Sky Sports said
http://www.skysports.com/fanzone/blogs/story/0,,15162_7190196,00.htmlYou never quite know what you're going to get when you trek up to the Mad Stad on a Saturday. One Saturday's line up reveals that half the team has gone on to greater things and the next reminds us that those 'greater things' don't necessarily work out...as I'm sure Matt Mills doesn't need reminding.
But one thing never changes at Reading, regardless of whether Simon Church scores a hat trick or Alex Pearce gets skinned by an agile striker (again) is the roar of the Madjeski crowd... or more importantly, the lack of it.
Don't get me wrong, I think it's great that I can go watch the game with my family or with my mates without having to think about where I sit or what I say but it gets a bit much when the loudest fan at Reading football club is the one turning behind the stadium making electricity.
Every match a faint echo of 'Reading' can be heard above the clamour of the sixteen away fans and their dog but other than when Reading score or the opposition do something particularly hilarious (which in Doncaster's case last week was every third minute), polite applause is the most we can hope for.
Reading a posh club? Sitting in the West Stand is like being at Wimbledon and though the East try their best, the awkward silences that linger over the middle of each half are the kind you expect after being introduced to your girlfriend's dad, not after winning a free kick twenty yards out.
Brian McDermott has spoken recently of our team being out of sync, and of a lack of spark. In recent times, I think the times when our team has played its best have been when the crowd have been there to push them over the goal-line and its that atmosphere which provides the spark so desperately needed at the moment.
Anfield in the FA Cup, the first half of the quarter final against Villa and, more recently, that eight game winning streak that seems like a distant memory have all shown that Reading are a team desperate for some sound from the stands. On the occasions when the whole stadium gets behind the team, Kebe flies down the wings with dazzling speed and Leigertwood becomes a Makelele-esque guardian in front of the back four. Everyone likes to know their work is appreciated and in the same way that people sing along to an artist's songs at a concert, it can only help to chip in with a bit of vocal support!
Obviously I've put a bit of thought into this and come up with some, I think, pretty canny ideas to up the volume at the Mad Stad. First, since Reading Festival was only a month ago, there must be some pretty high intensity sound equipment knocking about town and if we could just borrow it for a few games, I'm sure we could put it to good use. Secondly, I think Teleprompters above the away end would be a great encouragement for the home side to get involved. Millwall fans getting noisy? 'I'm forever blowing bubbles' appears above their heads and they're none the wiser. Mathieu Manset takes to the pitch? 'BEAST' flashes and the crowd bellow back. My final idea; pass a mild electric current through the West Stand seats. It'll get them on their feet for sure and, given the proximity of the wind farm, it could even be green energy!
Whatever the answer, this season could be as special as the last for Reading but it needs the crowd to get on board and regenerate the electric atmosphere that has characterized Brian's reign and seems to have gone flat recently. Of course, there is a silver lining to every crowd; Brian's been complaining of sleepless nights over our form...I'm sure he can catch a few winks in the peace and quiet at the game on Saturday.