Reality check

[brendywendy]

spot on floyd really, totally insipid performance

a big kick up the arse, which we seem to need every time we are just about to go on a run, we bottle it, either through over confidence, or by choking. fans and players alike need to check their enthusiasm, and keep it one game at a time, think we just get ahead of ourselves really, start thinking about the league, instead of our individual games.

and southampton fans must have loved confirming in their heads that they are a bigger and better club than we are

[Ian Royal]

To be putting this as a reason for the defeat is quite frankly laughable in all honesty. Even more scraping the barrel than some OTT reaction posts, not floyd's original one. Last week a Torquay player (first team player) has announced he has leaukemia, they won 4-1 and then fought back from 2 down to get a draw yesterday. Once the game kicks off that stuff gets put aside. I'm sure when their lad is skinning Rosenior I'm sure the thought in Rosenior's head is how tragic an accident it was

The last line sums it up very nicely to be fair. People talk about Birmingham being lucky and grinding wins out, well yeah thats the aim of football. They can be 2-1 down at a place like Swansea look at their bench and see 2 or 3 really class players that can change the game. Coppell looks to his bench and sees Long and Gunnarsson.

Reading's first XI is a match for anyone in the league. But it's a squad game and Reading's squad in the key areas of the field, especially in an attacking sense is woefully short of quality and numbers.

I don't think our squad or strength in depth is especially poor. Upfront we are a little light I'll grant you. We have players who can come in and perform in the first team if needs be.

What we don't have are players who can come on and make an instant impact from the subs bench to turn a game around. That's the weakness squad wise. We desperately need to offload Lita and bring in a striker ready to work hard and challenge Doyle and NHunt for their starting place. A striker who can make an impact off the bench.

[Smoking Kills Dancing Doe]

We were crap.

I think the players may have been a bit too confident and thought they just had to turn up and win. Coppell said as much after the game.

Not the end of the world, could be a well timed kick up the backside. I do worry that when Doyle and Hunt are not doing well we have no replacements.

Not the end of the world and I hope it is a reality check, we are a very good side, but we have to play as a very good side if we want to win.

However Wolves and Brum are seriously starting to piss me off. Who the hell do they think they are, keep winning games like this? Just fcuk off. Bloody Northerners!!

[RobRoyal]

Wolves are pulling away and the difference between us and Birmingham is that when they are 2-1 down their impact sub is Kevin Phllips. And ours is Shane Long.

Well, it's a fair point. But there is another difference, which is that we've scored nearly twice as many as Birmingham. They might have more depth in the squad, but it's highly dubious that their first 11 is better than ours.

The strength of our bench, however, is a major concern at the moment. When we need a goal, we're looking to Henry and Long. i can't see either of then winning us many games off the bench. Astute signings in January look key to keeping the promotion campaign on track.

[Platypuss]

I simply can't be bothered to copy the whole of the original post and tear it to pieces. Suffice to say that far from being on the nail, it was largely rubbish. The reality check is that a very good team had an off day yesterday and a not very good team had a really outstanding day. It happens. Yesterday does not suddenly make Reading useless and nor does it suddenly make Saints a top 3 team.

Maybe you should have bothered, because what you've said there doesn't seem to bear much relevance to what Floyd actually posted.

Oh, and please try to be more careful with the typing; someone as self-confessedly word-perfect as you really shouldn't be making so many sloppy spelling mistakes.

[rhroyal]

We have the talent in this squad to go up but yesterday for me sums up the difference between this squad and the 05/06 squad. In 2005/06 all the players had been in the Championship a long time and knew that in reality anybody can beat anybody in this league. They never underestimated anyone and were entirely professional, hence they kept on winning.

This team shows their class and ability, which we undoubtedly have at this level, against the better teams. They also blow away a couple of weaker teams on their good days. However if you just look at the teams we've lost to, they really are nothing special, teams who you would expect us to beat. Maybe Burnley are an exception but brushing them aside 3 weeks earlier can't have helped the attitude and out of all the games we've lost that's the one where we were truly unlucky. For me, there is a serious complacency issue with a lot of these players and it needs to be sorted. You can also see why. The only regular players who were with us before we steamrolled this league are Harper, Ivar and Marcus. These 3 must take the responsibility of keeping players feet on the groung. The rest are either expecting it to be easy following relegation or remember it being easy from 05/06.

One final positive thing. This game was at home against a team 21st. The players have no option but to wake up and realise that no game in this division is easy. If this can be drilled into their heads then we can still go up. 10 points behind Wovles is a lot it's still only November!

[SCIAG]

Stephen Hunt had definately met Stewart, as had Lita and Little (though those two are irrelevant).
Will find proof if it's still on the EP's site (from 3 years ago so I doubt it)

[SCIAG]

Well, it's not. I'll have to type up the story. My nephew went to primary school (also secondary) with Stewart, and in their last year Stephen Hunt visited the school. We have a picture that was in the Post, and Stewart is in it, as is Hunt. Hunt signed autographs for every child in their year.

[West Stand Man]

a not very good team had a really outstanding day.

So my original post was largely rubbish whilst your expert analysis was that a not very good team had a really outstanding day. So Southampton perfected such excellent passing and movement almost overnight did they? What jolly bad luck for us then. They are a young side with some very decent players, perhaps lacking in some older heads who might grab things by the scruff of the neck when things aren't going all their own way.

I stand by my original comments. Facts are that we are 3rd in the table and the are not. They are not a good team but they played out of their skins yesterday; they may have several excellent young individuals - but that is not necessarily a team. Reading are a good team and had a very poor day at the office. I am prepared to stick my neck out and say that we will still finish well above them at the end of the season.

[West Stand Man]

I simply can't be bothered to copy the whole of the original post and tear it to pieces. Suffice to say that far from being on the nail, it was largely rubbish. The reality check is that a very good team had an off day yesterday and a not very good team had a really outstanding day. It happens. Yesterday does not suddenly make Reading useless and nor does it suddenly make Saints a top 3 team.

Maybe you should have bothered, because what you've said there doesn't seem to bear much relevance to what Floyd actually posted.

Oh, and please try to be more careful with the typing; someone as self-confessedly word-perfect as you really shouldn't be making so many sloppy spelling mistakes.

mea culpa for the typos. Ooops.

As for the rest, we'll just have to disagree.

[Mr Angry]

We were genuinely poor yesterday; I lost count of the number of wayward passes, the sloppy and casual defending, the not giving it 100% and the general air of smug complacency that seemed to permeate throughout the whole team.

I don't usually pick on a player, but I will today - Bikey was a disgrace; ever time he touched the ball there was the feeling that something bad was going to happen, and all the time he played with an arrogance that, when you are 2-0 down, is simply unacceptable. Frankly, he needs to stop reading - and believing - the hype about himself, and to knuckle down to do the basics of defending right.

Southampton played very well; high tempo, working hard for each other and constantly closing us down, with a constant threat of their pace against our ponderous back 4. They fully deserve the win and I'm surprised they are where they are in the Division to be honest.

The only positive from Saturday is that this should act as the kick up the backside of the whole team in much the same way that defeat at home to Plymouth did in 2005/06.

[CMRoyal]

Truth is we've never been far from receiving a reality check this season. I'm not sure we've had a run of more than three good games and results have we? The last four games prior to Saturday came closest, but even though Burnley away was deemed a good performance, we still lost. And we've yet to perform well against a bottom third team.

However, I still think that our first XI playing to its best ability is better than every other team, with the possible exception of Wolves, but we are not that much better that we can afford the inconsistency that's blighting the season.

The biggest worry* is with SC sticking with players just because the results are broadly positive - it's a long, hard old season and I think first XI players are being allowed to go a bit stale before he effects change – eg the warning signs were there with the Jem/Bryn partnership but it took a defeat before he’d do something about it. Same for our wingers, S Hunt in particular, who seems to be retained solely for his dead ball ability at the moment. It’s completely against Coppell’s instincts (and I guess he’d point to our current league position as evidence that they are broadly right) but I think he needs to rotate more, if only because the likes of Henry, Doobs, Lita (hopefully!) and Convey will be relied upon for cover at some point in what is a very arduous season.


*if worry it is - I predicted 8th this season, so a play-off place (and the way the team has performed at times) is a bonus as far as I'm concerned

[holsgrove breaks a leg]

A very flat performance against a side who raised their game (i still see Ston in trouble,though surman looked class).These results will happen so its about taking it on the chin and getting back to business much like we have done this season when we have lost games.I still think the top 4 (i include sheff u to some extent in this) will be competing for automatic positions although Wolves seem to have got wins out of somewhere again.Reading have the quality and personnel to take us up this season there is no question of that,the key is about maintaining focus and concentration during the 90mins something which we have lacked at times this season and could ultimately affect the race for the top 2.The slight comparison i have of this season so far which worries me a little is that our start so far is fairly similar to that of the season we finished third and lost out to wallsall in the playoffs,we scored for fun especially at home had a good goal difference with 2 strikers getting 30 plus goals but ultimately lost out to millwall and rotherham who racked up more points when it mattered

[Alan Partridge]

A very flat performance against a side who raised their game (i still see Ston in trouble,though surman looked class).These results will happen so its about taking it on the chin and getting back to business much like we have done this season when we have lost games.I still think the top 4 (i include sheff u to some extent in this) will be competing for automatic positions although Wolves seem to have got wins out of somewhere again.Reading have the quality and personnel to take us up this season there is no question of that,the key is about maintaining focus and concentration during the 90mins something which we have lacked at times this season and could ultimately affect the race for the top 2.The slight comparison i have of this season so far which worries me a little is that our start so far is fairly similar to that of the season we finished third and lost out to wallsall in the playoffs,we scored for fun especially at home had a good goal difference with 2 strikers getting 30 plus goals but ultimately lost out to millwall and rotherham who racked up more points when it mattered

Good call to be fair.

[Wax Jacket]

we've scored twice as many goals as Birmingham

which is down to scoring lots of goals in matches we've already won

[Hoop Blah]

Well, it's not. I'll have to type up the story. My nephew went to primary school (also secondary) with Stewart, and in their last year Stephen Hunt visited the school. We have a picture that was in the Post, and Stewart is in it, as is Hunt. Hunt signed autographs for every child in their year.

To be honest that really isn't the same as knowing him though is it?

How many kids do Reading players meet over a year?

It's a tragic loss, but the players have pretty much come out and said they didn't know him but it's still a reality check for all of them, and an obviously heart wrenching loss for his family and friends. To put it forward as a possible reason for the appalling performance is really clutching at straws.

[Maguire]

Everybody just calm down FFS.

We're a pretty good side and we'll finish somewhere in the top 4. Everyone has a 'mare at some point or other and we certainly had one on Saturday. Move on.

[bcubed]

Truth is we've never been far from receiving a reality check this season. I'm not sure we've had a run of more than three good games and results have we? The last four games prior to Saturday came closest, but even though Burnley away was deemed a good performance, we still lost. And we've yet to perform well against a bottom third team.

However, I still think that our first XI playing to its best ability is better than every other team, with the possible exception of Wolves, but we are not that much better that we can afford the inconsistency that's blighting the season.

The biggest worry* is with SC sticking with players just because the results are broadly positive - it's a long, hard old season and I think first XI players are being allowed to go a bit stale before he effects change – eg the warning signs were there with the Jem/Bryn partnership but it took a defeat before he’d do something about it. Same for our wingers, S Hunt in particular, who seems to be retained solely for his dead ball ability at the moment. It’s completely against Coppell’s instincts (and I guess he’d point to our current league position as evidence that they are broadly right) but I think he needs to rotate more, if only because the likes of Henry, Doobs, Lita (hopefully!) and Convey will be relied upon for cover at some point in what is a very arduous season.


*if worry it is - I predicted 8th this season, so a play-off place (and the way the team has performed at times) is a bonus as far as I'm concerned

Totally agree but this is clearly breeding complacency and we saw it in spades on Saturday

I don't agree with your commeents about sticking with players though. As I said earlier in this thread this same team were superb against Sheffield so do you change them after one poor game?

I don't think he will and with some justification. Coppell always likes to give players the opprortunity to put right their mistakes and will do so again

[Archie's penalty]

Everybody just calm down FFS.

We're a pretty good side and we'll finish somewhere in the top 4. Everyone has a 'mare at some point or other and we certainly had one on Saturday. Move on.

Exactly what I think Mags.

Only my second live game of the season. God we were bad. Happy that we have a tough away game to come. Let's get at Cardiff and get the win to put the dross of Saturday behind us.

ps. Really wish Harps was taken off instead of Cisse on Saturday - one of the only people who was competing. Secondly I am still not convinced by Matejovsky. Finally Long has an abysmal first touch. The rest I think was an aberration - oh and Southampton were very good. That is all.

[loyalroyal4life]

Has no-one ever stopped to think that no team in the world can be expected to be in the right frame of mind for a match in the same week that a 13-year-old team mate, a member of the "Reading Family" was killed.

The tribute to Stewart was truly moving and the emotion got to thousands in the stands and no doubt to the players too - they are people too, with emotions - not just the automations you get on Championship Manager.

So I defy anyone to go out and play relaxed, silky football after that , and I'm pretty relaxed about yesterday's defeat.

they should be putting in a performance for the boy though