.
1980s – Humble Beginnings
1981 – Alan Jones founded Unicorn Boys, a grassroots football team in Portsmouth Youth League. Within a few years, two more teams were added, one managed by Darren Gissing.
1987 – Leadership shifted as Darren Gissing became Club Secretary and Peter Hopton stepped in as Chairman. The club had grown to 4 teams.
1990s – Becoming Pickwick Youth FC
- 1992 – The club was renamed Pickwick Youth Football Club for the 1992/93 season, inspired by the support of the Mr Pickwick Pub in Milton Road. The aim was to create a feeder pathway into their adult Dockyard League team.
- 1994 – The club became independent from the pub and relied on Portsmouth FC’s previous-season kits, parent contributions, and local business sponsorships for team strips.
- 1996 – Pickwick began playing most home matches at Anchorage Park and launched the first club holiday trip, held in Hastings.
- 1997 – Oz Prior became Club Secretary with Darren Gissing moving to Chairman. The holiday trip tradition continued with Littlesea.
- 1999 – The club welcomed its first U7s team, managed by Phil Scott, bringing the total to 5 teams.
- 2000 – Phil Scott was appointed Club Chairman.
2000s – Growth and Community Spirit
- 2001–2005 – Annual family trips to Selsey became a highlight, bringing together 40+ families for football, BBQs, and fancy dress evenings.
- 2006 – The club’s first Mini Soccer Tournament at Staunton Community School hosted over 100 teams – a landmark community event.
- 2007 – Expansion continued with new U7, U8, and U10 teams, taking the total to 12. The Nursery group (run by Danny Knight & Marc Hopwood) was launched to develop the next generation of players.
- 2008 – Pickwick achieved FA Charter Standard Status, recognising its commitment to high-quality grassroots football.
2010s – Building Infrastructure
2012 – Older age groups moved to Roko Sports Centre, with plans to redevelop the disused bowling club into a clubhouse.
2013 – The club invested in storage containers at Roko for essential equipment.
2014 – A landmark partnership with Roko, Portsmouth FC, and Portsmouth City Council secured Alexandra Park as Pickwick’s official home ground.
2015 – With 18 teams spanning U7s to U18s, the club welcomed Ian Saynor as Club Secretary.
2016 – Planning permission was granted for a new storage compound at Alexandra Park, built the same year. The club also hosted its first tournament at its new home ground.
- 2016 – The current Nursery Training Squad set-up was introduced by Steve Hallett and Dave Hall, with other ex-managers supporting throughout the years including Nick Hughes and Martin Jeffery. This set up goes on to start at least one new team every year.
2017–2018 – Growth peaked at 21 teams (including two men’s teams) and then 23 teams (including three men’s teams).
2019 – Pickwick held its last pre-pandemic tournament before COVID-19 halted play.
2020s – Challenges and New Directions
2020–2021 – Football paused and returned gradually following the global pandemic.
2022 – Full competitive football resumed after two years of disruption.
2023 – The club proudly fielded 23 teams across both Saturday and Sunday leagues.
2024 – Expansion continued with 24 teams entered for the 2024/25 season.
2025 – Pickwick Youth FC entered the 2025/26 season with 20 teams. Alongside football, the club took a new digital direction, launching a modern website and rebuilding its social media presence to connect with the Portsmouth community.