Despondent

[Very near...far away]

Obviously we're doomed and we'll never win again.

[floyd__streete]

Do you want to trade insults? I just think that we should maintain a sense of decorum. Or do you want to stick all Reading fans who are the teensiest bit positive in a ghetto? Have a think about it.

Touche' . Equally, those who dare to question the proficiency of our team and management are also treated like pariahs at times on these pages!

[The whole year inn]

I do think we will buy in January, but with Coppell's recent record in the transfer market I have little confidence any incoming players will significantly improve the side.

The side that played at Craven Cottage is the side that Reading will be using for the rest of the season in an attempt to stay in the Premier League.

Could be club please send Glen Little to Lourdes ASAP

[RG30]

There was an expectation yesterday that it was a game we should be winning, teams like Fulham are the games where we need to pick up points and the games where survival is determined. Fulham have been poor all season and looked a worse side under Sanchez than the previous regime. It was an ideal opportunity to get our 1st away win of the season and just give a bit of breathing space ahead of some tricky games upcoming.

But if you can't defend properly then sooner or later you'll get punished and for us to get beat 3-1 by Fulham is a poor result. The 2nd goal as highlighted had mistakes all over from various players. It's time we got back to basics and stopped this disgraceful run of games away from home where we are conceading at virtually every opportunity.

SC's transfer policy has served us well to a point. Someone like Duberry was an ideal short term signing with Sonko injured, but is he the future? No. By his standards which are very high, Ingimarsson has been really poor this season but our success of 2 years ago was initially built on a sound defence. Even in the 04/05 season, we knew how to keep clean sheets and with Sonko now back in the fold, lets get the relationships in the team back.

Will we get relegated? No, there are worse teams than us and surving on home form alone is relatively possible, Portsmouth being the best example in they're 1st year of the Premiership. However, the league is ever moving and the bar has been raised dramatically. Teams like Everton, Aston Villa, Man City, Portsmouth have all got better leaving a couple lagging behind and we cannot fail to fall behind. The benefits/money are far too great.

I take heart by the fact Doyle scored again yesterday, his return over the past month has been excellent and I was a big critic of his when he didn't score, so for him to find the form deserves praise indeed.

[shadesrwrf]

Convey should of came on earlier. Glad doyle got his goal though.

Convey should 'HAVE', FFS (yet another illiterate on HNA).

Does it matter?

Gee whizz.

It does to those of us who still hold out some hope for the future of the English language, yes.

As for the state of the club. I started this season believing in, and if I'm honest hoping for, relegation. My reasons included doubts about our ability to compete, a dislike of the seriously over-hyped Premiership and all that goes with it, the fact that the Championship is a far more even playing field and the hope of lower, more affordable prices.

However, I'm actually beginning to change some of my opinion.

Contrary to the opinion of the doom-mongers such as Floyd and Daniella, I actually believe we've got a reasonable chance of survival - there are enough teams worse than us this season to make the prospect of a third season possible. Not a particularly positive way of looking at things but nevertheless true.

Also, I've woken up and now realise that even if we are relegated we've got two hopes of ticket prices being lowered as the club will no doubt just freeze prices and tell us all that they're what we could reasonably expected them to have risen to had we been in the Championship all along.

As for the state of the Premiership, well that's still over-hyped and, other than a few great individuals and fewer great teams, continues to churn out mediocrity week in week out. Probably the single biggest factor influencing my current thinking around ST renewal.

So, all very confusing. But, bottom line, I think we'll be ok. To what end, heaven only knows.

[Barry the bird boggler]

I expect a grim few weeks ahead until the transfer window opens....will RFC as usual talk a good game and fail to deliver in January?

Yep. The excuse will be "we tried, but no-one wants to come here at the moment, they want to see how the season pans out"! Our best hope maybe to tap into the loan market.

We do seem to have hit a bit of a problem with travelling this season seems if there's a different ground to play on we go all cr*p. Even our sole victory at Swansea was an appalling performance where we were outplayed by a team two divisions below us who, fortunately, had Paul Brayson clones up front. If this is the punishment for getting a point at ManU then may we lose on all other visits there!

Only point I would take issue with is that I know there is more in this team. What cost us yesterday was, essentially, bl**dy dreadful passing and a total failure to keep possession - mind you it would help if we had a midfielder who could take control and do that.

[Gordons Cumming]

The title of this thread should be changed to "Depressed."

I am after reading that lot.

[Diddyroyal]

There was an expectation yesterday that it was a game we should be winning, teams like Fulham are the games where we need to pick up points and the games where survival is determined. Fulham have been poor all season and looked a worse side under Sanchez than the previous regime. It was an ideal opportunity to get our 1st away win of the season and just give a bit of breathing space ahead of some tricky games upcoming.

But if you can't defend properly then sooner or later you'll get punished and for us to get beat 3-1 by Fulham is a poor result. The 2nd goal as highlighted had mistakes all over from various players. It's time we got back to basics and stopped this disgraceful run of games away from home where we are conceading at virtually every opportunity.

SC's transfer policy has served us well to a point. Someone like Duberry was an ideal short term signing with Sonko injured, but is he the future? No. By his standards which are very high, Ingimarsson has been really poor this season but our success of 2 years ago was initially built on a sound defence. Even in the 04/05 season, we knew how to keep clean sheets and with Sonko now back in the fold, lets get the relationships in the team back.

Will we get relegated? No, there are worse teams than us and surving on home form alone is relatively possible, Portsmouth being the best example in they're 1st year of the Premiership. However, the league is ever moving and the bar has been raised dramatically. Teams like Everton, Aston Villa, Man City, Portsmouth have all got better leaving a couple lagging behind and we cannot fail to fall behind. The benefits/money are far too great.

I take heart by the fact Doyle scored again yesterday, his return over the past month has been excellent and I was a big critic of his when he didn't score, so for him to find the form deserves praise indeed.

Totally agree, there are worse teams than us, that is the reason we wont go down, this is going to be a painful season to watch, especially away from home.

I can understand eveyone feeling a little worried, but tbh it could be worse, look at Derby, bolton, spurs, boro etc... all BELOW us.

[Royal Lady]

I expect a grim few weeks ahead until the transfer window opens....will RFC as usual talk a good game and fail to deliver in January?

Of course they will - it's how the club manages its fans, keeps up this pretence of a club looking forward, trying to develop, when in reality it is happy to ride the Premiership wage on the smallest budget in the league, until the wave silently crashes, and we slip quietly back from whence we came.

Premiership football is critical to this club - its doesn't have a huge fan base, and it doesn't have an established reputation. Nevermind the likes of Shorey and Lita - Kitson, Doyle, Harper, Hunt, Convey, Sonko have all done enough to enhance their reputations over the last 18 months, and I would wager none would start a Championship season with us.

I simply can't see this club 'bouncing back' from relegation, but nor can I see the club's management striving to ensure that doesn't happen, with a baffling approach to transfers and to team selection.

Very good post Cmonurz. Your last two paragraphs sum up exactly why Schards and I have been saying we should wait at least another year or two until the club goes ahead with expansion - as if we were to get relegated in that time, our stadium will be something of a white elephant in our opinions. But we're berated left, right and centre for being selfish! Time will tell I suppose and two lone voices in the wilderness won't stop any expansion next season, but I can see us losing our best players in the next couple of years and not being able to a) replace them with quality replacements b)paying the money needed to attract them in the first place!

[Royal Lady]

Nor should it be overlooked that Fulham had something like 9 players out/suspended and one player at left back I think, was making his premiership debut! If we can't get a result against a team with those problems, then, yes, alarm bells SHOULD be ringing.

[mini _dariusz]

what else do you expect to acheive apart from mid table mediocrity which is currently in progress.

[SpaghettiHoop]

What the bookmakers think:

Possibility of relegation according to odds offered:

Tottenham 2.9%
West Ham 3.4%
Reading 20.0%
Fulham 22.2%
Middlesbrough 25.0%
Sunderland 25.0%
Bolton 33.0%
Birmingham 33.0%
Wigan 50.0%
Derby 92.3%

[Schards#2]

As an insurance policy, I plunged in on Reading to be relegated at a hugely generous 8/1 after last week. I don't think we'll see that price again for a while.

It's hard to see Reading getting more than 8 points away if they can't get a point at a hugely depleted Fulham, which leaves us needing 32 odd from home games, frankly, I don't fancy it.

How anyone can say that we are not playing much worse than last year is beyond me. We have been woeful in the majority of games.

[rotherwick_royal]

I know the result looks bad but were we really that bad??? I confess I only saw the highlights on MOTD and from that it looked like we deserved a point at least. Of the three goals Simon Davies' was a great goal - he won't score a better one all season (an argument that he shouldn't have had so much time and space I suppose so you can blame that on one of the midfielders if you are being really harsh). It's a shame it came so early in the game. The second was a shambles and they got the third when we were chasing the equaliser. So yet more silly mistakes for the second goal which effectively lost us the game.

It's a mentality/confidence thing away from home that they've got to pull themselves out of.

[Schards#2]

I know the result looks bad but were we really that bad??? I confess I only saw the highlights on MOTD and from that it looked like we deserved a point at least. Of the three goals Simon Davies' was a great goal - he won't score a better one all season (an argument that he shouldn't have had so much time and space I suppose so you can blame that on one of the midfielders if you are being really harsh). It's a shame it came so early in the game. The second was a shambles and they got the third when we were chasing the equaliser. So yet more silly mistakes for the second goal which effectively lost us the game.

It's a mentality/confidence thing away from home that they've got to pull themselves out of.

First Half - Abject

First 25 minutes of 2nd half - Good

Remainder of game - Abject

25 minutes out of 90 isn't good enough to get a point away to Fulham reserves.

[PEARCEY]

As an insurance policy, I plunged in on Reading to be relegated at a hugely generous 8/1 after last week. I don't think we'll see that price again for a while.

It's hard to see Reading getting more than 8 points away if they can't get a point at a hugely depleted Fulham, which leaves us needing 32 odd from home games, frankly, I don't fancy it.

How anyone can say that we are not playing much worse than last year is beyond me. We have been woeful in the majority of games.

But we are unlikely to need 32 odd points at home as so many teams are struggling to average a point per game this season. If the trend continues we may well, be safe wih 36 points this season although that is cutting it fine but 38 points should be enough. This means we need to find another 25 points for safety or the equivalent of say 7 wins and 4 draws.

Crucially we dont play Derby away until the final game of the season which is a shame.

[RG30]

I expect a grim few weeks ahead until the transfer window opens....will RFC as usual talk a good game and fail to deliver in January?

Yep. The excuse will be "we tried, but no-one wants to come here at the moment, they want to see how the season pans out"! Our best hope maybe to tap into the loan market.

I really struggle to believe why SC doesn't get kids from other teams. The top 4 or 5 sides have some genuine class kids who need the games. Birmingham getting Johan Djourou was a steal, come January it's possible Sunderland will get the Man Utd duo of Johnny Evans & Danny Simpson.

[1960]

Has SC panicked over substitutions? Criticised roundly for not subbing soon enough earlier in the season, he seems to be saying "I've learnt my lessons and, look, I'm trying to change it around". So yesterday he took off Murty at 2-1 when the team on the pitch could have pulled it back. But with an already crap defence weakened it was obvious that a breakaway would hurt us. And who would have been tracking Healy's run for the decisive third goal? Murty. Who was tracking him? Nobody.

[cmonurz]

Murty shouldn't have started in the first place.

[readingbedding]

I find myself questioning my club, its management and players tonight after another powder-puff cave-in away from home today. I back Mr Madejski and Steve Coppell 100% and even if we are relegated this season - as I believe we could very well be - I'd still want and expect the latter to be the man to take us forward, but my patience is becoming very frayed lately.

The most depressing thing today is that I don't think we could have reasonably expected any more from this Reading team today. We're carrying plenty of passengers in this team at the moment; I will leave the HNA panel of experts to debate which of our players I am referring but they are people who have served us well, taken us as far as they can and have long since exceeded their shelf-life. Today's game was an absymal spectacle it really was; our football in the first half was an embarassment and save an early second half rally we rarely looked like winning this game against a side without a win in any competition since bloody August. When Fulham went 2-1 up and our good spell was punctured did any of us realistically expect us to get back into the game a second time? And when you look at the lack of game-changing options on the bench you really do tend to give up on us getting a result out of most games we go behind in (ie. most of them).

I still enjoy the away trips, the day out, the camarederie and company of some very good friends but the bit in the middle (ie. the game itself) has been an overpriced waste of time this season. Sure, the home form is keeping our head above waster but with Arsenal and Liverpool to come at the Madejski over the next few weeks even that saving grace is seriously jeopardised. I expect a grim few weeks ahead until the transfer window opens....will RFC as usual talk a good game and fail to deliver in January?

Stop drinking before 11am.