Sinking Ship

[Hampshire Royal]

I started to support Reading in 1967 when my family moved to Reading. I wasn't born here and had no 'natural' affinty to the club. I c ould have supported Chelsea or Man U like a lot of my mates did. I didn't, and decided to support the club of my adopted home. Believe me, I saw more shit played by Rading, than the average sewage worker sees. I didn't object to it, because I just thought that was what supporting a football club was all about.

These days watching the club I grew to love is more of an occasion and I look forward to the games I watch for weeks. The only one I've seen this season that I didn't enjoy was the Pompey home game, but that was mainly down to the fact that it was bitterly cold.

Don't ever think that being an exiled Reading is easy, it's not. I still get a great deal of satisfaction when things go well and feel annoyed and frustrated when things don't, but thre is always the feeling that I wish I could actually be there.

Maybe my point is petty, but I'd rather make a petty point that's correct, than a large point which has proved to be be incorrect.

[SouthDownsRoyal]

TAXI for tredder 10

and

TAXI for no fixed abode

[Schards#2]

Fcuk me, Schards, don't get too pompous on people, will you? If it's not a contest, why did you need to know the last four years' attendance of another poster before qualifying your reply? Why not just stick to your guns and say you found the football dull and uninspiring? Yes, some matches have been painful to watch, but I would argue that the last decade has never seen a season that could be thus described, which is what HR was talking about. Think bigger picture, not small pixels.

I think the fact that he's barely seen a game is relevent to whether he's in a good position to judge the quality of the last four years. Whenever this issue crops up it is almost invariably those who don't watch the games that are the most vehement in their opinions of how entertaining it is.

I really can't be bothered to go over this again, we spent 3 1/2 years not going up, had a change of regime and went up 4 months later, just rejoice in the promotion.

[Hampshire Royal]

I'm assuming that you're talking about the last four seasons:

2008/09: Play Offs
2009/10: Fantastic end to the season
2010/11: Play Offs
2011/12: Promoted

Pretty dull and uninspiring. Makes you wonder why Anton decided to invest in Reading.

[Pseud O'Nym]

I really can't be bothered to go over this again, we spent 3 1/2 years not going up, had a change of regime and went up 4 months later, just rejoice in the promotion.

We still have the same regime, you get no marks for observation.

[Ian Royal]

I really can't be bothered to go over this again, we spent 3 1/2 years not going up, had a change of regime and went up 4 months later, just rejoice in the promotion.

We still have the same regime, you get no marks for observation.

Hard to be observant with your head up your arse.

[VOR]

This promotion is a fantastic achievement for the club and, especially, for Brian. A team with very few stars (only one I think in Four Four Two's 50 best in Football League for what that's worth) has developed momentum, belief and, crucially, unbeatable resilience. Kebe, Cummings and plenty of others have blossomed under Brian's man-management.

They have won promotion playing a very functional percentage game - channel balls, playing off an experienced target man, strong defence. Not always pretty to watch, a bit like a wannabe Chelsea. I was dancing on the pitch with everyone else last night and it''s been a hell of a ride but this team does not thrill me like the 2006 team. Brighton and Southampton were classic backs to the wall victories, not necessarily what you expect from a team surging up to top spot. But we will need that spirit next year; I can't wait to see what happens over the summer and how we will fare in the Prem second time around.

[3 veesinarow]

I'm assuming that you're talking about the last four seasons:

2008/09: Play Offs
2009/10: Fantastic end to the season
2010/11: Play Offs
2011/12: Promoted

Pretty dull and uninspiring. Makes you wonder why Anton decided to invest in Reading.

Don't forget the two FA Cup quarter finals, being 2-0 up on Villa in one quarter and taking Citeh all the way at their gaffe in the other, beating Liverpool & Everton on Merseyside, the battle of West Brom and Sig's wonder goal...oxf*rd it, Schards is right, dull and uninspiring.

[Z175]

To be honest, putting them all together, we have had 6 brilliantly exciting seasons. The Coppell Rodgers 12 months just made what followed all the better. Also I enjoy selling our players, how many rfc debuts have we seen since relegation?

[Terminal Boardom]

General Hindsight never lost a battle. Thank goodness threads like this exist as it gives a far better perspective on the mood at the time.

[Dare to Dr£am]

Tredder getting the hoops mixed up and actually predicting his own clubs demise

[loyalroyal4life]

best chance possible for us to become an established prem team and am looking forward to the challenge, dont know how am going to wait these 4 months until season starts

[3 veesinarow]

General Hindsight never lost a battle. Thank goodness threads like this exist as it gives a far better perspective on the mood at the time.

Agreed, but this thread has moved onto the retrospective...looking back over the last decade - and specifically over the last four-season window that Schards chose to focus on - it is undeniably true that, for some individual matches and, yes, even for some certain runs of matches, the "entertainment" on offer was dire, to be polite. Going almost a year without a home win was obviously and .

However, there has not been a single season that could be described as "meh". We've either been in the play-offs, close to the play-offs, promoted, beating top-flight clubs in the cups, or, yes, even the season we came back down, relegated - that was crushingly disappointing to fall in the way we did, but could it ever be dismissed as dull? I think not. I'm with HR on this - and flambe me with a blow-torch if you don't agree - but lack of attendance at games does not disbar you from having an opinion. The media is fairly good these days at conveying pretty much how well or badly a team is playing.

[JimmytheJim]

I really can't be bothered to go over this again, we spent 3 1/2 years not going up, had a change of regime and went up 4 months later, just rejoice in the promotion.

We still have the same regime, you get no marks for observation.

Hard to be observant with your head up your arse.

Zing!

[Maguire]

Why do people bother replying to Tredder's half-arsed wind-ups?

All you see on his "social media" sites are him bitching about Reading, desperate for a bit of attention. Just ignore it and let him concentrate on fretting about relegation/giving Joey Barton a reacharound

[Maguire]

Oh and FWIW I get the general gist of Schards' other thread. Obviously he overegged the pudding a little but that's what one does when one starts a thread. Might aswell go balls out for the lolz, makes it more interesting.

Even Brian McDermott would agree that the situation we were in (by this I mean constantly selling our best players each summer, never having a settled squad for any period of time, having to go through the same rebuilding process each year) was untenable in the long term. It's just depressing and you can tell when you hear Brian speak that he feels exactly the same way.

Luckily we got the ownership change that Schards was wishing for, put some money into transfers, kept our best players, and got promoted.

Also fwiw I would say Brian did an unbelievable job making the best of the above situation, particularly getting into the p/os - that was awesome.

[Royal Lady]

Oh and FWIW I get the general gist of Schards' other thread. Obviously he overegged the pudding a little but that's what one does when one starts a thread. Might aswell go balls out for the lolz, makes it more interesting.

Even Brian McDermott would agree that the situation we were in (by this I mean constantly selling our best players each summer, never having a settled squad for any period of time, having to go through the same rebuilding process each year) was untenable in the long term. It's just depressing and you can tell when you hear Brian speak that he feels exactly the same way.

Luckily we got the ownership change that Schards was wishing for, put some money into transfers, kept our best players, and got promoted.

Also fwiw I would say Brian did an unbelievable job making the best of the above situation, particularly getting into the p/os - that was awesome.

There we go! A voice of reason. Maybe it takes a certain level of intelligence to understand what Schards meant....

[Schards#2]

Whatever anyone's opinion, I really don't think now is the time to debate them, we've just got promoted and we're gunning for the title. It would seem a bit dismal to drone on in detail about what's gone wrong historically at a time when everything is going so right and would probably give the impression that I was moaning when, in fact, all I would be doing is responding to others.

It does seem and odd thing to me to spend a time like this digging up others comments from months/years previously to sit in judgement of them but each to their own.

[Terminal Boardom]

Whatever anyone's opinion, I really don't think now is the time to debate them, we've just got promoted and we're gunning for the title. It would seem a bit dismal to drone on in detail about what's gone wrong historically at a time when everything is going so right and would probably give the impression that I was moaning when, in fact, all I would be doing is responding to others.

It does seem and odd thing to me to spend a time like this digging up others comments from months/years previously to sit in judgement of them but each to their own.

More like you don't want to discuss it because you are being shown up for the cock you are.

[Schards#2]

Whatever anyone's opinion, I really don't think now is the time to debate them, we've just got promoted and we're gunning for the title. It would seem a bit dismal to drone on in detail about what's gone wrong historically at a time when everything is going so right and would probably give the impression that I was moaning when, in fact, all I would be doing is responding to others.

It does seem and odd thing to me to spend a time like this digging up others comments from months/years previously to sit in judgement of them but each to their own.

More like you don't want to discuss it because you are being shown up for the cock you are.

FFS you tedious tool.

If your so fascinated, send me your thoughts by PM and I'll respond to them when I feel like it.

Great 'location' btw.