Reading FC 'is a small club' Post pod last week. Discuss

[jellytot]

I was listening to the three amigoes on the Reading Evening Post podcast last week and agreed
MOSTLY with what they talked about apart from one thing that cheesed me off. I have steaming all week about it. One of the mighty three mentioned that we are a small club. I disagree!

I remember going to Elm Park in the eighties when attendances were 4000 ish back then we were
tiny. Yet we took 40,000 to Wembley in the simod cup and also to all the play off finals we have bee
n to. The problem is that there are too many people in the club who have the old school rfc is a small town club mentality. I am not deluded into believing that we are big! However, we have thw potential to be an established premier league side and can match Southampton, Swansea and norwich for support (when we extend the capacity). We have the potential to be on a par with WBA, Wolves, Stoke and teams like that.

We just need the leadership at the club to take us on. We may not take huge followings away but at home we could get 30,000 plus in the prem for sure. Medium sized yes small NO.

[ankeny]

Wonder if they were in the 1700+ v Preston in the pissing rain,just a thought for them.

[REMTARDROYAL]

We are a small club, that is just finding its way into being a bigger club. It's not an insult.

[MmmMonsterMunch]

We're not a small club though. I'd say we are in the top third of the 92 FL clubs & have been for some time.

[harryroyal]

all depends what you call small or big. Having looked on crawley's forum after the draw they seem to think we're relatively big. Southampton on the other hand think we are tiny.

[Avon Royal]

The difference between big club and small club is all about mentality. We have a small club mentality and seem to be proud of it. We call it the Reading Way.

Until we stop actively embracing failure as a sort of justification for our identity, we will never move on to the next level.

[MmmMonsterMunch]

We've been in the top 30 for a decade now so I'd say when looking at the full FL yes we are pretty big.

[The Beardy Man]

We were historically synonymous with being a third tier side, however in the last 15 years or so we have begun to establish ourselves as being very much a second tier side.

Whether you see that as being big or small really depends on your perspective surely

[Avon Royal]

What is beyond doubt is that until we get rid of the Reading Way millstone we won't get any bigger.

[RobRoyal]

Honestly, who gives a fuck, and why is ths forum constantly racked with concerns about how 'small' we are? We're bigger than Rochdale and plenty of others, and we're smaller than Aton Villa and plenty of others. Feel good or bad about our position as you wish. Such a debate tends to really come down to a semantic discussion about what 'big' and 'small' really mean. Who cares?

Supporting a big club is transparently a compensation for having a small penis.

[Avon Royal]

It"s not about relative size, it's about ambition.

If we were in League 2, we should aim to compete in League 1. If we are competing in the championship we should be aiming to compete in the Prem. If we are competing in the Prem, we should be aiming for becoming a regular European team etc.

I don't care how big or small Reading are perceived to be, I just hate the way we don't display any ambition to grow and move forward, citing 100 years of mediocrity as a benchmark.

[MmmMonsterMunch]

It"s not about relative size, it's about ambition.

If we were in League 2, we should aim to compete in League 1. If we are competing in the championship we should be aiming to compete in the Prem. If we are competing in the Prem, we should be aiming for becoming a regular European team etc.

I don't care how big or small Reading are perceived to be, I just hate the way we don't display any ambition to grow and move forward, citing 100 years of mediocrity as a benchmark.

Bore off!! RFC as a club has made amazing progress in the last 20 years. You really do talk out of your arse at times.

[MmmMonsterMunch]

Clearly what you mean by ambition is spend money.......

[Avon Royal]

It"s not about relative size, it's about ambition.

If we were in League 2, we should aim to compete in League 1. If we are competing in the championship we should be aiming to compete in the Prem. If we are competing in the Prem, we should be aiming for becoming a regular European team etc.

I don't care how big or small Reading are perceived to be, I just hate the way we don't display any ambition to grow and move forward, citing 100 years of mediocrity as a benchmark.

Bore off!! RFC as a club has made amazing progress in the last 20 years. You really do talk out of your arse at times.

Yes we've made progress in the last 20 years, mainly on the back of a massive investment (the stadium). But what was the point of setting us up for the Premier League if we are then going to adopt this ridiculous "Reading Way" that will forever prevent us from competing there?

[MmmMonsterMunch]

But what if they are investing 'off the pitch', i.e Cat A academy status, infrastructure etc? Surely that is a long term view of trying to build success is it not?

Our academy has produced a fair bit of talent over the last few seasons & I would go as far as to say we wouldn't have gone up without it last season. Even the likes of Cox, Church, Henry etc are plying their trade in the leagues & we've made money off them.

Or are you going to discount that because you want us to spunk loads of money on the playing staff in Jan?

[Avon Royal]

Don't discount it at all, it is exactly what I would like us to do. However, it is also what everyone else is doing - we're just keeping up at best.

If you think that an academy on it's own will enable us to compete in the prem without significant investment then you are living in some sort of fantasy land.

No club, ever, has established itself in the Premier League without significant investment in the team. The notion that we are special and can somehow bypass this requirement is arrogant in the extreme.

[MmmMonsterMunch]

Don't discount it at all, it is exactly what I would like us to do. However, it is also what everyone else is doing - we're just keeping up at best.

If you think that an academy on it's own will enable us to compete in the prem without significant investment then you are living in some sort of fantasy land.

No club, ever, has established itself in the Premier League without significant investment in the team. The notion that we are special and can somehow bypass this requirement is arrogant in the extreme.

I don't think the academy on its own will enable us to compete in the prem - not for a second. You need a sugar daddy with deep pockets unfortunately & most clubs don't have one.

However, in terms of building a sustainable club that consistently competes in the top 6 of the 2nd tier & therefore by definition has more opportunity to get to the 'promised land' then I think we're going the right way about it.

[MmmMonsterMunch]

Don't agree about us keeping up with others. We are doing a LOT better than many clubs at bringing talent through.

[Avon Royal]

Don't discount it at all, it is exactly what I would like us to do. However, it is also what everyone else is doing - we're just keeping up at best.

If you think that an academy on it's own will enable us to compete in the prem without significant investment then you are living in some sort of fantasy land.

No club, ever, has established itself in the Premier League without significant investment in the team. The notion that we are special and can somehow bypass this requirement is arrogant in the extreme.

I don't think the academy on its own will enable us to compete in the prem - not for a second. You need a sugar daddy with deep pockets unfortunately & most clubs don't have one.

However, in terms of building a sustainable club that consistently competes in the top 6 of the 2nd tier & therefore by definition has more opportunity to get to the 'promised land' then I think we're going the right way about it.

Again, full circle.....

What is the point of competing for promotion if we are not going to make the investment necessary to compete when we are up?

[MmmMonsterMunch]

Are you offering up your £80m then?

No thought not. Just continually saying we should be doing this, that & the other with no fcuking plan of how to pay for it!!