 He was sold for £285,000, a record fee for Portsmouth that had been decided by tribunal.Keen to move back to the South of England, he was signed as a replacement for Micky Quinn, who was expected to leave the club soon after and his sale used to fund Baird's arrival.However, Quinn refused to move to either of the two clubs interested, Millwall and Watford, leaving the club short of funds and resulting in Portsmouth chairman John Deacon looking to sell Baird days after his arrival.