Representatives of the Pompey Pals charity and officials from Portsmouth FC were on hand to present a commemorative shirt to the Royal Hampshire Regimental Museum in Winchester.

Chris Pennycook on behalf of Pompey Pals presented the shirt to Lt Colonel Colin Bulleid of the museum, which commemorates the history of the regiment.

The Pompey Pals shirt was launched at the start of the current season by the club to commemorate the 100th anniversary of Britain’s declaration of war on Germany in 1914.

The museum was also presented with a commemorative bottle of Pompey Pals Ale that similarly recognises the war and its victims and which along with the shirt will become part of the museum’s impressive display.

The Pals’ shirt worn by the team this season harks back to the 1914 version of the Pompey kit with the traditional royal blue colour and original badge. It has all the names of the 1,400 fallen Pompey Pals who gave the ultimate sacrifice woven into the material.

The special-edition shirt presented to the museum has the badge of the Pompey Pals Project embroidered onto the right sleeve. Around the club badge it says ‘Pompey Remembers’ with some of the battles in which the battalions fought underneath.

The shirt idea along with a permanent memorial plaque at Fratton Park was pioneered by Pompey fan Bob Beech, chair of the Pompey Pals Project, who had relatives serving in the war.

Bob said: 'We were delighted to present the special edition of this seasons Pompey shirt to the Royal Hampshire Regiment museum in Winchester. The names on the shirt are men from our area who died during the Great War whilst serving with the regiment. It also signals the welcome start of a closer working relationship between the museum and the Pompey Pals Project charity.'

Fratton Park was one of the recruiting centres for the First World War signing up soldiers for the 14th and 15th battalions of the Hampshire Regiment.

The football club were represented by 95-year-old John Jenkins, a Normandy veteran from the second world war and part of the Royal Hampshire Regiment for 22 years who went to his first Pompey game in 1928, as well as Pompey ambassador Alan Knight and Supporters' Liaison Officer Johnny Moore.

Also present on behalf of the Pompey Pals were Mike Hill and Paul Stone.

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