14 10 2006 Reading 0 Chelsea 1
A very enjoyable day out and a solid, if somewhat lacklustre performance from the Chelsea team.
I was happy Reading went up... an hour from Clapham Junction and several half decent pubs about. It seemed that
Chelsea fans were not too welcome, however, as the only pub that was "scarfer-friendly" was the Three Guineas next to
the station. It served drinks in plastic glasses - no thanks! In the end we found a decent pub called the Queens' Arms 5
minutes away. It even had a billiard table!
The stadium is another one of these soulless ones in the middle of an industrial estate... it's far too similar to Pride Park,
the Reebok et al. A 10 minute cab ride up there was a small pain in the arse. The Reading fans were pretty loud,
although yet again singing, "Where were you when you were shit" was hilarious considering they struggled to average
10,000 home attendances only a few years back... where did this extra 10,000 fans come from then? Have they ever
heard of Elm Park? Poor old Frank got some stick but did well to earn a free-kick from which we scored a freak goal.
I don't think I have ever seen such a bizarre game. For me, it seemed Petr Cech was on the receiving end of a very late
tackle. Mike Riley, who had yet another pisspoor game, gave the player a stern talking to and then ordered Cech off the
pitch even though he was concussed! How would that have helped matters? Later in the game Mikel received a
deserved red card for two stupid yellows - and then he remonstrated with the referee as if he had been hard done by.
What made it worse was Chelsea fans applauding him off the pitch! A player who could have cost us the game because
of his stupidity! Joe Cole made a welcome return soon after and Chelsea did not look like conceding again until the final
few minutes when Reading won some corners. Then, in the final minute, Cudicini was crudely challenged in the air and
landed awkwardly. He was replaced by John Terry (who some would argue is possibly England's best 'keeper at the
moment) while Chelsea were reduced to nine men. The news on their injuries seems fairly positive... I would not want a
'keeper named "Hilario" in goal against Barca... imagine the headlines if we fluff it up.
After the game we had a terrific singsong on the double-decker bus going back to Central Reading. A few more beers in
the only pub that would let us in and then on the train back to Clapham, where my colleague was sick in the middle of
the train carriage.
So with the ridiculously timed International matches over, Chelsea can now concentrate on getting the team to perform
more consistently and perhaps start scoring a few more goals. Still, it has been a good start so far and things can only
improve.
I was happy Reading went up... an hour from Clapham Junction and several half decent pubs about. It seemed that
Chelsea fans were not too welcome, however, as the only pub that was "scarfer-friendly" was the Three Guineas next to
the station. It served drinks in plastic glasses - no thanks! In the end we found a decent pub called the Queens' Arms 5
minutes away. It even had a billiard table!
The stadium is another one of these soulless ones in the middle of an industrial estate... it's far too similar to Pride Park,
the Reebok et al. A 10 minute cab ride up there was a small pain in the arse. The Reading fans were pretty loud,
although yet again singing, "Where were you when you were shit" was hilarious considering they struggled to average
10,000 home attendances only a few years back... where did this extra 10,000 fans come from then? Have they ever
heard of Elm Park? Poor old Frank got some stick but did well to earn a free-kick from which we scored a freak goal.
I don't think I have ever seen such a bizarre game. For me, it seemed Petr Cech was on the receiving end of a very late
tackle. Mike Riley, who had yet another pisspoor game, gave the player a stern talking to and then ordered Cech off the
pitch even though he was concussed! How would that have helped matters? Later in the game Mikel received a
deserved red card for two stupid yellows - and then he remonstrated with the referee as if he had been hard done by.
What made it worse was Chelsea fans applauding him off the pitch! A player who could have cost us the game because
of his stupidity! Joe Cole made a welcome return soon after and Chelsea did not look like conceding again until the final
few minutes when Reading won some corners. Then, in the final minute, Cudicini was crudely challenged in the air and
landed awkwardly. He was replaced by John Terry (who some would argue is possibly England's best 'keeper at the
moment) while Chelsea were reduced to nine men. The news on their injuries seems fairly positive... I would not want a
'keeper named "Hilario" in goal against Barca... imagine the headlines if we fluff it up.
After the game we had a terrific singsong on the double-decker bus going back to Central Reading. A few more beers in
the only pub that would let us in and then on the train back to Clapham, where my colleague was sick in the middle of
the train carriage.
So with the ridiculously timed International matches over, Chelsea can now concentrate on getting the team to perform
more consistently and perhaps start scoring a few more goals. Still, it has been a good start so far and things can only
improve.
