A five-month ban which prevented a daily newspaper from press areas at its local Premier League football club has been lifted.

Earlier this year the sports desk at The News was told it couldn't attend training sessions and press conferences or enter the press areas to cover Portsmouth FC's home games at Fratton Park.

The shut out stemmed from a story which the Johnston Press daily ran claiming the FA Cup, which Portsmouth won in May 2008, had been damaged.

Sources told HTFP that the report was true but minutes from the club's Supporters Advisory Panel meeting in April say the paper "misrepresented a story" about damage done to the famous cup.

Sports editor Howard Frost said: "They haven't really given us a reason for lifting the ban. I know it was always their intention to let us back in eventually.

"Tuesday was the first pre-season friendly which we went to. I think the timing's a coincidence with Sulaiman Al-Fahim about to take over but we know he is very media friendly.

"As for reporting games, they couldn't stop us going to away matches, and home games we went in as a regular fan.

"It's a relief that it's over as it was tough not being able to speak to the manager and players towards the end of the season.

"We kept in touch with the press office for bits and pieces but we didn't really speak to each other for five months."

Portsmouth FC had not responded to a request for comment at the time of publication.

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