There has been a bit of correspondence on the mailing list recently regarding
the relative amounts of money various recent Reading managers have been allowed
to spend. This has brought discussion about how effective the new players have
been, and whether more money should have been made available to earlier management
teams so that our current unhealthy position would have been averted. (OK, jokes
about barn doors and bolting horses, hindsight providing 20/20 vision out of
the way now please!) This seemed a reasonably valid subject to delve into the recent archives, so
below you’ll find all the transfer wheeling and dealings that readily spring
to mind from the last 3 years. (As ever, any omissions and corrections will
be gratefully received). The biggest problem was where to "start" JQ/MG’s reign.
I’ve decided to use the beginning of 1995/96 as the logical start point. Consequently
the release of Shaka and his pals, (see below), has NOT been included in the
summary, based on the premise that we were doing OK in 94/95, and the sales
were of McGhee’s men.
In many respects, I suppose Quinny and Micky, (funny how we revert to the friendlier versions of their names now they are a dim and distant rose-tinted memory! Guess quite a few of us rue the day we started a Quinny Out campaign!), did get the worst deal possible with regard to transfer cash. If you add the figures above to the summary below, it’s clear that Mr Mad lost the plot about 3 years ago! Anyway, more of that later.
The comings and goings are shown in the next 4 tables.
All of which can be neatly summarised thus :
Clearly, even excluding the cash generated by JQ/MG from the 1994/5 sales, the JQ/MG management team is by far the poorest relation when it comes to spending the Mad Man’s cash on transfers. A net outlay of under £1 million over 2 years, (which of course becomes a net income of nearly £1.75 million when Shaka and his friends are added to the equation), compares very well indeed with TB1’s £1.675 million and TB2’s £1.258 million, especially when you remember the relative time spans the money was spent in.
Quite frankly, basing judgements on league standings only, Jimmy Quinn and Mick Gooding have the best record of transfer activity! (Flame-proof attire at the ready!). They spent the least, brought in the most, and didn’t get us relegated! The likes of Trevor Morley, Barry Hunter (who?), Steve Mautone and Nicky Hammond have proved to be excellent buys, Martin Williams and Darren Caskey are coming into their own now, and Martyn Booty, Steve Swales, Lee Nogan and Michael Meaker were "adequate" !!
Of TB1’s captures, it’s clear that Linvoy Primus can go all the way, whilst Lee Hodges when fit, will probably become a first XI regular. Apart from that, (and I’ll make no comment on Mr Asaba ‘cos my personal views will cloud the issue!), the rest were "panic" buys if you ask me.
Normally I would suggest that it is too early to make judgements on TB2’s transfer activity, but the man himself has already indicated that his deadline day signings were "stopgaps", so I reckon he’s fair game! Mass Sarr’s a star, and won’t be with us much longer! A man with the flair and temperament of God Friday, but hopefully with a bit more of tranquil off field life, it’s only a matter of time before a Premiership club snaps him up.
Grant Brebner appears to have what it takes and Jim McIntyre will run all day. Apart from that, what can you say? TB2 takes the squad on a pre-season tour of Holland, and buys 2 of the players we play against! Obviously carried out an in-depth review there! Then he signs up 3 players who have spent all season so far keeping the Physio’s couch nice and warm! Mmm.
The rest do appear to be exactly as TB2 was alleged to have described them – ie make-weights! Did you know for instance, that
All in all then, not a particularly auspicious start for the Famous Seven.
Which just leaves the crocks. (Reilly of course has now played for us, and is mentioned above). John Polston was either injured last season, or simply just out of favour, having made 7 starts all season. So ‘nuff said there. Which leaves us with Graeme Murty, a star winger/wing-back of a team finishing 16th in our division last year. 32 starts and .. er .. 1 goal last year! Mmm.
BUT HEY! WHAT DO I KNOW ABOUT FOOTBALL!!
The team that Tommy’s building will probably go on to take Div 2 by storm, next year, assuming we don’t go down again!
This monotribe has a clear conclusion. The seeds of our downfall were sown during the close-season of 1994-95. As is so often the story with a successful Reading side, star players are allowed to leave, and insufficient money is made available to replace them adequately. What is so sad though, is that the fans knew this, (as indeed in all probability did JQ/MG), but as ever we are totally ignored.
Mr Mad will undoubtedly point to the need for restraint what with the mammoth costs of moving to a new purpose built hotel complex and retail park, (with a rectangle of turf thrown in for a kick-about), but what would we all really have preferred? An empty, sanitised, soul-less, state of the art egodome, where overpaid fancy dans ponce around at the bottom of division 2? Or a heaving, decrepit Elm Park, with a maximum seated capacity of 12000, playing week in week out to packed houses, as skilful, dedicated, professional footballers turn Elm Park into a fortress and whip the likes of Wolves, Sunderland and Palace on the way to winning Div 1 and getting to the Premiership!!!
Ooops, sorry the alarm clock went off, back to the land of the living. All this negative talk is undermining our love affair with our club!!! Just imagine, what other bunch of idiots would be looking forward to our next game with a record over the last 25 league games as bad as this :
Home away
P W D L F A W D L F A Pts
25 3 2 6 11 13 0 0 14 5 39 11
(BTW, 2 of the 5 away goals scored were penalties!) For anyone still reading this rubbish, our current away run of defeats actually stretches to 15, with a goals tally of 6-43!
COME ON YOU RRRRRR’sss