Most gutting moment as a Reading fan.

[Wimb]

After reading the promotion thread, thought I'd pose the question of what was your most gutting experience as a Reading fan.

Some of the worst days from my time as a Reading fan.

Losing to Bolton in 95.
Relegation against Forest in 98
Losing to Walsall at Cardiff in 01
Losing to Wolves in the playoffs in 03
Final day vs Wigan in 05
Relegation at Derby
Losing to Burnley in the playoffs in 09


For me the most gutting would probably be losing to Bolton in 95, to come so so close then be denied was heartbreaking. Then again I was only 9 at the time which is probably why it felt so bad
Second would be relegation in 08, I didn't go to the game but hearing on BBC Berks that Fulham had scored left me feeling absolutly flat, unlike 98 I always had the feeling we'd stay up

[Alivey]

Missing out on Emile Heskey, a half dozen times

[floyd__streete]

Very melancholy and nostalgic day on HNA today

I am in a minority I think of going for Walsall play-off fianl loss. Loss to Bolton was gutting, but I was only 15 and thought it would come around again. It did. Losing to Walsall with their 15,000 fans in the corner of a ground full of Reading 'fans' and as overwhelming favourites to win was devastating. Coming 5 years after Wembley, the feeling of 'not again, why us' took a long while to wear off.

I want us to win a play-off final one day. That said, I also want to sleep with Kimberley Walsh which is equally unlikely.

[Smoking Kills Dancing Doe]

Bolton was as bad as it gets really.

Some of the TB2 games at the Mad Stad were pretty gutting. Seem to remember a succession of last minute goals against in his full season...

[wolsey]

March 1983

Maxwell announcing the merging with Oxford to create Thames Valley Royals.

Oh and McGhee quitting after it had been announced in that day's Evening Post that he was staying.

[Smoking Kills Dancing Doe]

Yeah, actually McGhee and Pardew walking was bad.

Still remember hearing McGhee had gone and breaking down, was only 12 to be fair.

Still, worked out ok.

[Dirk Gently]

Coming home from a dire match in '83 to see the announcement on BBC News that my Club had been bought by the Chairman of our local rivals and was being wound up, with those rivals being renamed and moved to Didcot.

[floyd__streete]

Still remember hearing McGhee had gone and breaking down, was only 12 to be fair.

You were driving at 12?

[Norfolk Royal]

The Bolton game.

[Wimb]

Very melancholy and nostalgic day on HNA today

I am in a minority I think of going for Walsall play-off fianl loss. Loss to Bolton was gutting, but I was only 15 and thought it would come around again. It did. Losing to Walsall with their 15,000 fans in the corner of a ground full of Reading 'fans' and as overwhelming favourites to win was devastating. Coming 5 years after Wembley, the feeling of 'not again, why us' took a long while to wear off.

I want us to win a play-off final one day. That said, I also want to sleep with Kimberley Walsh which is equally unlikely.

I had almost forgotten the sight of that end of the ground celebrating how Byfield beat Whitehead still grates on me

[Maguire]

Bolton game. Shattering.

I remember saying for ages afterwards "if we were ever going to make it into the PL, then that was our chance"

WRONG!

We did feel like an awfully small club back then mind you.

[Maguire]

I had almost forgotten the sight of that end of the ground celebrating how Byfield beat Whitehead still grates on me

In what way? Just that he scored or that he did something specific?

[Baines]

The Walsall play-off final doesn't come close to the crushing and all-encompassing disappointment of the Bolton final, imo. For some reason, I never thought we were going to beat Walsall, whereas I was sure we were going to beat Bolton before the game, and I only got more certain as the game got underway.

[Wimb]

I had almost forgotten the sight of that end of the ground celebrating how Byfield beat Whitehead still grates on me

In what way? Just that he scored or that he did something specific?

Just that it seemed to happen to slowly at the time, as if Whitehead had plenty of time to save it. The video proves otherwise mind

[Focher]

Walsall play off final by a long long way.

[Archie's penalty]

The Bolton game and the depressing loss of players in the summer after it.

The breakdown of the 2005-6 glory side is hitting me pretty hard.

Two greatest sides in our history and I was there to experience it. All good things come to an end...

[winchester_royal]

Watching Fulham beat Pompey was pretty gruesome. Particularly when we were 4-0 up at Derby.

[Wimb]

The Bolton game and the depressing loss of players in the summer after it.

The breakdown of the 2005-6 glory side is hitting me pretty hard.

Two greatest sides in our history and I was there to experience it. All good things come to an end...

Again being so young I understand I might not have appreciated it fully but we only lost Osborn, Taylor and Shaka that summer didn't we?
Ok they were huge players but we still had 10/12 that played at Wembley in the team. Was there a real feeling that we'd never repeat that success? Were Meaker + (mass of goalkeepers in 05/06) considered that inferior at the time?

[TFF]

Wembley '95.

The Tranmere semi had been awesome (one of my first away days too) but I never thought we were going to win the final. At half time we were actually going to be playing Arsenal, Man Utd and Liverpool at Elm Park. Then Defreitas came on.

I left thinking we were always going to be the team that never made it.

[Rev Algenon Stickleback H]

Has to be Bolton for me. To be two up, only to let in two late goals was a sickener. We'd even seemed to have weathered the storm after they pulled one back, only for them to level with just 4 minutes left.


Walsall was bad, but I still felt we were bound to go up sooner or later. I thought the Bolton final may have been our only chance.