Bottom 3

[Ian Royal]

disappointed I missed it. Was probably too busy cursing Ingimarsson.

[Victor Meldrew]

Most of them are third tier level, which is our natural position.

I don't agree with this notion that we have a natural position and that it is in the third tier. We are where we are.

We've even spent more time in this division than we have in the fourth tier. And that's a fact.

Spacey,
You seem to have ignored all those years when we were in Div3 South and there was no such thing as a 4th tier.
To help or hinder your argument you should perhaps treat the years that we finished in the lower half of Div3 South as being the equivalent of finishing in the 4th tier?

BTW I have this feeling that we will be relegated and am not ecstatic about watching Rochdale and the rest.

[Rex]

It had the stewards ruffled though as i don't suppose they legislated for that.

[Factfinder]

Will be 4 points behind next club on Sat evening when Sheff W beat Peterborough at home

Aghh, rub it in, why don't you.

[PEARCEY]

Most of them are third tier level, which is our natural position.

I don't agree with this notion that we have a natural position and that it is in the third tier. We are where we are.

We've even spent more time in this division than we have in the fourth tier. And that's a fact.

Spacey,
You seem to have ignored all those years when we were in Div3 South and there was no such thing as a 4th tier.
To help or hinder your argument you should perhaps treat the years that we finished in the lower half of Div3 South as being the equivalent of finishing in the 4th tier?

BTW I have this feeling that we will be relegated and am not ecstatic about watching Rochdale and the rest.

I was going to make the same comment about being in Division Three South and endorse your comment about being less than ecstatic about playing Rochdale next season.

[floyd__streete]

BTW I have this feeling that we will be relegated and am not ecstatic about watching Rochdale and the rest.

Yeah, pretty much a +1 here in all honesty. I think the novelty of seeing us play new teams (yeah, I was probably about 4 when we last played Rochdale, so f*ck off) will wear off after about 45 seconds when I realise I have just paid £21 to watch Reading play Rochdale.

Big shout out to Ryan Bertrand who is playing a major part in his own personal second successive reLOLegation. I wouldn't mind him so much if he hadn't come out with that we're bigger and better than Leicester line before we played - and lost, natch - to a team about 500 points ahead of us in the table. Chopsy Chelsea twat.

[Terminal Boardom]

Don't worry too much. We will wn on Saturday and SJM's disciples will trot out the balony that everything is good in the world. 1983/4 would have been the last time that we played the Dale. They were the last team to beat us at that level IIRC. I think that was Maurice Evans's last game before he was unceremonially removed.

At least it could give us the opportunity to play Yeovil in a league fixture for the first time.

[glenroyal]

Nostaligia for visiting a few of the old remaining terraced sheds aside, I don't want us to go down and don't believe it is anything like to time to settle for that. That's not RTG, that's realism. The dire situation is clear.

In terms of putting the right sequence of results together, I don't think Sheff Wed are a team to focus on.

[Snowball]

Arsenal have just made up 11 points in a matter of weeks, (November 29)
and that's against a side (Chelsea) who haven't exactly been doing bad recently.

1-2, 3-3, 2-1, 1-1, 0-0, 2-1, 7-2 (16-10) 7 games, 12 points in the league.

Sheffield Wednesday, who have crippling debts looked "certs" for relegation, didn't
win for three months, then win two-on-the-spin

Between October 20 and January 2nd, 74 days or so, they P11, W0 D3 L8 3 Points and 7 goals for - 25 goals against

Then in four days they manage 6 points with two wins.

Things change. This is not a BAD squad and we'll do OK.


Since we started to turn it around...

A 3-1 Coventry City
H 1-1 Ipswich Town
H 2-1 Blackpool
A 1-2 Derby County
A 2-0 Sheffield Wed
H 2-4 Crystal Palace (Crazy)
H 1-1 Scunthorpe
A 1-1 Bristol City
H 1-1 Swansea City
A 1-4 Plymouth (Awful)
H 1-1 Liverpool FA Cup
A 2-1 Liverpool FA Cup
A 1-2 Nottm Forest

P13 W4 D5 L4 19-20 the equivalent of 17 points in 13 games, equivalent of a a sixty-point season

And yes, I DO include cup games because we are fielding full sides and making a go.

Last season, Jan 17th, after 27 games Doncaster were third bottom. They finished 14th

We are in the deep stuff because we started badly, have drawn a few too many, but looking at the last 13 games
when we started to turn it around, it doesn't look so bad. Liverpool, Forest, Swansea, Blackpool, Bristol,
a Premiership side and 4 top ten sides and a goal difference of just -1 over those games.

AND we've improved the squad with an experienced RB and Thor, Siggy gets better and better.

Maybe that's why we are 5th favourites for the drop.

[Stranded]

Even if we keep the form you mention there (including cup games) we only get to 50 points at the end of the year - which may just be enough. Take the extraordinay results against Liverpool out and your (as usual) rather arbitary form guide gives is 13pts in 11 - which if continued over the next 21 league games sees us on 47pts and pretty much doomed.

We may improve further but by god we better start soon.

[CMRoyal]

Even if we keep the form you mention there (including cup games) we only get to 50 points at the end of the year - which may just be enough. Take the extraordinay results against Liverpool out and your (as usual) rather arbitary form guide gives is 13pts in 11 - which if continued over the next 21 league games sees us on 47pts and pretty much doomed.

We may improve further but by god we better start soon.

Even worse, break it down pre- and post-Rodgers sacking and we have:-

Pre - W3 D2 L2
Post - W0 D2 L2

The only caveat to that is that the appalling defeat at Plymouth was the only relatively 'easy' fixture so far under MaccyD. But we were truly appalling that day and I fear for our ability to handle the pressure of similar must-win games. We'll see after the Barnsley game, I guess.

[holsgrove breaks a leg]

Terminal Boredom, just give up. Majority of the tools on this board are as deluded as Madesjki, Howe and Hammond, so don't expect to get too much out if them.
Everyone seems to be happy to get relegated and plod along in the lowerr leagues when it could have been so different. Sad really, but I guess it sums up your average pathetic Reading fan.

blimey you must have been a bundle of laughs during the early 90's doldrums...

[Snowball]

Agreed, when you look at it. it's scary

I thought 46 was "just about enough"

but 47 is often not enough
50 has not always been enough

Recent Times

42 Crewe
42 Southend
46 Norwich
46 Wednesday
49 Crewe
50 Gillingham
51 Walsall
52 Leicester


So 53 for "absolute safety", or 30 points in 21 games, say W8 D6 L7

Our best chance has to be beating the rubbish teams already in the bottom 6-7 like (cough) Plymouth

[holsgrove breaks a leg]

BTW I have this feeling that we will be relegated and am not ecstatic about watching Rochdale and the rest.

Yeah, pretty much a +1 here in all honesty. I think the novelty of seeing us play new teams (yeah, I was probably about 4 when we last played Rochdale, so f*ck off) will wear off after about 45 seconds when I realise I have just paid £21 to watch Reading play Rochdale.

Big shout out to Ryan Bertrand who is playing a major part in his own personal second successive reLOLegation. I wouldn't mind him so much if he hadn't come out with that we're bigger and better than Leicester line before we played - and lost, natch - to a team about 500 points ahead of us in the table. Chopsy Chelsea twat.

A point well made Floyd, he does appear to be the 'loanee joanah'!

[BR2]

Arsenal have just made up 11 points in a matter of weeks, (November 29)
and that's against a side (Chelsea) who haven't exactly been doing bad recently.

1-2, 3-3, 2-1, 1-1, 0-0, 2-1, 7-2 (16-10) 7 games, 12 points in the league.

Sheffield Wednesday, who have crippling debts looked "certs" for relegation, didn't
win for three months, then win two-on-the-spin

Between October 20 and January 2nd, 74 days or so, they P11, W0 D3 L8 3 Points and 7 goals for - 25 goals against

Then in four days they manage 6 points with two wins.

Things change. This is not a BAD squad and we'll do OK.


Since we started to turn it around...

A 3-1 Coventry City
H 1-1 Ipswich Town
H 2-1 Blackpool
A 1-2 Derby County
A 2-0 Sheffield Wed
H 2-4 Crystal Palace (Crazy)
H 1-1 Scunthorpe
A 1-1 Bristol City
H 1-1 Swansea City
A 1-4 Plymouth (Awful)
H 1-1 Liverpool FA Cup
A 2-1 Liverpool FA Cup
A 1-2 Nottm Forest

P13 W4 D5 L4 19-20 the equivalent of 17 points in 13 games, equivalent of a a sixty-point season

And yes, I DO include cup games because we are fielding full sides and making a go.

Last season, Jan 17th, after 27 games Doncaster were third bottom. They finished 14th

We are in the deep stuff because we started badly, have drawn a few too many, but looking at the last 13 games
when we started to turn it around, it doesn't look so bad. Liverpool, Forest, Swansea, Blackpool, Bristol,
a Premiership side and 4 top ten sides and a goal difference of just -1 over those games.

AND we've improved the squad with an experienced RB and Thor, Siggy gets better and better.

Maybe that's why we are 5th favourites for the drop.

Er...Arsenal have had a returning Fabregas.
Sheff Wed appointed a manager who has done quite well at this level and previously was no.2 at a Premiership club.
Meanwhile we have a caretaker manager and have taken on another foreign player with no track record in English football.
Also you assume that we will do well against the lesser sides-based on past performance we have no great reason for optimism as we have played poorly against some of those lesser sides.
Your other missed point is that other teams might well improve.

We are in a very precarious position and I just hope that those running the club realise that before it's too late.

[URZZZZZZZZ]

Perosnally, I'm looking forward to us playing Rochdale, they're my second team!

[Terminal Boardom]

Sorry Snowflake, this IS a bad squad. We have a car crash waiting to happen of a back 4. We have a midfield which is neither prolific enough i attack or steely enough in defence and a strike force that compares with none in the hstory of the game.

Add this abortion of a mess to the ineptitude and bullshit of the retard Bodgers with the never-ending cloth cutting that defines SJM then no wonder we are where we are.

10 days to go in the transfer window. Enjoy the inactivity!

And what would relegation do to the numbers wo turn up? Would there be a reduction? Or will we be like Leeds, Charlton and Norwich and keep the support? I think I know the answer. Get ready for another slice of cloth cutting!

[jollyjiminy]

Sorry Snowflake, this IS a bad squad. We have a car crash waiting to happen of a back 4. We have a midfield which is neither prolific enough i attack or steely enough in defence and a strike force that compares with none in the hstory of the game.

Add this abortion of a mess to the ineptitude and bullshit of the retard Bodgers with the never-ending cloth cutting that defines SJM then no wonder we are where we are.

10 days to go in the transfer window. Enjoy the inactivity!

And what would relegation do to the numbers wo turn up? Would there be a reduction? Or will we be like Leeds, Charlton and Norwich and keep the support? I think I know the answer. Get ready for another slice of cloth cutting!

Federici - prospective Aussie international hope and MoM against Man U for brilliant performance. plus some Premier League experience
Griffin - experienced at Premier League level
Ingi - experienced Iceland international and at Premier League level
Mills - highly rated Championship player - was down as Donny's one to watch for this year
Bertrand - rated at Chelsea and through England youth set-up
Sigurdsson - Iceland U21 and national team prospect
Howard - Premier League experience
Karacan - favourably rated Turkey U21
McAnuff - Jamaican international experience
Church - highly rated young Welsh international
Rasiak - Experienced Polish international

And our bench includes....
Matejovsky - experienced Czech international with World Cup experience and Premier League experience
Long - Irish international and Premier League experience
Gunnar - experienced Iceland international and at Premier League level
Thor - experienced Iceland international and at Premier League level

And that's not including Kebe, Cisse, NHunt and the list goes on.

We should have reason to be confident in this team people!!! And they should be confident in themselves. If MaccyD can return this confidence to them, then we may get somewhere. Everyone needs to be positive. They've got the ability. They should all go off on an expensive team-building holiday and some David Brent laughter therapy, and we should climb the table.

[Focher]

Howard - Premier League experience

Would you care to elaborate on who he played for in the Premier league please

[Barry the bird boggler]

Since we started to turn it around...

A 3-1 Coventry City
H 1-1 Ipswich Town
H 2-1 Blackpool
A 1-2 Derby County
A 2-0 Sheffield Wed
H 2-4 Crystal Palace (Crazy)
H 1-1 Scunthorpe
A 1-1 Bristol City
H 1-1 Swansea City
A 1-4 Plymouth (Awful)
A 1-2 Nottm Forest

P11 W3 D4 L4 16-18 the equivalent of 13 points in 11 games, equivalent of a a fifty-point or so season

However that's also no wins in the last 6 attempts, and 3 points out of 18 which is approx a 25 point season. In those 11 games were two truly bloody awful performances against 2 truly bloody awful teams (Plymouth & Derby).

I don't include cup games because our opponents may or may not be bothered and the occasion certainly causes the players to think/play differently as they have nothing to lose.

After the stuffing we'll get at Sheffield United next week (where no doubt Harps will score the winner) our season will really begin at home to Barnsley on 30th January.