‘Jim’s on a par with Bally for passion’
Paul Wood has paid tribute to the man who brought him back to Fratton Park.
After leaving Pompey in 1987, Wood returned in early 1994 – signed by Jim Smith from AFC Bournemouth in a player exchange move involving Warren Aspinall.
‘What a move, I loved being back, with another great team of players too,’ Wood recalled. ‘The likes of Paul Walsh and Alan McLoughlin were super players and cracking lads. As for Jim Smith, what a character.
‘I would put him on a par with Bally (Alan Ball) in terms of passion, he didn’t want to lose.
‘Jim played a different way of football compared to my previous spell, it was a different time, things had evolved, not necessarily for the better or worse. He made one or two signings which didn’t quite fit in, they didn’t perform the way he thought they would, and we struggled a bit.
‘Frustratingly, I had problems with injury and when Terry Fenwick took over he was great with me, superb, but couldn’t give me another contract as I’d been out for so long after medial knee ligament damage. I retired in 1996.’
An injuryhit second Pompey spell totalled 34 appearances and three goals and, after retiring, he returned to spend the 1997-98 season with Hong Kong-based Happy Valley, before an eye-catching swansong with Havant & Waterlooville.
Signed by former Blues team-mate Billy Gilbert, Wood featured 137 times for the Hawks, scoring 48 goals and becoming a huge fans’ favourite, before ending his career with Dorchester in May 2004.
Now aged 59, he works as a decorator in Bournemouth, who finds time to catch up with former Pompey players including Andy Awford, Mark Chamberlain, Paul Walsh and Lee Bradbury to play golf at Old Thorns in Liphook.
‘I had a great time at Brighton, a fantastic time at Sheffield United, a great time at Bournemouth and a great time in my second Pompey spell,' said Wood. ‘A few injuries set me back, but I overcame them and had a good career, playing for a long time, which a lot of players don’t manage to do. I’m probably paying a price for it now, though, the aches and pains are pretty bad.
‘But, if I could turn back the clock and walk into any of my changing rooms, then it would be that Alan Ball one from my first spell. I would love to see those faces again, to be with those lads, that time was special. Very, very special.’