Back from the game - Scunthorpe

[WoodleyRoyal]

leigetwood was awful for the first 60 mins as were pretty much all of them, the pitch didnt help, and the hoof ball was missing the midfield out. Then suddenly he put in a couple of hard tackles in the middle of the park and i think it galvanized the whole team, normal service then resumed

[Svlad Cjelli]

We won it in a fairly workmanlike way – by doing just enough whilst never looking particularly good. Although Scunny had lots of possession and owned the midfield in the first half they only really had one decent chance, when the ball was put wide - although McCarthy may well have had it covered if it was on target.

As said, first half we played the ball too long and too high, and Scunny looked relaxed and wanted it more – they played as though they had no pressure so full marks to the new manager for that. But while they had some decent breaks they didn’t really have any great quality so the threat was pretty minimal. None of the midfielders really got involved in the first half, we played the long ball and Scunny’s movement and desire was excellent. I commented that this match did look like a team full of confidence and in contention for the top playing against relegation strugglers, but with the roles reversed.

Second half much better and we had more control, and the first goal was really well taken. A minute earlier from an almost identical situation Kebe had fired the ball high across the box, but this time he played it to the near post and Long got in front of everyone to put it in. He was definitely taken out for the penalty, too – not by the keeper but by the defender, who lunged in at ankle height. Strangely only the keeper was booked – for his protests to the lino (who awarded the penalty) - not the defender who did the foul, which suggests to me that the ref didn’t see it properly or wasn’t fully convinced it was a foul. Long did limp for quite a few mins and was a bit tentative for a while, but seemed to have run the injury off by the end – Karacan I’m worried about, though, since he was taken out whilst in mid-air by a horrible lunge. And went down like a sack of potatoes.

But to sum it up an adequate but not great performance, and we had the couple of extra bits of quality that made the crucial difference at the vital times.

Chant of the day : “He’s man of the match, he’s man of the match – how sh*t must you be, he’s man of the match” (when Andy Hughes was announced as MOTD despite having been largely anonymous. Certainly, his long-term habit of crossing to the supporter 26 rows behind the goal is still there. )

Zero marks : Handbags’s car, with blown head gasket.
Top marks : the STAR coach for detouring and picking us up at Donnington Park services
Sympathies to : the group of kids at the back of the STAR coach who had a 2+ hours live performance of “Floyd on Football”

[WoodleyRoyal]

btw a mention to the scunny stewards or lack of them, stood for the ninety with no issues, no one died take note Reading stewards

[Svlad Cjelli]

btw a mention to the scunny stewards or lack of them, stood for the ninety with no issues, no one died take note Reading stewards

Indeed. I hope everyone signed the "Keep Scunny Standing" petition also.

[WoodleyRoyal]

btw a mention to the scunny stewards or lack of them, stood for the ninety with no issues, no one died take note Reading stewards

Indeed. I hope everyone signed the "Keep Scunny Standing" petition also.

do you mean at the game? if so i didn't see anything, i signed the petition on the FSF website

[Svlad Cjelli]

btw a mention to the scunny stewards or lack of them, stood for the ninety with no issues, no one died take note Reading stewards

Indeed. I hope everyone signed the "Keep Scunny Standing" petition also.

do you mean at the game? if so i didn't see anything, i signed the petition on the FSF website

There's a paper one Scunny are running -a Scunny guy was circulating it in the refreshment areas yesterday.

If they stay up they have to remove their standing area - and the costs of this will probably force them into administration, which is utterly ludicrous. There have been no accidents or incidents there while they've been in tier 2, but suddenly next August this standing area becomes too dangerous to use in the eyes of the law!

[WoodleyRoyal]

when they go down its not a problem though.

[Svlad Cjelli]

But it stops them ever coming back up again - the 3 year clock doesn't restart from year 1.

[WoodleyRoyal]

oh i see if they were promoted next season they would still have to put seats in or close the stand?

[Svlad Cjelli]

oh i see if they were promoted next season they would still have to put seats in or close the stand?

Yeah, spot on - it'd be their third year in Tier 2.

[WoodleyRoyal]

well judging that they had 4000 there yesterday and it holds what 9000? cant see it being too much of a problem if they shut the stand

[dontbedaft]

Perhaps other teams might be a bigger draw than Reading? How many do they get for Leeds on a Satursday?

[WoodleyRoyal]

just looking at wiki this rule came in in 1994 i have no sympathy

[Svlad Cjelli]

just looking at wiki this rule came in in 1994 i have no sympathy

So - just because a rule has been around for a long time doesn't make it any less ridiculous.

[floyd__streete]

I'd like to echo Svlad's words in thanking STAR for rescuing us from Donnington Park services. HH's car blew a head gasket, which is ironic seeing as how HH himself has been blowing gaskets at RFC games for years. The only thing which could have improved my day is a recreation of the famous Basil Fawlty 'damn good thrashing' scene.

The game? Pffff, well Reading were so poor first half you ocassionally wonder what the fuss is with this team when they resort to long ball humping like that. Does the return of Mills make a difference in that department? Perhaps. Second half we had a good ten minute spell where we wrapped the game up, as teams in thr form we are tend to do. Hard on Scunny, who played some good football throughout - I really liked their number 7 - but we saw out the last half hour in comfort and in all honesty I can't really recall AMc making a save.

[WoodleyRoyal]

quite, but come on it's not exactly the biggest stand in the world most clubs just put seating on the existing terracing they have had 17 years to put in what,1000 seats? and there moaning about it now!I understand where your coming from, no incidents have happened why does is suddenly become illegal? but this is not exactly new legislation is it?

[Svlad Cjelli]

quite, but come on it's not exactly the biggest stand in the world most clubs just put seating on the existing terracing they have had 17 years to put in what,1000 seats? and there moaning about it now!I understand where your coming from, no incidents have happened why does is suddenly become illegal? but this is not exactly new legislation is it?

Why would they want to incur that substantial expense - and an 80% loss of capacity to that area (meaning lost income) - for no good reason other than to comply with a ridiculous law, though?

It was ludicrous in 1994, and it's still ludicrous in 2011 - but it's only now that we have the real life example of Scunny to illustrate just how ludicrous it is.

[WoodleyRoyal]

i agree with you, im not arguing, the law is stupid i am a firm believer of standing at football. But im sorry when a law has been in place for seventeen years they are clutching at straws to think they will change it now. lets get this into perspective last season they had a average attendance of 6400 and this 5500 in two of there best seasons in the clubs recent history i really dont see what the problem is with closing the stand, it holds 9000. Hypothetically say the north stand was terracing we are averaging 17000 would you mind the club saying the stand will be shut till we have funding to seat it. Or we go into administration most people would be pissed off but it wouldn't bother me that much we've had two bumper crowds leeds and pompey do you think the atmosphere or results would have been any different had we had only 17000 there?

[heathrow royal]

We won it in a fairly workmanlike way – by doing just enough whilst never looking particularly good. Although Scunny had lots of possession and owned the midfield in the first half they only really had one decent chance, when the ball was put wide - although McCarthy may well have had it covered if it was on target.

As said, first half we played the ball too long and too high, and Scunny looked relaxed and wanted it more – they played as though they had no pressure so full marks to the new manager for that. But while they had some decent breaks they didn’t really have any great quality so the threat was pretty minimal. None of the midfielders really got involved in the first half, we played the long ball and Scunny’s movement and desire was excellent. I commented that this match did look like a team full of confidence and in contention for the top playing against relegation strugglers, but with the roles reversed.

Second half much better and we had more control, and the first goal was really well taken. A minute earlier from an almost identical situation Kebe had fired the ball high across the box, but this time he played it to the near post and Long got in front of everyone to put it in. He was definitely taken out for the penalty, too – not by the keeper but by the defender, who lunged in at ankle height. Strangely only the keeper was booked – for his protests to the lino (who awarded the penalty) - not the defender who did the foul, which suggests to me that the ref didn’t see it properly or wasn’t fully convinced it was a foul. Long did limp for quite a few mins and was a bit tentative for a while, but seemed to have run the injury off by the end – Karacan I’m worried about, though, since he was taken out whilst in mid-air by a horrible lunge. And went down like a sack of potatoes.

But to sum it up an adequate but not great performance, and we had the couple of extra bits of quality that made the crucial difference at the vital times.

Chant of the day : “He’s man of the match, he’s man of the match – how sh*t must you be, he’s man of the match” (when Andy Hughes was announced as MOTD despite having been largely anonymous. Certainly, his long-term habit of crossing to the supporter 26 rows behind the goal is still there. )

What he said .

For me my MOM goes to Jem Karacan. Nice to meet you also leicsroyal hopefully see you at coventry also

[leicsRoyal]

Good to meet you too Heathrow.

Unfortunately I will be down in Exmouth for the Leeds game, taking an early seat in a local, ensuring Sky sports is on whilst also ensuring that the remote control conveniently goes AWOL.

I am in no way superstitious. The last time I was down that way was Sept 05 so I will be drinking the same drink sat in the same chair in the same boozer!