,.

[Thaumagurist*]

.

[Dirk Gently]

I have absolutely no recollection of that whatsoever!

[Coppelled Streets]

Amazing!

[Thaumagurist*]

.

[brighton_royal]

I would definitely have been there but have absolutely no memory of it at all.

[Row Z Royal]

I would definitely have been there but have absolutely no memory of it at all.

I definitely wouldn't have been there and have no memory of it as a result.

[strap]

Back in 86-7 the programme was prety crap, with no write-ups of previous games etc.

I found this centre page photo spread a few matches later. No digital photography in those days, so maybe that's why it took nearly 6 weeks to get into print!!



Team info etc ...

[royal tunbridge wells]

It was my first ever game.

I'd just arrived as a fresher at Reading Uni...and having seen so much about Readings promotion and record breaking feats in the national press, I was keen to watch. (I think I'd be classed newbie or plastic these days )

But really, I knew nothing about Reading, even down to their shirt colours.
So when I arrived on to a sunny Tilehurst End, just after kick-off (not having sussed the Reading buses yet)...I thought Reading were the team in the red...Reading / red (bloody clueless students )

So when the blues went on to score within the first minute, I was somewhat surprised when the Tilehurst End erupted (if 600 old boys and kids can erupt)

And Reading (then in navy blue shorts and those that awful pale blue shirts with a white vertical strip with the legand ‘Courage’ across the front) took Blackburn to pieces. It was four – nil, though I can't remember much about who got them, though I do seem to remember Bremner and Senior playing. Westwood in goal. I’d be guessing at the rest.

So I was hooked. I hitched to the next game (away at Villa on the Wednesday night where we were beaten 3-1 in the league cup). And have continued to watch ever since....but what a start

[Platypuss]

Blackburn Rov H W 4-0 Canoville, Senior, Wood, Bremner

[royal tunbridge wells]

By the way - crap though they may have been - I still bought one of those shirts.
It hides in a box in my loft with a number of other shockingly bad Reading shirts I picked up over the years...

[Thaumagurist*]

.

[The Surgeon of Crowthorne]

I like the caption:
"Les Taylor tussles with balding Irish international Noel Brotherston"

Perhaps Thou Voice should change his nickname of choice to differentiate between the two?

[Leamington Royal]

I remember the game, but not much by way of detail. The reason it sticks in the memory was that Blackburn was so poor. They just didn't want to know. I think they had a lot of formerly good players who didn't think they should be playing at that level.

Having said that, that was a pretty strong Reading line up by 1980's standards. I threw my shirt away when we moved house - have regretted doing so ever since.

[Salford Royal]

By the way - crap though they may have been - I still bought one of those shirts.
It hides in a box in my loft with a number of other shockingly bad Reading shirts I picked up over the years...

You could make a nice sum of money for that shirt.

[Ark Royal]

That was Canoville's finest performance in a Reading shirt. He scored the first quite early IIRC. Shame that about two months later he got that terrible knee injury at Sunderland that virtually ended his career.

[Rev Algenon Stickleback H]

I missed that match. It was very strange, on one hand being pleased that we'd won so well, tempered with being really annoyed that I couldn't go. It's kind of like when Reading score when you've had to dash out the back for a slash, or you've had that "we're never going to score - I might as well nip out early and get that hot dog" idea, and we score. You hear everyone cheering, but rather than being pleased you just go "oh bugger!"


It is worth remembering that Blackburn's support was really poor (in both senses) back then, and Reading were probably the richer club.

[Squelchy2507]

Unfortunately I wasn't at the game as I was getting married that day. Choosing to go to the church rather than Elm Park is a decision I now regret. But I did have earphones in listening to radio updates throughout the service though.

[dennis nelson]

That was Canoville's finest performance in a Reading shirt. He scored the first quite early IIRC. Shame that about two months later he got that terrible knee injury at Sunderland that virtually ended his career.

it didn't virtually end his career, it DID end his career, david swindlehurst was the culprit, and yes, I was at both games, the best I saw canoville play was in a 3-2 win at selhurst park over palace.

[Ark Royal]

That was Canoville's finest performance in a Reading shirt. He scored the first quite early IIRC. Shame that about two months later he got that terrible knee injury at Sunderland that virtually ended his career.

it didn't virtually end his career, it DID end his career, david swindlehurst was the culprit, and yes, I was at both games, the best I saw canoville play was in a 3-2 win at selhurst park over palace.

I met him in the summer of '87 in Spain and the scar from the knee surgery was terrible. Really nice bloke as well. Shame.

[wolsey]

That was Canoville's finest performance in a Reading shirt. He scored the first quite early IIRC. Shame that about two months later he got that terrible knee injury at Sunderland that virtually ended his career.

it didn't virtually end his career, it DID end his career, david swindlehurst was the culprit, and yes, I was at both games, the best I saw canoville play was in a 3-2 win at selhurst park over palace.

That night at Roker still ranks as one of my saddest moments as a Reading fan (sod the relegations - at least you have chance to recover) . Swindlehurst was reckless, thoughtless and totally unrepentant.

As far as Paul's best game for Reading - I'd go for Sheffield United away - almost single handedly turning a 3- 0 drubbing into an unlucky 3 -3 draw. power, grace, skill and vision - the best winger EVER to have played for us in my lifetime (i.e. since the 60's (Yes I did see Jenkins, Gilkes, Cumming, Meaker and Hunt ))