Hard to see any progress for the forseeable future

[BR2]

Like Sebastian posted a few pages ago I came away last night trying to put some perspective on the game after the depression of the long drive back from Ipswich on Saturday night.
We truly are a Jekyll & Hyde team and many of the views expressed on here depend on whether you have seen us play just at home or at home and away.
The Home-only people see us as promotion prospects as so far we have swept the opposition easily aside but the Away-followers have seen a team that looks destined to flirt with relegation.

As Royal Rother says we should be enjoying these moments but the away performances have been so bad that those of us who have travelled can't just wipe away those memories every time.
I think rather like Schards and Sebastian that we will end up around mid-table-can't fully justify the thought but just an opinion based on what I have seen and the messages coming from the players and the club.
The trouble is that while Doyle is banging in the goals it becomes a near certainty that he will go in January so we become victims of his success as we all know that not only will very little of his transfer money be re-invested but also shopping for bargains doesn't always pay off-for every Kitson,Doyle or Shorey there are many Halls,Sodje,Bennett,Brown etc.

At long last The Academy has produced a couple of players that look as though they will hold their own at this level (whether they would be equally at home in The Premiership only time will tell)and Armstrong has fitted in well and quickly but the jury is still out on Rosenior (defensively),Kebe (consistency),N Hunt (not played enough yet),Cisse (consistency)Convey(bravery), Lita(attitude),Long (ability),Ivar(ageing) and the fitness of Duberry,Murty and Bryn.
In my eyes there are too many question marks to expect a challenge this season and we may have made progress in some areas but in transfers out and possibly more to follow I do believe that the squad has been weakened and it could be some years of young player development,retention of the better players and very astute inexpensive signings before we would be anywhere near ready for The Premiership again.

[readingbedding]

Seen them both home and away, and we are at the moment inconsistent.
It may change for the better or worse, who can tell?

If so, how?

[RoyalBlue]

The golden team is gradually being sold off to be replaced by cheaper inferior players.

Madesjki has made the right choices with our finacial policies and as Coppell has stated - Madejski has NEVER refused him the money for a player when he has asked for it.

My son has never asked me for money for a new car because he knows it would be a waste of time and I would turn down the request point blank.

I have NEVER refused him the money for a new car when he has asked for it.

It would also be pointless him getting a new car if I would only allow him 75p a litre to pay for the petrol.

So maybe JM has never refused Coppell money to buy a player.

[readingbedding]

The golden team is gradually being sold off to be replaced by cheaper inferior players.

Madesjki has made the right choices with our finacial policies and as Coppell has stated - Madejski has NEVER refused him the money for a player when he has asked for it.

My son has never asked me for money for a new car because he knows it would be a waste of time and I would turn down the request point blank.

I have NEVER refused him the money for a new car when he has asked for it.

It would also be pointless him getting a new car if I would only allow him 75p a litre to pay for the petrol.

So maybe JM has never refused Coppell money to buy a player.

Yes, that would be exactly the reason why...

Is it mong day?

No, sorry I apologise.

You do have a fair point in regards to wages.
I dived right in Guv.

[Wycombe Royal]

The golden team is gradually being sold off to be replaced by cheaper inferior players.

Madesjki has made the right choices with our finacial policies and as Coppell has stated - Madejski has NEVER refused him the money for a player when he has asked for it.

My son has never asked me for money for a new car because he knows it would be a waste of time and I would turn down the request point blank.

I have NEVER refused him the money for a new car when he has asked for it.

It would also be pointless him getting a new car if I would only allow him 75p a litre to pay for the petrol.

So maybe JM has never refused Coppell money to buy a player.

The club quite correctly has a wage structure that is within its means - wages are the crippling factor that bring many clubs down financially and tight control of this is a necessity. Only a fool would disagree.

And we know from the past that we have bid upto and possibly over £4m for players but have not been successful. Kevin Dillon has stated in the past that we could by a player for £10m if we wanted as we have the funds available to do so but that is not the way Coppell works.

But you and others like you don't like hearing those comments as it goes totally against your belief that Madejski doesn't make the money available.

[Arch]

I think a majority, including SC and probably JM, believe we should have invested more last season - not a lot but at least a couple of judicious purchases. That would have been the time, but there's no point crying over spilt milk. We can't afford it now. We have to go back to the cheap approach. It's harsh to say players liek NHunt, Pearce, etc are inferior. And even if they are, they don't have to be the equals of our 05-06 team to be very good. Armstrong may be no Shorey, but if he's a solid, consistent, defensively sound LB he's been a good buy. Oviously Kebe isn't Glen Little, but he's promising to contribute a lot anyway. It doesn't stretch credulity to suggest NHunt might score as many as Lita for us, in which case he'd be an absolute bargain.

[wolsey]

One thing to stress though, and I hope I'm talking for Schards and BR2 here as well:

Although we're seeming a bit negative to the rest of you; and although we don't see promotion, or anything near it, this season as a possibility - if we're wrong, we're not going to get pissed off that we're wrong, we'll be absolutely over the moon.

Why not just celebrate games like last night without thinking that we are world beaters,
cope with defeats as if they're not the end of the world,
enjoy following a viable club,
and accept that we will, with all probability, end up where we deserve to be?

[Schards#2]

One thing to stress though, and I hope I'm talking for Schards and BR2 here as well:

Although we're seeming a bit negative to the rest of you; and although we don't see promotion, or anything near it, this season as a possibility - if we're wrong, we're not going to get pissed off that we're wrong, we'll be absolutely over the moon.

Why not just celebrate games like last night without thinking that we are world beaters,
cope with defeats as if they're not the end of the world,
enjoy following a viable club,
and accept that we will, with all probability, end up where we deserve to be?

Errrr....we do.

In addition, in the course of doing this, we raise our thoughts for discussion on a discussion board

[Arch]

One thing to stress though, and I hope I'm talking for Schards and BR2 here as well:

Although we're seeming a bit negative to the rest of you; and although we don't see promotion, or anything near it, this season as a possibility - if we're wrong, we're not going to get pissed off that we're wrong, we'll be absolutely over the moon.

The thing is, on the basis of what we've done so far we're in the playoff positions. that includes a couple of very poor performances. Why wouldn't you think we might continue to have some frustrating performances and still be comfortably able to get into the playoffs?

[Ian Royal]

Anyone expecting a team relegated from the premiership to replace players of a good enough quality to be snapped up by premiership teams, with players of the same or better quality, in the championship, is frankly stark staring bonkers.

Replacing players like Kitson, Little and Shorey with equal quality was never going to be possible. Replacing them with players who have the potential to grow into their shoes was the best we could do. In Kebe and Hunt we have two players with the potential to do close to that. Hunt is not the same style of player as Kitson, but could end up being almost as effective.

Why people are obsessed with the amount of an incoming transfer is beyond me. It is not about spending the most money, it as about buying the right players. Surely we've had enough evidence that expensive players can be shit and cheap players amazing?!

I'd also like to point out that incoming transfer money is not automatically not invested in the club just because it doesn't get used on an incoming player's fee. There are things called wages, bonuses and all sorts of maintenance and running costs it can be used for which benefits the club. As well as (shock horror) paying off debts and making the club more financially secure in the long run.

In essence, anyone saying that the players we've bought are inferior is being stupid, because a) they aren't taking into account the actual practicalities of acquiring players of the right quality and b) they haven't actually seen them over enough performances to make that call in the first place.

[Seaside Royal]

I'm hoping the team have now adjusted to life back in the CC and some fans understand why we cant spend money beyond our means.

I'm also thinking is the glass half empty or is it half full (?) as we're 2 wins off an automatic promotion place.

This is what supporting Reading is all about for me.

[facaldaqui]

I think it's fair to assume that Doyle will go in the transfer window and that Mooney was added to try to cover the future loss of a striker. Even so, I do not think that Madejski is quite the predictable bloke that people make him out, and there are circumstances in which I think he would be ready to part with some of the Doyle cash for a goalscorer. In my opinion, if we are mid table or in relegation trouble, he will not replace Doyle, as such. In the first case (I don't think relegation trouble is very likely, after last night), that wouldn't bother me: it would mean that we realised the most important thing is to rebuild from within. If, on the other hand, we were in one of the top positions and on course for a top two promotion challenge, I think Madejski would buy a goalscorer to keep us on track. Of course, he would not spend all the Doyle money, but I think he might go to a million and a half, which is a lot at this level. He is a good businessman, and it would make good business sense to try to make sure the goals didn't dry up. It would not really be a gamble, since he'd still be pocketing some of the Doyle cash. And, for once, I think we'd be able to attract someone good, if we looked a good bet to go up.

[Archie's penalty]

Doyle is showing some unbelievable form at the moment. The goal for his hat-trick was brilliant.

He's only 24 and showing last year was a bit of a one-off already.

He should be able to go on and have a good premiership career. Having said that I don't want to lose him. Would be good if he stayed till the end of the season - got us promotion and then went. That means he would have given us four years (mostly) good service. You can't say fairer than that.

[Avon Royal]

Doyle is showing some unbelievable form at the moment. The goal for his hat-trick was brilliant.

He's only 24 and showing last year was a bit of a one-off already.

He should be able to go on and have a good premiership career. Having said that I don't want to lose him. Would be good if he stayed till the end of the season - got us promotion and then went. That means he would have given us four years (mostly) good service. You can't say fairer than that.

Royal til January,
He's Royal til January.
You know he is, I'm sure he is
He's Royal til January....................

[Uke]

Doyle is showing some unbelievable form at the moment. The goal for his hat-trick was brilliant.

He's only 24 and showing last year was a bit of a one-off already.

He should be able to go on and have a good premiership career. Having said that I don't want to lose him. Would be good if he stayed till the end of the season - got us promotion and then went. That means he would have given us four years (mostly) good service. You can't say fairer than that.

Phareer
Farrer,
Farrer den the
Pairer den zet


Your're right, I can't

[Wycombe Royal]

'Only two wins of an automatic promotion place'

So, 6 games in, we're already 6 points off the pace? That's not really a positive.

It means nothing, after six matches last season....

West Brom - 10 points
Stoke City - 9 points
Hull City - 8 points

[readingbedding]

'Only two wins of an automatic promotion place'

So, 6 games in, we're already 6 points off the pace? That's not really a positive.

It means nothing, after six matches last season....

West Brom - 10 points
Stoke City - 9 points
Hull City - 8 points

Exactly, far too premature to make 'learned, eloquent, predictions'.

Load of rubbish.

[LUX]

so basically my position is the most learned, eloquent and er, prescient:

that I've no idea what will happen.

[Royal Rother]

One thing to stress though, and I hope I'm talking for Schards and BR2 here as well:

Although we're seeming a bit negative to the rest of you; and although we don't see promotion, or anything near it, this season as a possibility - if we're wrong, we're not going to get pissed off that we're wrong, we'll be absolutely over the moon.

One thing is for sure though...

If we do gain promotion, someone who has been positive throughout the season, enjoyed every win and shrugged shoulders at every defeat as just one of those things in football, will get a lot more enjoyment out of it than someone who has consistently predicted failure, constantly moaned at the way the club is run and managed, and placed a bet on the team getting relegated.

[readingbedding]

One thing to stress though, and I hope I'm talking for Schards and BR2 here as well:

Although we're seeming a bit negative to the rest of you; and although we don't see promotion, or anything near it, this season as a possibility - if we're wrong, we're not going to get pissed off that we're wrong, we'll be absolutely over the moon.

One thing is for sure though...

If we do gain promotion, someone who has been positive throughout the season, enjoyed every win and shrugged shoulders at every defeat as just one of those things in football, will get a lot more enjoyment out of it than someone who has consistently predicted failure, constantly moaned at the way the club is run and managed, and placed a bet on the team getting relegated.

I just don't understand why some people are saying that we'll be nowhere near promotion after 5 games.
Impatient, spoilt knee-jerkers perhaps?

I don't know.