No problem with it now. Revenge was completed when Bolton, then steaming away at the top of the Championship a couple of seasons later, and on a long winning run were overturned 3-2 at Elm Park with Jimmy Quinn having to go in goal for most of the 2nd half. I'd forgotten about that, but it's all co...

Bury abandoned league cup tie 1995. Footage near the end at 1:15 ish https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=cd0AvzWhPug Never seen Elm Park that sodden. We stood at the back of the South Bank under the clock and the rain was running down the steps lapping over the soles of my shoes. Iirc the rain only reall...

A quarter of a century ago today we enjoyed our greatest away performance ever. The goal highlights don't do it justice - we were brilliant that day.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MwxI5e06HXU

Boxing Day 2003. 0-3 at home to Wimbledon. Wimbledon were morphing into Franchise FC and were hated by their own fans, who'd started boycotting games. We surrendered 3-0 for the third game running. Fans were turning against Coppell and it wouldn't have been a surprise if Mr Mad had sacked him (he ve...

Lee Nogan :shock: We recouped most of our transfer fee when we sold him. Was he our record signing? According to wiki we paid £250k for him. Overall I thought he was a decent signing. I think our previous record signing was the aforementioned Craig Maskell also for £250k. I'm being provocative. I l...

Got to be looked at in the context of transfer fees. So: Craig Maskell. Record signing who was ok, but nowhere near as good as he should have been. And replaced Deano "Dean" Horrix I think so was always onto a loser. Carl Asaba. Record signing. Wasn't terrible but he was no Jimmy Quinn. Le...

Tony Le Mesmer Southbank in full voice throughout with many chants you don't here often these days!

Younger viewers will be perplexed by non-Liverpool fans singing You'll Never Walk Alone.

It was a standard song for all teams once but, somehow, Liverpool took ownership of it.

Leyton Orient away 1993/94. Feature on The Sunday Match. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TsaQMhb7JOk There was a textbook infiltration of the home end by a dozen or so miscreants at that game. They got led round the pitch to the away end before kick off leading to a lovely rendition of the, now sad...

Last competitive game under floodlights at Elm Park took place 22 years ago today: https://hobnob.royals.org/matdoc/240298.html And the last win at Elm Park? Think we lost nearly every league game after Christmas? <Checks> Our record from 7 Feb was: P18 - W2 - L16 :shock: The other win was Stoke at...

It happened in front of the Southbank. Saints fan being hauled along the track by 2 coppers presumably prior to being nicked or arrested (although why they were taking Saints fans that way I gave no idea). At an FA Cup game against Hendon in the late 80s, I remember a few Hendon (or were they Totte...

That Sunderland game was mad. They pissed on us for 75 minutes, Kitson scores 2 in 5 an I've never seen 15,000 fans leave so quickly with 10 minutes to go when their team is top of the league and still in a with a shout of nicking a goal. i remember going with a mate who's parents lived in Morpeth ...

Scunthorpe 2 - 2 Reading -19 Feb 2000 "We're off to sunny Scunny". 20 years ago today :shock: In the midst of Pardew's season of transition, when adequate was probably the word to describe a fairly uneventlful season, 900 of us met up at the Madejski wearing special t-shirts with special s...

Lovely footage of the Miniature For Short launching the membership card.

There was nothing quite like a midweek game under the lights in the Network South East Enclosure.

Old Man Andrews You could just sit down? It is an offence to stand at an all seater stadium.

And totally unenforced as the 100s of thousands of supporters who stand at games every week proves.

SWLR Bl**dy engineering works means a 35/40 minute journey from SW London is now 2 hours sat on buses. Looks like no trains out of London Bridge too.

Jubilee Line to Canada Water. The Den is a 20 min walk from there.

9 January 2001

Surely we all remember the glorious 2-1 win at Hereford in the LDV Vans Trophy? I remember the football special train was absolutely bouncing on the way back with thousands of delerious Royals.

Had forgotten about Maddison taking the free-kick when he should have been on the pitch. It was bad enough even without that. From 2 mins in here you can see the confusion: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zqwIjOMR3lI Hard to do justice to the fury in the Southbank. The generally sedate old codgers n...

6 Jan 1998.
League Cup Quarter Final
Reading 0 - 1 Middlesbrough

I haven't even looked at the HNA? match report, but I can tell you straight away that the ref was George Cain from Bootle.

Everyone who was there will tell why he is so memorable.

If you're an adult and you're getting upset because people who support a different team to you celebrate when they score a goal, you need to have a word with yourself.

John Smith Port Vale

Cheltenham are home to Port Vale in R2. As I'm round the corner from Whaddon Rd and would love a Reading visit, a trip to Vale Park is pretty much guaranteed. You heard it here first.