Bolton fall out

[MR. CYNICAL]

The constant shifting of goalposts winds me up.

We're going down, it's disastrous.
We're not in the Play Offs it's an outrage.
Anyone would be better than X, [next is better than X] - not good enough.
It's a results business - results are good - performances are rubbish.

OMG the sky is falling and my sheets are wet, our form is only DWLWWD... waaah.

Ain`t that the truth, I enjoyed football far more before the creation of social media. at least I`d only hear it in the pub then.

I do find it a bit weird there’s a bit of outrage over this game. Bolton as good as any in the division and we were one JP mistake from a very good win. It wasn’t pretty but it wasn’t hugely different to same games we won last year like Wycombe at home

And we did lose 3 impt players during the game to injury which messed up our sub strategy

We were crap first 10 of both halves when Bolton should have scored a few but weren’t awful otherwise

Tbf I think people often get frustrated, post their frustrations in the heat of the moment and then settle down a day or two after, me included

It was a good point and 7 in 3 games. Well prob end top half which after the start to the season is ok

Not sure about heat of the moment, I'm still annoyed at the Wycombe performance. That really could of gone either way at 2-2.
As for being crap first 10 of both halves, we parked the bus and couldn't get out of our half after the break, think we only got into their box twice, but for some resolute defending, which I do give them credit for, we would surely of lost.
Don't agree Bolton are anything special, quick, direct wingers yes, but we seem to make every team look better than they are as we are unable to do the basics like pass the ball, win it or create.

[Brogue]

How would you know, I thought you blocked me?

Whilst you were posting on the reading fc twitter hashtag? You can’t honestly be this thick.

I blocked Chris Scott, he posts on there all the time and I don`t see a thing, and thanks for the compliment. it goes right over my head so don`t waste your time

i don't see your posts because you are blocked. so how did you know about Chris Scott? how did you see his posts before you blocked him? was it because you were looking at the reading fc hashtag? honestly are you retarded? i change my earlier statement where i said you cant be this thick, you obviously are. If you say you hate reading fc social media as much as you do, don't search for the reading fc hashtag then !! and certainly don't actively post on it . its like me saying i don't like marmite, whilst eating marmite on my toast every day. i should probably stop eating marmite if i don't like it

[windermereROYAL]

Whilst you were posting on the reading fc twitter hashtag? You can’t honestly be this thick.

I blocked Chris Scott, he posts on there all the time and I don`t see a thing, and thanks for the compliment. it goes right over my head so don`t waste your time

i don't see your posts because you are blocked. so how did you know about Chris Scott? how did you see his posts before you blocked him? was it because you were looking at the reading fc hashtag? honestly are you retarded? i change my earlier statement where i said you cant be this thick, you obviously are. If you say you hate reading fc social media as much as you do don't search for the reading fc hashtag then and certainly don't actively post on it . its like me saying i don't like marmite whilst eating marmite on my toast every day. i should probably stop eating marmite if i don't like it

whooosh

[Brogue]

I blocked Chris Scott, he posts on there all the time and I don`t see a thing, and thanks for the compliment. it goes right over my head so don`t waste your time

i don't see your posts because you are blocked. so how did you know about Chris Scott? how did you see his posts before you blocked him? was it because you were looking at the reading fc hashtag? honestly are you retarded? i change my earlier statement where i said you cant be this thick, you obviously are. If you say you hate reading fc social media as much as you do don't search for the reading fc hashtag then and certainly don't actively post on it . its like me saying i don't like marmite whilst eating marmite on my toast every day. i should probably stop eating marmite if i don't like it

whooosh

the sound of the air passing between your ears.

[windermereROYAL]

i don't see your posts because you are blocked. so how did you know about Chris Scott? how did you see his posts before you blocked him? was it because you were looking at the reading fc hashtag? honestly are you retarded? i change my earlier statement where i said you cant be this thick, you obviously are. If you say you hate reading fc social media as much as you do don't search for the reading fc hashtag then and certainly don't actively post on it . its like me saying i don't like marmite whilst eating marmite on my toast every day. i should probably stop eating marmite if i don't like it

whooosh

the sound of the air passing between your ears.

whoooosh.

[tidus_mi2]

I do get the feeling we are currently a squad of midtable players with a few stand outs, obviously Marriott but also Wing and Pereira who I think are both not hitting their best at the moment.

There seems to be an overall agreement that the Summer recruitment was poor and Hunt eventually paid the price for those poor results, Richardson needs 1-2 windows to get the squad built the way he wants but is getting results even if the performances recently have been a bit dire at times, that 2nd half yesterday was a real standout but to give credit, they did actually defend well and kept Bolton chances at a relative minimum, Wycombe created more for reference.

Would absolutely expect a much better performance on Saturday against a Port Vale side who are undeniably the weakest in the division, if not, it's gonna be a concern.

[Hound]

Ain`t that the truth, I enjoyed football far more before the creation of social media. at least I`d only hear it in the pub then.

I do find it a bit weird there’s a bit of outrage over this game. Bolton as good as any in the division and we were one JP mistake from a very good win. It wasn’t pretty but it wasn’t hugely different to same games we won last year like Wycombe at home

And we did lose 3 impt players during the game to injury which messed up our sub strategy

We were crap first 10 of both halves when Bolton should have scored a few but weren’t awful otherwise

Tbf I think people often get frustrated, post their frustrations in the heat of the moment and then settle down a day or two after, me included

It was a good point and 7 in 3 games. Well prob end top half which after the start to the season is ok

Not sure about heat of the moment, I'm still annoyed at the Wycombe performance. That really could of gone either way at 2-2.
As for being crap first 10 of both halves, we parked the bus and couldn't get out of our half after the break, think we only got into their box twice, but for some resolute defending, which I do give them credit for, we would surely of lost.
Don't agree Bolton are anything special, quick, direct wingers yes, but we seem to make every team look better than they are as we are unable to do the basics like pass the ball, win it or create.

I’m still annoyed about the Wycombe effort - far more than last night

I think we came closest to scoring second half before their goal didn’t we? Only real save a keeper made second half. Not saying it was great but there was defensive structure; hard work and we did limit them pretty well

Wycombe was much more a case of their dreadful finishing saving is rather than parking the bus effectively

[Mid Sussex Royal]

We lost 3 key players to injury before the hour mark, that hugely impacted how the second half went.

We had next to no subs left before they had made any changes and played last midweek too.

Its hardly surprising they were much stronger in the second half.

[Millsy]

Sutekh, fair points, but it seems odd to question our style when Leam has taken us from relegation candidates to serious playoff candidates., when "only a draw" against high flyign Bolton is seen negatively.

As an old school winger who only ever played 442 (hence my dinosaur moans here) I'd love nothing more than a system I understand and prefer with Trevor Morley up front, but the fact is Leam is clearly achieving results so it's certainly not for me to question his style.

Let's face it, what was disappointing here isn't our style or anythign deeper, it is simply our attitude in the second half and the final result.

For me this was Southgate/Italy all over again. Was that coming from Leam instructing the team to shut up shop? From the players who were getting nervous? Leam did put two strikers on so that suggests to me he wanted to get a second, but the way we played suggested we just wanted to hold on, which is confusing.

Nothing to see here, nothing major needs changing other than Leam giving the team a good telling off and teaching them never to forget that feeling. A 1-0 lead is never enough , until perhaps the final 5-10mins. Because mistakes happen, especially under pressure. Hopefully they'll learn from this.

[South Coast Royal]

Over the years I calculated just now that I have watched around 1400 Reading home games.

Today I feel that I have never watched such an unimaginative and and crude half of football as last night's second half.

I count among those games the 6-0 thrashing by Bristol Rovers and the 7-0 loss to Man City in the FA Cup when at least we had the excuse that we were 2 divisions lower and they were top level champions and FA Cup winners in waiting.
I would even include the second relegation from the Premier League when I can't remember us taking such a meek approach to a game.

What I feel we are watching now is the parody of an archetypal Northern lower division side.
2 big centre-backs who take no prisoners, a midfield packed with workhorses plus the normal lump of a striker up front (although that currently is the one difference )

Over the past few years we have had a generally good disciplinary record as a clean side but now we give away so many niggly fouls to break up the opposition play and last night's 4 or 5 yellows were perfectly justified.
We also waste time-word must have got round amongst referees as last night once again we had a big chunk of added time which ultimately led to dropping 2 points

So, is this the price we pay for "success" if success is doing anything to make the play-offs regardless of style?
Our points accumulation under Richardson is impressive and he should be congratulated for getting us away from the spectre of relegation.
Also any criticism has to be tempered with relief that we still have a club and an owner that has brought much needed stability.
But where do we go from here?

Under McGhee, Coppell and McDermott we could see something being built but if this current approach is maintained and we somehow fluke promotion we would be slaughtered in the Championship-seeing Coventry v Middlesboro on Monday and a bit of Bristol City v Wrexham last night we look like a National League side in comparison that just happens to have a top striker.

Would the manager change our style and would he have funds to bring in different types of players to play the different style?

Who knows but watching our performances has often been grim and regrettably last night's second half dross was the most grim yet.

[RoyalBlue]

Really disappointed by that, particularly the aftermath we’ve now got.


The aftermath of last night though is going to be a real worry. Firstly, does JP need a rest? Three or four goals conceded recently have possibly been through keeper errors (also his distribution needs a bit of practice).

Yes, keepers stick together in the GKU but I doubt you'd find many keepers or qualified goalkeeping coaches who would agree that three or four of those goals conceded have been down to errors by JP. Even if they were. he has still made a lot of great saves, including one early on last night, that others wouldn't have done. So even taking the most critical stance, I would suggest he's still very much in credit. Besides. does anyone really want to see us relying on Stevens?

Agreed, his distribution needs more than a bit of practice, I don't think that he's helped though by teammates failing to show for the ball and, what I suspect are team instructions to play that potentially suicidal ground pass straight down the centre of the pitch!

[Silver Fox]

For anyone clamouring for Pereira to be run out of town who would you have liked in goal for that one on one in the 2nd minute? Chances are we wouldn't have been hanging on to a one goal lead in the 95th without him

[SouthDownsRoyal]

The constant shifting of goalposts winds me up.

We're going down, it's disastrous.
We're not in the Play Offs it's an outrage.
Anyone would be better than X, [next is better than X] - not good enough.
It's a results business - results are good - performances are rubbish.

OMG the sky is falling and my sheets are wet, our form is only DWLWWD... waaah.

Everytime I visit the TB I keep thinking maybe dai hasn’t left or I’ve missed us being relegated or being wound up and ceasing to be a football club or something massive.

Then I check the table and we are 8th with our manager achieving 1.8ppg (or similar) since taking over.

Very odd.

[Sutekh]

Don’t get me wrong, not intending to do down JP, he’s still probably the best keeper in the division. It doesn't help that as the last line of defence every slight misjudgement a keeper makes can be amplified greatly. However he unfortunately had a hiccup last night and his distribution hasn’t been ideal recently so needs to be working on that. It’s just stuff that happens from time to time and nothing to worry about as long as those elements are improved on.

Don’t get the poor impression on Stevens, he’s done perfectly well when called.

[South Coast Royal]

For anyone clamouring for Pereira to be run out of town who would you have liked in goal for that one on one in the 2nd minute? Chances are we wouldn't have been hanging on to a one goal lead in the 95th without him

Well said.
An ever changing back 4 doesn't help and if we hadn't had Pereira at one end of the pitch and Marriott at the other end we would almost certainly be in the bottom 4.

Apart from his reflex saves which are outstanding his dealing with crosses has generally been excellent -those are the two areas that I want my keeper to excel in and distribution is far less important-not many can be like Alisson and Raya..

[Brogue]

The constant shifting of goalposts winds me up.

We're going down, it's disastrous.
We're not in the Play Offs it's an outrage.
Anyone would be better than X, [next is better than X] - not good enough.
It's a results business - results are good - performances are rubbish.

OMG the sky is falling and my sheets are wet, our form is only DWLWWD... waaah.

Everytime I visit the TB I keep thinking maybe dai hasn’t left or I’ve missed us being relegated or being wound up and ceasing to be a football club or something massive.

Then I check the table and we are 8th with our manager achieving 1.8ppg (or similar) since taking over.

Very odd.

do you go to many games Sdr?

[Snowflake Royal]

The constant shifting of goalposts winds me up.

We're going down, it's disastrous.
We're not in the Play Offs it's an outrage.
Anyone would be better than X, [next is better than X] - not good enough.
It's a results business - results are good - performances are rubbish.

OMG the sky is falling and my sheets are wet, our form is only DWLWWD... waaah.

Everytime I visit the TB I keep thinking maybe dai hasn’t left or I’ve missed us being relegated or being wound up and ceasing to be a football club or something massive.

Then I check the table and we are 8th with our manager achieving 1.8ppg (or similar) since taking over.

Very odd.

do you go to many games Sdr?

You're really a man out of time aren’t you brogue... much better suited to the 70s.

[stealthpapes]

We also waste time-word must have got round amongst referees as last night once again we had a big chunk of added time which ultimately led to dropping 2 points

Old Man Shouts At Cloud nonsense.

With the number of subs and the extended spell dealing with a particular injury, nine minutes was about right.

[Hound]

For anyone clamouring for Pereira to be run out of town who would you have liked in goal for that one on one in the 2nd minute? Chances are we wouldn't have been hanging on to a one goal lead in the 95th without him

Well said.
An ever changing back 4 doesn't help and if we hadn't had Pereira at one end of the pitch and Marriott at the other end we would almost certainly be in the bottom 4.

Apart from his reflex saves which are outstanding his dealing with crosses has generally been excellent -those are the two areas that I want my keeper to excel in and distribution is far less important-not many can be like Alisson and Raya..

I know where you’re coming from - we’ve become very reliant on both, esp Marriott since his return

But tbf we took 11 points from 5 games with Marriott injured in the league and 4 from 3 when JP was out

So it’s not quite that simple

Teams adapt

[Brogue]

Everytime I visit the TB I keep thinking maybe dai hasn’t left or I’ve missed us being relegated or being wound up and ceasing to be a football club or something massive.

Then I check the table and we are 8th with our manager achieving 1.8ppg (or similar) since taking over.

Very odd.

do you go to many games Sdr?

You're really a man out of time aren’t you brogue... much better suited to the 70s.

most peoples gripes are related to the style of play and level of performances, not with the results, ppg or league positioning . Just curious to how many games SDR attends. He’s clearly seeking clarity on why there might be an air of discontent. And one might suggest that if he had attended any games this season it might have become apparent.