Norwich were clearly the best side to visit the Mad Stad this season. They were better organised than the rest & their defence was solid. I thought we had the edge in the first half and played even better than we did against West Ham. It's fantastic to see our home form improve so much.
However, the obvious talking point was that tosser Neale Barry. His incompetence did to us what Norwich had failed to do all game, open us up for the decisive goal. superbly taken, but it should never have reached the player.
Barry's positioning was dubious all night. I can't recall ever seeing a ref position himself in the "D" or the box for a corner. Referee's are taught to place themselves at the opposite side to where the ball is being played from, e.g. so that the players are between the Ref and the Assistant Referee. Because of his positioning, both sides had him to consider when attacking and defending corners. We couldn't use the kick that sets up an oncoming Sidwell to blast from the edge of the box, and it made life difficult for defenders to clear.
His persistence in hogging the middle of the pitch meant both midfields had to play around him, and I couldn't believe it in the first half in front of the North Stand when he stuck out a leg to kick the ball away from Hughes who had to scramble to regain the ball following an excellent piece of defending. For a "top flight" Ref I was serious unimpressed. I have to say I've been under whelmed the whole season with the crap that's been running the lines and most Ref's. The obvious exception was the Div 3 ref we had for the West Ham game. He let the game flow beautifully & rarely got anything wrong.
I can't help but feel cheated by last night. It was another superb home performance with controlled, composed play by the team. It's a real shame we only have 4 games left. We are improving all the time, but there aren't enough games left for us to make it now. Whatever happens, I'll be at all 4 remaining games. URZ!
Thatcham Royal

Sorry Steve but we are NOT a team who deserve to be in the playoffs.The statistics speak for themselves and we clearly do not have goal scoring talent this year and it is this attribute that wins football matches! Our finest moment was to defeat West Ham and this was a classic example of a team highlly motivated and determined to win and we won the game in every department and made West Ham look a very lack lustre average squad.Why could this attitude not be applied in the following games and of such significance over the Easter period? Sadly I continue to hold the view that we no longer have management motivation and conviction to succeed at this level.I hope that I will be proved wrong in the longer term but it will simply not do to say" the players all played well".They need to not only play well but with the heart and conviction to win that West Ham could simply not handle.Mr.Pardew considered we played "above our game".We did not play above our game Alan, we played to our full potential! How will we approach the final four games? - hopefully with the spirit and committment that confronted West Ham.
Terry, Isle of Wight.

To say that Saturday was a travesty of justice would not be an overstatement. Reading played with an athleticism that looked Premiership standard and a flowing passing game that more than matched the Norwich City team. There were plenty of attempts on goal from both teams, which was a marked difference from other games I have seen. The team was weakened by the introduction of Shaun Goater who was less than athletic when not in possession (a distinct weakness in his game). Dave Kitson's first touch was majestic and he was by far the most creative player on the park. Nigel Worthington and Norwich were rattled and would have gone home with a point if it were not for the Mr Barry the referee. Mr Barry was often too close to the play - at half time I said to my mate Steve "I have never seen a referee hit by the ball so much, interfering with play as this guy". Call me prophetic but very close to the end Mr Barry handed Norwich promotion to the Premiership by some crazed positioning that caused him to be hit AGAIN by the ball and this time the ricocheting ball fell to a Norwich City player. Both teams were excellent. Mr Barry - back to school!
Pastor Andy Phillips