Dennis Edwards - swapped goals for frozen foods

The ex-Blues striker, who lived in Denmead, passed away on Friday, September 13 2019, aged 82.

He made 78 appearances and scored 16 goals between 1964 and 1968, after joining from Charlton Athletic.

The News spoke to Edwards in November 2014 as he reminisced about his Fratton Park days.

Below is the full interview as it appeared in the Sports Mail on November 15, 2004...

Filling the boots of Ron Saunders was never going to be easy.

The Fratton favourite, who remains Pompey’s third-highest Football League goalscorer (139) behind only Peter Harris (194) and Johnny Weddle (173), was a surprise departure three games into the 1964-65 season.

Having topped the goalscoring charts for a club record sixth successive time the previous term, the news that second division Blues had sold the prolific marksman for £15,000 to lower league Watford came as a blow.

An opportunity knocked, though, for chosen replacement Dennis Edwards.

Signed from Charlton with the profits from Saunders’ sale, Edwards arrived in January 1965 with the immediate task to fire the goals to lead George Smith’s struggling side to safety.

He said: ‘When I came to Pompey, they had just got rid of Ron Saunders.

‘I had to take his place which was very difficult.

‘Everybody told me not to join Pompey, they were in a relegation battle when I arrived.

‘But it was the right time for me to leave Charlton – I wasn’t getting on too well with the manager (Frank Hill).’

Edwards, though, was unable to replicate the form he had shown for the London club, battling with a knee injury that had hampered him throughout his career.

The former England Amateur international scored just twice in his first 15 appearances, as the Blues faced the drop heading into the final game of the season.

Edwards said: ‘I was having problems with both my fitness and form.

‘I’d had a couple of cartilage operations and a cruciate knee ligament injury which didn’t help.

‘Back in those days, though, as long as you could walk you could play!

‘There was nothing unusual in that – a lot of players were playing with injuries all of the time.

‘But we were struggling to get results and were an ageing team at that stage, with old stalwarts Jimmy Dickinson, Johnny Gordon and Alex Wilson all playing.’

The focus fell on the long-serving trio as the Blues ensured second division survival in a dramatic and emotional season finalé at Northampton Town.

Needing a point against the Cobblers to stay up, Pompey trailed to Gordon’s 77th-minute own goal.

But with just four minutes left on the clock the visitors saved themselves through unlikely source Wilson – when the defender picked the perfect moment to score only his third goal in 14 seasons.

That precious strike also saw retiring club legend Dickinson chaired from the pitch in triumph, after an illustrious playing career spanning 20 years and 764 league appearances.

Edwards, who played through the pain barrier at the County Ground, said: ‘In the event, we got out of relegation on the last day of the season thanks to Alex.

‘It was a relief for Pompey supporters and management because at that stage we only had 16 players on the books.

‘George Smith was told by the directors that he had to cut down on his expenditure, so we had a squad of 16 players including two goalkeepers John Milkins and John Armstrong

‘We had more office staff than we had players!’

Smith famously disbanded both the reserve and youth teams before declaring ‘There was nothing but fish in the sea around Portsmouth.  It was a management  style that pulled no punches but was not without its criticism.

Edwards said: ‘I don’t think George was the best manager in the world but he was a strong man.

‘He was the sergeant major type.

‘He sometimes criticised players heavily when an arm around the shoulder may have done more good – not just me personally but the squad in general.’

After narrowly avoiding the drop, Edwards and the Blues were eager to improve the following season.

And the 1965-66 campaign saw Edwards showcase more of his talent as the Blues battled to a mid-table finish.

His 10-goal haul also went some way to appeasing the Fratton faithful.

But for Edwards, who had set himself high standards, it still wasn’t enough.

He added: ‘The crowd was appreciated by everybody who played at Fratton Park from up and down the country.

‘All the clubs liked the atmosphere at Pompey and how devoted the supporters were to the players.

‘There was no seating when I played – it was standing only so they got more in the ground.

‘In the big games they would get near to 30,000 through the gates.

‘It was always nice to see 10,000 arms going up in the air when you’d scored at the Fratton End.

‘But for me, 10 goals wasn’t really enough – I was looking for 20.’

While progress may have been slow on the pitch, the friendships off it blossomed nicely.

Edwards said: ‘I got on well with the other players.

‘We had a good team spirit and would socialise with each other a lot – in those days ‘pub’ wasn’t a dirty word.

‘A beer in midweek was perfectly acceptable!’

The 1966-67 season was another disappointing one for misfiring Edwards, who netted just twice in 22 games.

It was another mid-table finish for Pompey but it was Albie McCann who was the reliable source of goals as Edwards fell foul of some suspect training methods of manager Smith.

Edwards revealed: ‘I wasn’t performing at my best.

‘I had continuing knee troubles and I felt I wasn’t managed right in terms of the training I had to do.

‘Everybody had to do the same training, regardless of what condition they were in.

‘If you turned up for work and you got dressed into your training kit, you had to go out and train exactly the same as everybody else.

‘People are built differently, though. Some are small and short or tall, big and heavy.

‘Different people need different types of training.

‘We weren’t as sophisticated as clubs are now to give that specialised training.

‘We all had to do the same thing and even when you got injured they would just put you out on the wing, because we didn’t have any subs in those days.

‘If you’ve got 16 players in your squad then you had to play sometimes even if you only had one good leg.’

When Edwards was no longer able to command a place in the Blues’ starting line-up, his bid to be Saunders’ long-term replacement effectively ended one game into the 1967-68 campaign.

After departing on loan to Brentford, he eventually left for Aldershot – his final club – before, retiring at the end of the season, aged just 31.

Reflecting on a three-year stay at the Blues which yielded 78 league games and 16 goals, Edwards added: ‘I enjoyed my time at Pompey, even though I didn’t do well.

‘I was very disappointed in that respect – I didn’t play my best football in front of the Fratton fans.

‘Players move around from one club to another and are good at one club and not at another. It happens.

Retirement

On retirement in that era pubs were a popular venture for ex players but not Dennis, he decided to set up a food supply company in Hilsea.  The company has just past its fiftieth anniversary supplying food to the industry and is regarded as one of the largest independent food suppliers in Hampshire.

Colourised image supplied by Laila Edwards, granddaughter of Dennis.