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Reading away match thread

Jerseybean

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Jerseybean

Jerseybean

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Posted

A trip to Berkshire one of the Home Counties, even if there is some doubt about which counties are included in that term: https://yougov.co.uk/topics/entertainment/articles-reports/2019/10/23/which-counties-make-home-counties

NP’s press conference:

 

 

Matty James pre-match presser:

 

Kal Naismith will miss his fifth consecutive game with a calf injury. While NW will be looking forward to the game, he was a former transfer target of the Royals and has scored seven goals against Reading in 17 meetings since 2013.

They are expected to be without Hutchinson, Sarr, Dann and  Moore all injured, plus captain  Yiadom who is suspended.

Pre-season Reading revealed they would offer all of the 23 other Championship clubs in 2022/23 the opportunity to charge their fans just £20 for a ticket at the Select Car Leasing Stadium. However, this is on the condition the team commits in advance to a reciprocal arrangement where Reading fans will be charged the same in the reverse fixture. We had an initial 2,167 ticket allocation, which were snapped up in a matter of hours, so it’s a sell our for traveling fans. To all those making the trip enjoy and make so much noise it’s actually frightening ? here’s to a great day and three points, COYR.

On Tuesday they lost 3-2 against Swansea having been two up, which made it three consecutive defeats. Reading possess the third-best home record in the division, collecting 16 points from their eight home matches. We have the worst defensive aways record in the division, even with a clean sheet at The Hawthorns on Tuesday night.

Referee: John Busby
Assistant referee: Rob Smith
Assistant referee: Mark Stevens
Fourth official: David Webb

After spending 102 years at Elm Park, Reading moved to the Madejski Stadium in 1998, and share the stadium with Rugby Union’s London Irish. The stadium itself is named after club Chairman Sir John Madejski. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Madejski_Stadium however, currently it is known as the Select Car Leasing Stadium for sponsorship reasons!

Back in May they appointed former England midfielder Paul Ince as their permanent manager.

The 54-year-old had been in charge on an interim basis since February when Veljko Paunovic left the club. The former Liverpool, Manchester United and Inter Milan player led the Royals to four wins and three draws in his first 11 games as Reading avoided relegation from the second tier.

Alex Rae, who had been assisting Ince, also joined permanently.

For history buffs here’s their full story: https://www.readingfc.co.uk/history/our-story/ for everyone else here’s the  potted version:  Reading Football Club has been a member of the Football League since 1920, when the Third Division was introduced. The best result came in 2007 with an eighth place in the Premier League. They have reached the semi-finals twice in the FA Cup and quarter-finals once in the Football League Cup. The club faced a big economic struggle at the late 20th century before it was taken over by Sir John Madejski in the 1990s.

They have perhaps been one of the surprise teams so far this season after finishing in 21st place last season many thought they’d struggle again this campaign, right now they are tenth with 22 points from 15 games.

Our head to head record couldn’t be closer we’ve won and lost 41 times against them and drawn 20 times. Last season we did the double over them:

 

 

Back in the day there were mavericks like George Best and Paul Gascoigne, and then there was Robin Friday. He was the punk rockstar of football. Robin Friday’s antics in Reading's pubs were legendary, before his move to Cardiff City, where he was equally loved by the fans.

A heavy-drug user, he tragically died in 1990 aged just 38. But fans will always remember the ultimate cult hero and his incredible performances.

https://www.joe.ie/sport/feature-robin-friday-the-ultimate-football-maverick-511537 and https://nation.cymru/culture/the-robin-friday-story-that-has-never-been-revealed-until-now/

Robin Friday was an exceptional footballer who should have played for England. But he never did—why? Because Robin Friday was a man who would not bow down to anyone, who refused to take life seriously, and who lived every moment as if it were his last. Loved and admired by everyone who saw him, Friday also had a dark side—troubled, strong-minded, reckless, he would end up destroying himself. Tragically, after years of alcohol and drug abuse, he died at the age of 38 without ever having fulfilled his potential. The book ‘The Greatest Footballer You Never Saw: The Robin Friday Story’ by Paul McGuigan (Author), Paolo Hewitt (Author) tells his story.

Well known fans include Damian Green (politician), Chris Tarrant, Kate Winslet, Ricky Gervais is also a well-known Royals supporter.

Reading ramblings

  • A homonym is a word with multiple meanings and, unsurprisingly, Reading is a place that falls victim to this. This is something residents of other towns will never understand: How hard it is to Google anything about your home town of Reading without getting lots of results about books and reading courses!
  • People in Reading are well catered for in the extremely unlikely event of nuclear war. The university's Whiteknights campus is home to the Region 6 War Room, which was built during the Cold War. It has room for 50 people and was built to protect the Regional Commissioner and around 50 of his staff during a nuclear attack. The commissioner would be in charge of the operation if they lost contact with Central Government. It includes a central map room, control rooms, satellite cabins, offices and communications room, dormitories and even a canteen. What it doesn't have is any windows. It was completed in 1953 and, at the time,  the people who made it were confident it would protect from nuclear weapons. What is not known is whether that's the case now, and we'd guess there isn't much desire to carry out a test. The reason it was built was because, unfortunately, the Reading area is probably quite high on the list of places to attack, due to its two Atomic Weapons Establishments in Aldermaston and Burghfield.
  • The first UK restaurant of the iconic Little Chef brand was in Oxford Road in Reading. It was in the car park of the former Rex Cinema. The brand was inspired by American style roadside diner caravans and there were 12 restaurants located around England by 1965. Reading's opened in 1958 - the same year Britain's first motorway was opened - and had 11 seats.Reading was chosen as it was, apparently, "the gateway to the West Country." Guess that means a point between London and the west.
  • Tilehurst is a pleasant suburb of Reading with a strong community but quite how Brazilian racing driver Ayrton Senna found himself living there is another story. The prodigiously talented Brazilian did find himself living in a rented detached house in Chelsea Close in the 1980s. It was in the early stages of his career and he lived with friends in the road. Neighbours believed he lived in Reading because it was equidistant between Williams' HQ in Didcot and McLaren's headquarters in Woking. Senna was tragically killed in 1994 in a horrific crash in the San Marino Gran Prix, Tilehurst is now the home of Ayrton Senna Road, which must baffle visitors, and there is even a playground named after the great man.
  • Reading is home to the world's biggest lion statue. The Maiwand Lion in Forbury Gardens is (probably) the biggest of all. It's 31 feet from mane to tail. It commemorates the deaths of 329 men from the 66th (Berkshire) Regiment of Foot, who lost their lives during the Second Anglo-Afghan War between 1878 and 1880. The reason it is in Reading is probably that its creator, sculptor George Blackall Simmonds, was from a prominent Reading family.

Pubs

There aren't an abundance of friendly pubs and bars - nevertheless Reading FC have recommended some that away fans can go and enjoy before a game. When you exit the railway station, just walk a minute or two and you will find yourself at the Three Guineas Pub. Good pub, with good beers and atmosphere. There is also the 'World Turned Upside Down' which is more of  a spit and sawdust pub!

World Turned Upside Down, 387 Basingstoke Road, Reading, RG2 0JE, https://www.stonehouserestaurants.co.uk/nationalsearch/southeast/theworldturnedupsidedownreading#/

Nag's Head, 5 Russell Street, Reading, RG1 7XD, https://www.thenagsheadreading.co.uk

The Nag's Head is a CAMRA award-winning pub situated near Reading town centre. Specialising in Keg and Craft Cask, they have 12 hand pumps featuring a constantly changing variety of Craft Casks from predominantly local breweries as well as a selection of delicious ciders and continental lagers.

Walkabout, Wiston Terrace, Reading, RG1 1DG, https://www.walkaboutbars.co.uk/reading?utm_source=google&utm_medium=local_seo_gmb&utm_content=website

The Three Guineas, Station Approach, Reading, RG1 1LY. Designed by Isambard Kingdom Brunel himself, The Three Guineas was built to serve… and whether you fancy cask ales, commuter coffees or cracking cuisine, they certainly live up to that. Right by Reading Station.

If you want to splash out on a first class steak make for the Buenasado Argentine Steakhouse, Unit 28 Lower Mall, The Oracle Shopping Centre, RG1 2AQ https://www.buenasado.com/restaurants/reading/

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The Constant Rabbit

The Constant Rabbit

Posted
Posted (edited)

I find it quite bizarre that any club in the championship wouldn't make space to sell another 1000+ tickets to away fans, and stick rigidly to the 2167 allowance.

Everyone of those 1000 will spend at least £35 on tickets and a drink - surely it costs less than £35,000 to segregate another area?

 

Baffling - especially as the demand is obviously there, and Reading will certainly have the space, as their attendances haven't been stellar this season

 

 

Edited by The Constant Rabbit
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Bar BS3

Bar BS3

Posted
Posted
2 minutes ago, Selred said:

That’s for the Terriers surely? ?

Depends what time & night you go, I think. 

I wouldn't advise parking up their to eat a hotdog, or you may get yourself into a situation to hadn't banked on. 

Other times, it puts a whole new dynamic on the hobby of "bird watching" 

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ExiledAjax

ExiledAjax

Posted
Posted
50 minutes ago, Pickle Rick said:

Looks like RobinsTV is for overseas only; is this correct?!

Yes. 

Only weeknight games are on RobinsTV in the UK.

I think we've got a good chance of a win today. Reading aren't particularly creative and I think we'll be able to handle their attack. We will score so then it's on them to do the same, which isn't a given. 

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22A

22A

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Posted
19 hours ago, 22A said:

Their match thread is already two pages long. https://hobnob.royals.org/forum/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=189842&sid=f062f420c05e63f93ef6462845ec90ec

 


It's why Saturday is so important. We have to play on the front foot. We mustn't drop deep.


How much would you like to bet we sit deep and have less than 40% possession?


I hope not. I don't think Brizzle are up to much so it's,an opportunity for us.

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Numero Uno

Numero Uno

Posted
Posted (edited)
9 minutes ago, Davefevs said:

If we get 2-0 up and sit in a deep block, I’d take it.  But generally I’d like to see us control more of a 90 mins.

The strange thing this season is that in tighter games we have been dominating possession and then seem to go the opposite way when we get in front or that’s at least how I recall it. Not sure whether it’s instructions or mentality?

Edited by Numero Uno
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Offside

Offside

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Posted

We are so inconsistent, I have no idea what to expect today. Hopefully the players will be more confident after the win at WBA and we’ll build on that result. Obviously I’m hoping for a win, but a draw would be a decent enough result and would give us 4 points out of six from two away games. 

COYR

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Numero Uno

Numero Uno

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1 minute ago, Offside said:

We are so inconsistent, I have no idea what to expect today. Hopefully the players will be more confident after the win at WBA and we’ll build on that result. Obviously I’m hoping for a win, but a draw would be a decent enough result and would give us 4 points out of six from two away games. 

COYR

I get the impression reading other Managers comments that we are seen as a team who can play if you let us but can be knocked out of our stride. Reminds me of back in the day when teams down South were labelled Southern Softies. It’s obvious that Reading will be looking to do what Birmingham did to us if Caroll is starting. Big game for the back three and Max in particular today. This is when he shows us whether he can cut it longer term at the level imo.

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Davefevs

Davefevs

Posted
Posted
1 minute ago, Numero Uno said:

The strange thing this season is that in tighter games we have been dominating possession and then seem to go the opposite way when we get in front or that’s at least how I recall it. Not sure whether it’s instructions or mentality?

I guess for a lot of sides like us, where there is little between us and our opponents, going ahead probably results in us thinking “don’t throw away an important advantage”. A team like Man City would be “let’s make it 2”.

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not sure how well this reads, but I track how many minutes we are winning, drawing and losing each game.  You can sort of see how important it is for us to lead in a game.  We’ve not reversed going behind this season.  Only Blackpool have we gone and got a point having been behind, although we did go from behind into the lead.  But that is the exception.

(green leading, grey drawing, red losing)

 

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