Who is to blame, this season? (in your opinion)

[TBM]

Everyone top to bottom, particularly Queensley.

I thought at the start of the season that we'd be okay as we were the best side in the league last year and we'd added some quality in Guthrie, Pogrebnyak, Gunter, and McCleary.

Plainly the failure of those lot to get a regular place in the side (ok I forgive Pog as he'd worked his nuts off this year) has meant we've been putting out a relatively weak side. Guthrie has just been a poor signing, end of story. They didn't really do their research on him. Gunter and McCleary just haven't stepped up although I still think they can play in a Championship winning side.

Whose fault all that is ^^ depends on who dictated signings and how much money there was available. I thought they were decent signings at the time so what do I know.

Brian - yeah i think he struggled to get the best from his players and made some poor tactical decisions (everyone goes on about Arsenal and I totally agree - said it before the game even - but Coppell did exactly the same thing during his tenure). As the pressure mounted he made more and more poor excuses as well.

Basically this ^^

But when we hear stories of a massive last minute bid for Sig, then i question why they didn't spend the same amount (earlier) on a new left back, centre mid and centre half

[maffff]

Add in the 'auld guard' for pressing on with 'the Reading way' too.

It's not just the owner

[Maguire]

Actually think we're okay with the centre halves as individuals. There's just no protection in front of them and right back was a problem right up until Kelly joined.

[Ian Royal]

Everyone, but biggest single responsible party would be the manager, with the smallest (and almost insignificant) responsibility being the fans who have at best very minimal impact on results.

[Z175]

Everyone top to bottom, particularly Queensley.

I thought at the start of the season that we'd be okay as we were the best side in the league last year and we'd added some quality in Guthrie, Pogrebnyak, Gunter, and McCleary.

Plainly the failure of those lot to get a regular place in the side (ok I forgive Pog as he'd worked his nuts off this year) has meant we've been putting out a relatively weak side. Guthrie has just been a poor signing, end of story. They didn't really do their research on him. Gunter and McCleary just haven't stepped up although I still think they can play in a Championship winning side.

Can't disagree with that, from the players side the most disappointing factor is the failure of the new signings to even get in the team, even ahead of players like Tabb and HRK who werent first choice last year.

[Divvy]

Manager.

He bought the players, he coached the players, he selected the tactics, the formation, and he mismanaged them.

Owner.

AZ also has to learn a lot too; i.e. bigger investment in the future, and whilst he gave Brian the chance he felt he deserved, he needs to know when to make a decision like this a lot earlier in future - God help the next manager who wont get as much time as Brian was afforded.

Players.

As when ever there are fallouts, some players purposely don't give their all and under perform. The likes of Guthrie haven't helped matters, but at the same time Brian stuck with too many under-performing players and should have given others a prolonged run in the team - like Tabb, considering our lack of quality in that area!

[Millsy]

Quite simple. Brian, the board and a lot of fans like me who traditionally call for lots of investment, probably felt we could get away with minimal investment in the summer. It simply didn't work out so I'd say actually no one is to blame. We called it wrong. It was too late to get players in in January.

I've certainly learnt my lesson. I trust Anton has too.

[mr_number]

The likes of Guthrie haven't helped matters, but at the same time Brian stuck with too many under-performing players and should have given others a prolonged run in the team - like Tabb, considering our lack of quality in that area!

LOL, thanks. Been a rubbish day, but that brought a smile to my face.

[Divvy]

The likes of Guthrie haven't helped matters, but at the same time Brian stuck with too many under-performing players and should have given others a prolonged run in the team - like Tabb, considering our lack of quality in that area!

LOL, thanks. Been a rubbish day, but that brought a smile to my face.

Glad for you.. Tabb has been much more effective than Karacan. Guthrie 'injured'.. Tabb could and should have been used rather than waste another wage on Carrico! That doesn't make Tabb our saviour by any stretch, but leaving him out and letting him go really made no sense at all.

[MmmMonsterMunch]

Sums it up when we want Tabb in the starting 11. Shambles of a season all round really. Bring on the championship.

Lets face it chasing promotion is better than surviving relegation.

[AthleticoSpizz]

Keith Jones

Lets face it chasing promotion is better than surviving relegation.

Mmmmmmmmmmmatter of opinion

[muddyfeet]

Simon church

[MmmMonsterMunch]

Keith Jones

Lets face it chasing promotion is better than surviving relegation.

Mmmmmmmmmmmatter of opinion

Would quite happily replay the 2 championship winning seasons over & over. It is about glory after all!

[AthleticoSpizz]

Then why do we all bitch about the relegations

[MmmMonsterMunch]

Then why do we all bitch about the relegations

Exactly! Everyone just STFU with the moaning!

[Divvy]

Then why do we all bitch about the relegations

Exactly! Everyone just STFU with the moaning!

Can we all just STFU and stop moaning about the moaning!

[mr_number]

I'm not bitching about releg8shun, I'm bitching about sacking the manager.

[floyd__streete]

The whole 'manager signed the players' thing is a bit of a red herring in some ways, after all we have a DoF who sanctions these things yet still we haven't heard a peep from this week. Why not come out and be honest about things?

Also we have AZ being painted by the RFC spin-machine as fanatical, down the training ground, sat in a Portakabin with his decimated coaching team and according to many on here who choose to believe any positive spin he is "knowledgeable" about football.....yet as the man who ultimately writes the cheques he has no blame for the cheap budget crap we have signed?

You can't have it both ways.

[TBM]

The whole 'manager signed the players' thing is a bit of a red herring in some ways, after all we have a DoF who sanctions these things yet still we haven't heard a peep from this week. Why not come out and be honest about things?

Also we have AZ being painted by the RFC spin-machine as fanatical, down the training ground, sat in a Portakabin with his decimated coaching team and according to many on here who choose to believe any positive spin he is "knowledgeable" about football.....yet as the man who ultimately writes the cheques he has no blame for the cheap budget crap we have signed?

You can't have it both ways.

Yeah but Hammond doesn't do a Denis Wise and sign a player for the manager against his wishes/knowledge.

Manager and scouts identify a target and Hammond goes out and gets the deal done (or not in our case)

[floyd__streete]

Yeah but Hammond doesn't do a Denis Wise and sign a player for the manager against his wishes/knowledge.

Manager and scouts identify a target and Hammond goes out and gets the deal done

Ok, fair enough - and by way of balance to my rant, BMc was after all a scout for us for a decade so he should know a decent player when he seens one, so there is little excuse on his part for us ending up with abject crap like Gunter!

Perhaps Akpan and Blackman will form an important part of a top 6 Championship side for us next season. There is every chance that they will. And then we can ask once again about the Reading FC Way of signing 'for the future' rather than the now.....The Legacy of The Reading Way