Worst ever Reading Player

[Henley Royal 1]

Karl Elsey Billy Whitehurst

[Smithy]

Mark Reilly andy gurney John halls

[Smithy]

Karl Elsey Billy Whitehurst

Loved big Billy Whitehurst

[strap]

Maybe those with long memories can help me.
A gangling centre back in the early seventies.
Thin, curly, but long ginger hair. Adrian something or other.
Absolutely no better at football than those standing around me in the town end back then. (pre-segregation).

I think this might have been Martin James. An amateur from Slough I think who signed for us for in 71/72 season, making 21 league and 1 FAC start. He was 6'2" and only 12st2lb. Wasn;t retained at the end of 1971/2 season and emigrated to South Africa. He was certainly no footballer as you say, but the 71/72 season team should have been much better than it was. We even had 3 players scoring double figure goals! (Granted 13 were in the FAC).

[Cripple Creek]

Good to see a shout for Dave Shipperley and hear mention of his turning circle. Looked like a sort of seven foot tall Ernest Borgnine with the expression of one of those people who always complains of having a 'head cold'.
Before Jerry Williams was transformed into a pretty bloody good right back and then winger he was a truly awful centre forward.
I would have to include Hughey Cheetham as one of the worst or perhaps just 'pointless' Reading players. David Crown had some terrible games on the wing for Reading.

[handbags_harris]

Given the title of the thread, literally nobody within the last 15-20 years should get a mention. They are coached to a ridiculous level nowadays that p*sses all over the level of coaching the standard D3/D4 player got pre-PL. You'd need to go back to probably the 1970's D4 days to get the worst ever player in the club's professional history.

If we're talking about the worst player I've ever seen...I'd need to really think about that.

[Fox Talbot]

1971-72 was our lowest finish in the league - 16th in Div 4 - largely because Charlie Hurley decided to try youngsters towards the end of the season. We still had a shout at promotion in mid-March then collapsed with two wins, three draws, ten defeats.

Our last home match had Martin James - who really was dreadful / worst ever - lining up with John Ashton and Bobby Lenarduzzi making their debuts (very different careers there!), Peter Harman, Alan Wooler and Andy Proudlove. Malcolm Swain came on for Tony Wagstaff and Deathie managed to keep the score down to 4!

However bad it got in the early 1980s I never saw anything worse than that lot.

[bakerlou]

Steve Moran lived in same town as me met him on numerous occasions {Queens Head} its fair to say he didnt fancy it much.

I once saw Steve Moran in Henley, it was just after he'd left us to sign for Exeter.

It was 2.30ish Saturday am, slinging out time at Stallones, he was in front of us in the kebab van queue in the car park, and was utterly cùnted. I checked the line-ups the next day, he played 12 hours later, in Exeter, can't recall if he scored or not.

It was only afterwards that I realised I missed an opportunity to ask him if a) he actually did rape that girl in Sweden, and / or b) if he knew that Billy Whitehurst had shagged his missus.

[Woodcote Royal]

The Goolie Sheppard, Can't remember his first name now.

Simon says throw the ball in your own net.

It's going back a long way these days but, trust us old codgers on here, Simon Sheppard made everyone else mentioned look like world beaters............................................as you would expect from any 'keeper famed for throwing the ball into his own net

[wiggso]

The Goolie Sheppard, Can't remember his first name now.

Simon says throw the ball in your own net.

It's going back a long way these days but, trust us old codgers on here, Simon Sheppard made everyone else mentioned look like world beaters............................................as you would expect from any 'keeper famed for throwing the ball into his own net

I remember him being dreadful, wasn't he number 2 to Shaka? However that overhead kick save was the stuff of legends

[Marino13]

The Goolie Sheppard, Can't remember his first name now.

Simon says throw the ball in your own net.

It's going back a long way these days but, trust us old codgers on here, Simon Sheppard made everyone else mentioned look like world beaters............................................as you would expect from any 'keeper famed for throwing the ball into his own net

i felt for simon sheppard. even the reading fans cheered when he actually caught the ball.

[under the tin]

Maybe those with long memories can help me.
A gangling centre back in the early seventies.
Thin, curly, but long ginger hair. Adrian something or other.
Absolutely no better at football than those standing around me in the town end back then. (pre-segregation).

I think this might have been Martin James. An amateur from Slough I think who signed for us for in 71/72 season, making 21 league and 1 FAC start. He was 6'2" and only 12st2lb. Wasn;t retained at the end of 1971/2 season and emigrated to South Africa. He was certainly no footballer as you say, but the 71/72 season team should have been much better than it was. We even had 3 players scoring double figure goals! (Granted 13 were in the FAC).

Thanks Strap.
Memories of those days came flooding back just by looking at the fixture list.
Getting into EP for free after bunking off school to see the Blyth Spartans match.
What also struck me was the way that today's footballers often complain about fixture congestion.
Just look at those fixtures above between 31 March and the whole of April. Unreal.

[John Smith]

Ibrahima Sonko would be in with a shout. Absolutely terrible footballer.

[SpaghettiHoop]

Ibrahima Sonko would be in with a shout. Absolutely terrible footballer.

Legend

[Victor Meldrew]

Maybe those with long memories can help me.
A gangling centre back in the early seventies.
Thin, curly, but long ginger hair. Adrian something or other.
Absolutely no better at football than those standing around me in the town end back then. (pre-segregation).

I think this might have been Martin James. An amateur from Slough I think who signed for us for in 71/72 season, making 21 league and 1 FAC start. He was 6'2" and only 12st2lb. Wasn;t retained at the end of 1971/2 season and emigrated to South Africa. He was certainly no footballer as you say, but the 71/72 season team should have been much better than it was. We even had 3 players scoring double figure goals! (Granted 13 were in the FAC).

Thanks Strap.
Memories of those days came flooding back just by looking at the fixture list.
Getting into EP for free after bunking off school to see the Blyth Spartans match.
What also struck me was the way that today's footballers often complain about fixture congestion.
Just look at those fixtures above between 31 March and the whole of April. Unreal.

Two things from that season.
I don't remember Harman scoring that many goals nor Gordon Cumming-what a fantastic return from Cumming as a winger.

[maffff]

Maybe not worst ever, but Bongani Khumalo always sits in my mind as being something special in that regard.

[Tilehurstsouthbank]

Mass Saar anyone? Didn't he have to have shorts made as he had such a huge arse?

[Norfolk Royal]

Home attendances from 1971/2 are interesting (well nearly) and the fluctuation which characterises our traditionally fickle support.
Look at the crowd against Barrow at home, although I suspect there was some sort of deal for Arsenal tickets attached to it. The Barrow players must have got stage fright. The large attendance away to Aldershot but the home attendance being half that. Assume most of our fans went to Aldershot but hardly any of theirs came to ours.

[Berry]

Paul Brayson....Couldn't score in a brothel

[West Stand Man]

Those who cite Ollie Kearns in this list clearly never really saw him. His RFC record was pretty good even though he didn't look like a footballer. He was one of those players who could have scored a hat trick per game and the boo boys would still have knocked him.

Matt Robinson is also misplaced here. When he came in we were in dire need of a left footed full back (actually, any left footed player at all) and he made a really positive impact.

I assume the addition of Sonko was a silly attempt at a joke?