Mick Hollis

[LUX]

This is getting very rose-tinted / sugar-coated. Mick Hollis was a poor forward. He wasn't big, fast or skillful. 25 apps, 6 goals (2 pens) in a season and a half, mostly playing in a team that got relegated. Replaced by the much better Pat Earles.

Lesson - don't buy from Crewe. Lesson not heeded - we next bought Hugh Cheetham from them - 12 apps, no goals.

1. He was signed to get us promoted. It worked.
2. The whole point of this thread was that he was signed from Stockport. Not Crewe.

[Fox Talbot]

Ah, yeah. My mistake. Confused him with Nelson who came from Crewe on the same day.

Still a poor player though.

[Sutekh]

This is getting very rose-tinted / sugar-coated. Mick Hollis was a poor forward. He wasn't big, fast or skillful. 25 apps, 6 goals (2 pens) in a season and a half, mostly playing in a team that got relegated. Replaced by the much better Pat Earles.

Lesson - don't buy from Crewe. Lesson not heeded - we next bought Hugh Cheetham from them - 12 apps, no goals.

Bit of a wait for the next one to arrive though - Tutti Frutti Martyn Booty - though would have had Neil Lennon sooner if Dario Gradi hadn’t talked him out of the move.

[East Grinstead Royal]

LUX, your memory’s a bit off, 210 didn’t launch until March 1976.

[AthleticoSpizz]

Yeah, and all we had was BBC Radio oxf*rd for our ‘coverage’

[Sutekh]

LUX, your memory’s a bit off, 210 didn’t launch until March 1976.

8 March 1976 at 6am

[LUX]

Happy to be corrected.

I was at every home game that season, usually in the Tilehurst end ( with Franchise FC and a few other lads ). But I was definitely in the seats for Stockport because I had won a competition from somewhere.

[East Grinstead Royal]

My abiding memory of Mick Hollis is of him responding with a v-sign to the bloke next to me who shouted, “Hollis, you w@nker” as the teams came out for the second half one Saturday.

[grey_squirrel]

As another oldie has just prompted me, we also signed Dennis Nelson the same day from Crewe, who I think had an even bigger impact.

My first away game was seeing Nelson score for us in a 1-0 win at Bournemouth in that promotion season; vital win in the last few games.

7th April 1976 at Bournemouth was my first away game too. I was sat right above the tunnel. Mick Hollis was an unused substitute. I remember shouting to him ‘well done Mick’ as he walked back into the changing rooms after the game. He just looked up at me perplexed!

[blythspartan]

I am pretty sure my first away league game was Northampton around April 76. We got thumped 4-1 from memory and I wasn’t happy.

It’s bad as I have no recollection of Mick Hollis. I liked Steve Death, Robin Friday, Gordon Cummings and Gary Peters. Christ my memory is sh!t these days.

[Sutekh]

Mick Hollis scored 6 goals in just 25 league appearances for Reading

He (and Dennis Nelson) made his debut in a 1-1 draw at Bradford City on 8 March 1976 (Nelson scored the goal). He scored his first goal in a 4-1 win over Darlington at Elm Park on 20 March.

He played his last game for Reading in a 2-1 home defeat to Lincoln on 2 April 1977 scoring Reading’s goal from the penalty spot

[South Coast Royal]

My memory for players is usually quite good but although the name is familiar I just can't place him and I can recall everybody else from Steve Death to Robin Friday but not your Mick, Lux.

On checking, we spent £14,000 to bring him and Nelson in.

My Royals Remembered book (signed by Ray Reeves, Dave Jones and the author Alan Sedunary R.I.P.) tells me that Hollis was released at the end of the following season having started just 19 games in all.

[LUX]

My memory for players is usually quite good but although the name is familiar I just can't place him and I can recall everybody else from Steve Death to Robin Friday but not your Mick, Lux.
.

very surprised no-one has mentioned John Murray from that team. The (very potent) strike force that season was Friday, Hiron, Murray.

Nelson and Hollis were very much back-ups, although the former did hang around for a few seasons, becoming popular. There used to be an ironic banner in the Tilehurst end pushing for Nelson to be included in the Scotland 1978 WC squad.

[South Coast Royal]

My memory for players is usually quite good but although the name is familiar I just can't place him and I can recall everybody else from Steve Death to Robin Friday but not your Mick, Lux.
.

very surprised no-one has mentioned John Murray from that team. The (very potent) strike force that season was Friday, Hiron, Murray.

Nelson and Hollis were very much back-ups, although the former did hang around for a few seasons, becoming popular. There used to be an ironic banner in the Tilehurst end pushing for Nelson to be included in the Scotland 1978 WC squad.

I liked John Murray-pretty deadly at taking penalties IIRC and a hard-working player.

[AthleticoSpizz]

My memory for players is usually quite good but although the name is familiar I just can't place him and I can recall everybody else from Steve Death to Robin Friday but not your Mick, Lux.
.

very surprised no-one has mentioned John Murray from that team. The (very potent) strike force that season was Friday, Hiron, Murray.

Nelson and Hollis were very much back-ups, although the former did hang around for a few seasons, becoming popular. There used to be an ironic banner in the Tilehurst end pushing for Nelson to be included in the Scotland 1978 WC squad.

ah, ‘Minty’ Murray.

Once spotted (by a young Spizz whilst hanging around by the players entrance) entering EP (with RF) whiskey in hand just before a game.

He ended up driving the pupils ambulance at The Avenue School in the 1980s.

Decent industrious player in partnership with the aforementioned Robin.

[Mid Sussex Royal]

My memory for players is usually quite good but although the name is familiar I just can't place him and I can recall everybody else from Steve Death to Robin Friday but not your Mick, Lux.
.

very surprised no-one has mentioned John Murray from that team. The (very potent) strike force that season was Friday, Hiron, Murray.

Nelson and Hollis were very much back-ups, although the former did hang around for a few seasons, becoming popular. There used to be an ironic banner in the Tilehurst end pushing for Nelson to be included in the Scotland 1978 WC squad.

ah, ‘Minty’ Murray.

Once spotted (by a young Spizz whilst hanging around by the players entrance) entering EP (with RF) whiskey in hand just before a game.

He ended up driving the pupils ambulance at The Avenue School in the 1980s.

Decent industrious player in partnership with the aforementioned Robin.

Can remember the Tilehurst End banner!

IIRC he used to just put his laces through the ball for his penalties but don't recall him ever missing.

Some interesting anecdotes from him in the Robin Friday book "the best footballer you never saw"

[grey_squirrel]

I saw there was mention of Hugh Cheetham further up this thread.

A blonde haired winger (signed from Darlo?). Another here today, quickly gone and forgotten tomorrow signing of the time.

His ‘claim to fame’ was scoring direct from a corner for us at Torquay.

Note: how the dark winter evenings in those days must have flown by!