MATCHWATCH : Bristol Rovers (a)

[Millsy]

What is it we're chanting at the end a few times?

[Ascotexgunner]

Good night all round....with Leicester losing.

[Sutekh]

Reading now 17th.

NINE points ahead of Burton in 21st. Burton have 1 game in hand.
ELEVEN points ahead of Cheltenham in 22nd. Cheltenham have 2 games in hand.

Bottom half of League 1:

12 Exeter 43 -18 54
13 Wigan 43 3 53
14 Charlton 43 0 51
15 Wycombe 40 -1 51
16 Bristol Rovers 42 -15 51
17 Reading 43 -2 49
18 Shrewsbury 42 -28 46
19 Cambridge 41 -20 45
20 Port Vale 41 -25 40
=========================
21 Burton 42 -26 40
22 Cheltenham 41 -23 38
23 Fleetwood 42 -26 34
24 Carlisle 43 -35 30

Rovers though! 7 games now with no goals and only 2 points to show. Cheltenham away next for them.

Reading need 5 points to be mathematically safe but will probably turn out to be safe already.

[NathStPaul]

That's Reading very safe now, no danger of relegation. Well on the pitch anyway.

Hopefully the squad can have some fun in the remaining games, really go for it no matter who we are playing.

[genome]

Yep, that's season done

[Rax]

Can't remember the last time I saw a Reading side play with such swagger. 15-17 years?

Brendon Roger’s Reading v Watford in 2009

Wasn't Bodgers the Watford manager that day?

[Snowflake Royal]

Can't remember the last time I saw a Reading side play with such swagger. 15-17 years?

Brendon Roger’s Reading v Watford in 2009

Wasn't Bodgers the Watford manager that day?

the 4-0? Yeah just before we appointed him unless Brogue is thinking of a different one.

But Bodgers barely won anything with us so I doubt it.

[Royal_jimmy]

I oxf*rd love these players! Hope we can keep most of them this summer.

[Brogue]

Brendon Roger’s Reading v Watford in 2009

Wasn't Bodgers the Watford manager that day?

the 4-0? Yeah just before we appointed him unless Brogue is thinking of a different one.

But Bodgers barely won anything with us so I doubt it.

Yes sorry I didn’t write it well. He was the Watford manager at the time, which is what I meant.

[jd82]

Totally dominant first half, then apparently decided it would be fun to allow them to grow into it after half time. 2 crucial blocks/saves (couldn’t tell from the other end) kept us clear and we saw out the rest of the game relatively comfortably.

Good noise from the Reading lot, not a peep out of Rovers, but they were pretty dreadful.

Best moment of the night was Ruben getting fully involved in the celebrations.

[yuomi]

Playing like they did (in the first half) tonight, this side is a starting LW away from being properly competitive in this league - which is crazy when you consider what we had to work with last summer and the troubles Selles has had since. So much credit to him in particular for sticking with us and navigating the mess.

Mbengue might actually be a better CB than Abbey. He and Bindon are just so good together when they play like that, and Bindon's clearance off the line was top drawer.

[Chameleon]

Abrefa showed a lot tonight, he's developed massively since the start of the year.Just got to hope the new owners when confirmed don't mess with anything and just keep the squad together. Given the ages of the team it's just a case of steady as she goes next year hopefully.

[blythspartan]

I couldn’t go tonight, but wins like this make all the sh*t worth it. I am so glad I support Reading rather than a big Premiership club.

[windermereROYAL]

Seems like there is a light at the end of a very long dark tunnel, this young team has huge potential, if we can keep them together there is no doubt in my mind we`ll be pushing for the play-offs at the very least next term.

How about an inflatable home game against Blackpool this season? what`s not to celebrate?

[Crowbar6753]

I'm pretty sure the new owner's in waiting will be closely watching what's going on during the whole process and i'm pretty sure Mark Bowen will be in contact with whomever is going to be the figurehead and letting them know what contracts to draft up and have ready as soon as it gets ratified.

I would personally throw three year contracts at almost all of them and watch them grow into a better team. Let's face it, this league is pretty weak as a whole with only the top three being anything special!!

A new LB and LM/LW is pretty much all we need.....someone mentioned Mbengue being better than Abbey, well he's certainly not far off and growing in confidence with every game we play.

As long as this takeover goings through then i think we may have a bright short term future as long as the new owners don't tinker to much!!

[RoyalBlue]

Ffs dim teller and ‘listen’ mick gooding getting Mbengue and yiadom completely mixed up. Saying Mbengue was injured and has had to go off. It was yiadom and I’m not sure he was even injured. Was it tactical?

To Dim and 'Listen', players like them always seem to look very alike. They are also usually 'powerful' and have 'great physique'!

[Snowflake Royal]

Ffs dim teller and ‘listen’ mick gooding getting Mbengue and yiadom completely mixed up. Saying Mbengue was injured and has had to go off. It was yiadom and I’m not sure he was even injured. Was it tactical?

To Dim and 'Listen', players like them always seem to look very alike. They are also usually 'powerful' and have 'great physique'!

In fairness to them, it's not a racism thing.

They get Wing and Bindon mixed up all the time too.

Hell, Tim often mistakes a white player for a black player and vice versa.

[Brogue]

Ffs dim teller and ‘listen’ mick gooding getting Mbengue and yiadom completely mixed up. Saying Mbengue was injured and has had to go off. It was yiadom and I’m not sure he was even injured. Was it tactical?

To Dim and 'Listen', players like them always seem to look very alike. They are also usually 'powerful' and have 'great physique'!

In fairness to them, it's not a racism thing.

They get Wing and Bindon mixed up all the time too.

Hell, Tim often mistakes a white player for a black player and vice versa.

A friend of mine once got sonko and kitson mixed up. True story, he still get ribbed for it 20 years later

[Mr Angry]

Last night was hugely enjoyable - and not just because we won.

Great to go to an old school football ground, with old school fans whilst standing on a proper terrace again; loved it!

From where I was just behind the dug outs, the noise by our away fans was exceptional; a lot or grudging nods of appreciation from the Rovers' fans around me at both the size of our support and how they supported the team.

As for the game itself, not a lot to add over and above what has already been said; first half we were completely dominant and the only surprises were that it took until the 45th minute for a 2nd goal to arrive and that we weren't 3 or 4 up at half time. That free kick from Wing was unstoppable!

2nd half Rovers started with more intent, but some excellent defending saw us see out the first 15 minutes (the headed clearance of the goal-line by Bindon was Sonkoesque in its magnificence) and from then on it was only a question of would we go on to add to the goal tally (and frankly, we really should have done).

Very impressed with our subs; Mukairu was exceptionally quick and dangerous, Craig did well holding up the middle whilst Abrefa looked totally composed and a player of genuine potential.

IF we can keep the vast bulk of our young and exciting squad together over the Summer and IF we can get new, positive oweners in, we can be a Play Off centender (at the very east) next season.

[WestYorksRoyal]

If the takeover happens and we keep the bulk of this team plus the manager together next year, there's reasons to be optimistic. Could could our situation this season have given us an extra edge we risk losing? It's been the team and the fans against the world, fighting for the club's survival.

It will need a different mindset where the expectation is top 6, and the future of the club isn't at stake.

Results also have different meanings. The draw at home on Saturday was a good point against an in form team in our situation, but if you're pushing at the top you have to win a home game where you dominate like we did. Similarly, Shrewsbury and Wycombe were annoyances but not a disaster; they would be seriously bad results in a play-off push.

So lots of reasons to be positive if everything gets sorted, but competing at the right end of the table will be another learning experience for this team and manager. That's why I think 2026 is a more realistic promotion target than 2025.