[theo_luddite]

V

Reading FC v Huddersfield Town

Sir Robert John Hurst Stadium (see below).

3rd November 2015 

20:00 kick off.

Pre-mumble

Hot on the Catherine Wheels after losing to the Witches of Pendle at the weekend, Town need to get their season back on track on this long trek down the M1, M40, A somethingoranother (33 I think) to Junction 11 on the edge of the M4 on Tuesday night. 

The bottom third of the table is already starting to drift away from the rest of them and we are currently sat in the wrong life-raft.

Reading isn't exactly the kind of place you'd pick to re-start a march back up into the top half of the table either. Like us, they became one of the few to snatch a point off an unbelievably good Brighton side at the weekend. 

(Is it really unbelievable or have their players finally started playing to the level that they are getting paid at?).

Chopped out of a page I found on www.statto.com    

(Enough of the Mirf stuff and the bonfire night stuff already).

Oo r ya?

They used to be known as the Biscuitmen, due to links with Huntley and Palmers, who at one time were probably the bigigest employers in town. Once they upped sticks and went elsewhere they decided they had some none existent link with him and her nibs what occasionally stop off at Windsor Castle and called themselves The Royals. 

See http://spiritofmirko.com/2011/10/27/lost-nicknames-of-the-football-league/ for more on that one

Well we all know this chap - Norn Iron International Ollie Norwood

Does his mate Stanley still play for them too or is he now back playing for Barrow?

He did a reasonable job for us before being replaced by some other chap from 'Boro who now plays for Derby and scored a goal for them on Saturday. That lad we've got on loan from Wigan needs to get his act back together. Player of the month in Septober seems to have gone to his head a bit.

This lad Vydra caused some damage for Watford before being released after they got promoted - unless I'm very much mistaken.

Otherwise I know nowt much about them personally. 

I'll leave it to the more knowledgeable on here to fill in the gaps and educate me a bit.

Oo owns ya?

Well this chap used to.

According to Wiki, so it must be true, "Sir John Robert Madejski, OBE, DL (/məˈdeɪski/; born Robert John Hurst; 28 April 1941) is an English businessman, with commercial interests spanning property, broadcast media, hotels, restaurants, publishing and football. He changed his name when his stepfather, a Polish airman during World War II, returned to Britain to marry his mother."

"Madejski is the founder of the magazine which became Auto Trader and chairman of Reading F.C., as well as Chancellor of the University of Reading and Deputy Lieutenant of Berkshire. He is a benefactor to many institutions, especially in academia, education and the arts. In the Sunday Times Rich List 2009 ranking of the wealthiest people in the UK he was placed 222nd with an estimated fortune of £250million." 

(Come on Deano, get your finger out, you can do better than him !!!!! Tell him Art).

While still known as Sir John Madejski and one time football match squeeze of Cilla, he put a lorra lorra brass into Reading FC before deciding he'd spent a lorra lorra more brass than he really wanted to and sold the club, or most of it, to a bunch of ties.

Sorry, ....... Thai's. 

Amongst them two chaps called Narin Niruttinanon and Sumrith Thanakarnjanasuth.

This chap on the left is one of them (the first one I think). Always has his eyes open for a good business deal apparently.

Go on then, think up a chant with one of those names in it. 

"Massimo, time to go" kind of trips off the tongue very easily by comparison. They seem to be going about their business in a far quieter way than that chap down the other end of the M4 in Cardiff.

The Stadium

In 1998 they moved from their 102 year old Elm Park home and built their current stadium next to the M4, and loved him (John Hurst that is) so much they named their stadium after him. 

Awwwww, how cute.

Insert Stadium Photo here

(sod it, see picture above, it will do).

He carries on as joint something or other of some importance at the club, and as quoted above he made a lorra lorra of his brass through that above named rag called Auto Trader. Have you ever tried selling a car on there? I did once. I got 10 calls about it, all from Auto-Trader asking me to advertise it for another bloody month at some extortionate rate. 

Hoolie hoolie hooligans, hoolie ...... hooligans!!!

'In 1889, Reading were unable to continue playing at Coley Park as W B Monck (the local squire) no longer allowed football due to "rowdyism [by] the rougher elements". With club membership exceeding 300 by the time the club went professional in 1895, Reading required a proper ground. A meeting the following year determined that funding would be difficult. £20 was donated by J C Fidler, on the proviso that "no liquors were to be sold" on site. The rest of the cost was financed through donations by wealthy supporters, as well as one large individual donation. A former gravel pit in West Reading was identified as the site.The first game at Elm Park was held on 5 September 1896 between Reading and A Roston Bourke's XI. The visitors were a scratch team from Holloway College. £44 was taken on the gate, with an attendance of approximately 2,500.'

It's all in Wiki so it must be true. 

Tsk Tsk. Who would have thought Reading invented football hooliganism at least 70-80 years before it became really popular? Too much sugar in the biscuits getting them hyper? Who knows.?

So what goes on in Reading?

Bugger all if you want a manufacturing job apparently. Once Huntley & Palmers upped sticks and decided to dunk their biscuits in someone else's cup of tea (they couldn't get enough local folk to work for them apparently) the town became a bit of a UK Silicon Valley HQ's meets Banking HQ's and Southern HQ's of those well known Big 4 firms of auditors that did such a great job of auditing our banks a few years back. It's all there in that well know hive of facts that is Wiki (apparently - find your own link, I can't do everything). So if your are looking for an office job, Reading is obviously your place to be. 

I read somewhere (that I can't find again on t'interweb) that they reckon about 24,000 folk that live in Reading sod off down the M4 for a job every morning while another 30,000 come into town to work. No wonder the M4 is snarled up every morning and evening down there. Probably explains the 8 o'clock kick off too. How many yuppy coffee shops do you reckon there are that thrive on a lunch time with that lot in town? While you are at it, do a house swap people.

Decent beer.

There's only one pub that I've ever been in to be honest and is called The Three Guineas - it's built into the train station, a bit like our two Huddersfield and world famous station pubs, which being in the centre of town, is maybe the last place you want to be when the stadium is next door to the M4. Regular buses run out to the stadium and back when there's a game on so it's not exactly at worlds end. 10 hand pulls on the bar plus some of the usual crap for those that only pretend to drink beer. Proof if needed that you can get a decent (if maybe a tad expensive by Yorkshire standards) pint with a head on it south of the M4.

They serve some decent grub too if you didn't manage to grab your tea on the way down.

http://www.three-guineas.co.uk/

It used to be a regular stop off of mine on my way to-from Heathrow. Train from Wolvo to Reading, pint, direct bus 100 yards away to/from Heathrow. Bus from Heathrow to Reading, couple of pints, train back to Wolvo. Simples. 

How far do you want me to lug me suitcase?

(Free pint for the plug please Mr. Landlord next time I'm in town? 

OK Maybe not.  )

That was when Virgin had that route and it was priced similar to trains to Euston and the Tube including the bus to Heathrow. Now the robbing barstewards at Cross Cuntry have it (deliberate typo) it costs a bleedin' fortune, so I travel down the West Coast line to Euston or the Chiltern Line from Brum to Marylebone and jump on the Tube. 

Anywhere else in Reading that deserves a mention that you lot know, kindly educate me and the rest of us.

So who's gonna play?

Well your guess is as good as mine. but there might not be too many changes from the Burnalee match.

It's Saturday night while I'm writing this and it's time to get ready to go out for a beer. Have fun all you boys and girls that make the trip down there, especially our Southern contingent. 

If any of you are going and expecting Town to light up the sky with 

you might be at the wrong match ........ but with Town you never know.

(Match, fireworks? ..... sod it, I didn't get it either). 

Let's hope we just don't Fawkes it up big time. 

On a musical note that has nowt wot-so-ever to do with the match

This lot have been making a fantastic racket (to my ears anyway) for 50 years that keeps me going in to pubs down on the Med to listen to piss poor attempts to play their songs 

They all sound great after a Jagy or three. 

Big hand for Plank Floored please. 

:Am's, where's the applause smiley when you need it? Never mind these spooky ones:

Right, I'm off to get Comfortably Numb before the fireworks start.

(on beer before any of you lot start).

Points please Mr. Powell, points, points, points. 

All 3 of them preferably.

Disclaimer and small print

Any resemblance between this and previous threads is probably intentional and is most likely due to us nicking info off the same websites. Nick what you want off this one for future threads of your own making. I don't charge much for copyright infringement. A pint will do nicely if you ever find me propping up a bar.

© theo 2015

[MNTerrier]

Whitehead has a 1 match suspension so that leaves a gap in midfield if Hogg is fit hes the natural choice , if not id give Billing a go , otherwise 4-3-3 with Dempsey starting and paterson and bunn either side of wells

i would then replace Bunn at half time and see what vaughan can do ....Naturally Steer would be the keeper too


Make your football formation with this11.com

[JUSTASILLYOLDGIT]

Lolley and Wallace both been recalled from Scunny. Both available for Tuesday.

[MNTerrier]

common sense has prevailed, with scannell injured, carayol playing crap and lynch on 4 bookings we need the back up, can we get Hiwula back too

[theo_luddite]

We might have to send Emlyn Hughes back to do that Hiwula thing .... stick or twist on that one.

[MNTerrier]

said on radio that there is a renegotiation period after christmas regarding Huws loan, he hasnt been great since the international break, if dempsey and billings step up we might not need him

[jjamez]

Cracking thread! With hiwula its hard to say what he'd do if he came back, he's hardly played of late at weegan, but he may be injured.

That said he cant be as poor as miller.

[WakeyTerrier]

A minimum of 3 points required from this and the Leeds game is required. Otherwise CP may as well pack his bags

[Jeebers]

We'll get nowt from this and them there Yids'll suddenly find form as well an tonk us, glass half empty for me at the moment I'm afraid

Cracking thread though Theo

[theo_luddite]

Glass half empty? Glass half full?

Wrong sized glass