Reading v Stoke City 17.04.06

Steve Coppell took the opportunity to rest some of his first team players, giving starts to Stack, Makin, Halls, Gunnarsson, Hunt and Long, in the next home game against Stoke City.

Making his 75th appearance in the Championship, Steve Sidwell opened the scoring by heading in a simple chance from an Ivar Ingimarsson free kick on 25 minutes. At half time the score was 1-0 Reading.

On 56 minutes, Kevin Doyle was pulled back in the box to win a penalty, which he converted to make it 2-0. The Royals did concede on 59 minutes to a Adam Rooney tap in, but with John Halls stroking in a Stephen Hunt cross 3 minutes later, Reading cruised to a comfortable 3-1 win over Stoke City, and breached the 100 point barrier at the same time.



Steve Sidwell scored after 25 minutes

Nicky Shorey passing the ball

Kevin Doyle pulled back for a penalty on 56 minutes

Ibrahima Sonko out jumps everyone to head for goal

Stephen Hunt under pressure from the Stoke City player

John Halls slots it home for 3-1

John Halls congratulated by Reading's Skipper for the day

Winning the Championship - Directors Box

Now where had I heard those words before? Once a-g-a-i-n, I found myself being pushed through a dressing room door, this time of course, it was the Home dressing room. The room was crowded with players and management team, everyone preoccupied with congratulating each other for winning the game and becoming Champions with still 5 games to go. There was a lot of handshaking, back slapping, all the things that you would imagine goes on under these circumstances.

I didn’t really get much chance to take many pictures, because before long the word went out, everybody up to the Directors Box. And so it was that I was swept along with everyone else, temporarily part of the “team” as we made our way through the internal stairs, out into the corridor, through the Directors Bar and into the Directors Box, to huge cheers from the fans waiting on the pitch below.

Now clearly none of these cheers were for me, but I have to say just how easy it is to get caught up in the euphoria of the moment, to feel that sense of great belonging and affinity with the players and fans alike.

Once again, not for the first time this season, I found myself in a privileged position, taking pictures and generally joining in with the celebrations.

Stevel Coppell shakes hands with Steve Sidwell

Marcus Hahnemann bares all

Hugs and smiles all round

View from the Directors Box

Chairman John Madejski and Players applaud the fans

Marcus Hahnemann is joined by his two sons

Dave Kitson, Bobby Convey and Ivar Ingimarsson happy to be Champions

Shane Long, Glen Little and Stephen Hunt all smiles

Leroy Lita nursing his broken ankle still joins in

A happy Bobby Convey

Ibrahima Sonko being interviewed for radio

A proud and happy Chairman John Madejski

Steve Sidwell shows his delight

Dave Kitson and Ivar Ingimarsson

Captain Graeme Murty being interview

A day that this Young Royals fan won't forget

What do you have to do, to get the Captain's Boots

Show your own "Boots" of course.....!!!!

A great result, a great day, a great season, but with still 5 games to go, could this Reading side set a new points total for winning the Championship. The win against Derby County left Reading on 95points, 10 points behind Sunderland's 105 point record.

Reading v Derby County 01.04.06

Coming after the joyous celebrations at Leicester City the week before, the next home game against Derby County gave Reading to opportunity to guarantee winning the 2005/6 Championship.  Played on a bright sunny April Fools Day, Reading still needed three more points to make it absolutely certain that they would be this seasons Champions.

Before I get into who scored what, when, I thought readers would find it interesting to see behind the scenes, inside the dressing room, and maybe get a flavour of what went on pre-match to help motivated the team to win.

Here is part of a picture that I took post match inside Reading’s dressing room. It shows what must have been part of the pre-match team discussion, and what some of the players thought the answer to the question, “So why we will beat Derby”, would be.

Pre-Match "Why we will beat Derby"

First up was Leroy Lita, “we don’t want to do what SWFC did back in 83/84”. I’m guessing a reference to Sheffield Wednesday who lost out to Chelsea who won the old second division in that season.

Next up was Sonko, obviously a man of few words, “J.F.D.I”. The missing word was a J. I’ll let you decide what this means, but I think you will get the drift.

And lastly from “Steve “The Truth” Shorey”, presumably some in-joke referring to Nicky Shorey, “because top teams do not take their foot off the pedal”.

Whatever the pre-match discussion, whatever the motivation required to secure the three more points needed, Reading walked out onto a sunny Madejski Stadium to a near capacity crowd, determined to win the Championship in front of their home supporters.

For the first 45 minutes, it didn’t look as though Reading had listened to their own pre-match motivational chat, as it ended goalless, neither side particularly dominating play.

Fortunately, the expectant home crowd didn’t have to wait to long into the second half before Reading opened the scoring through James Harper who fired in a shot on 59 minutes. This goal seemed to spur on the Reading side, as within 6 minutes Reading went further ahead through a headed goal from Kevin Doyle.

Now 2-0 up and confidence levels raised, John Oster joined in by scoring his first goal for the club on 70 minutes. The complete demolition of the Derby side was finished off by Shane Long who scored two goals in two minutes to make the final score 5-0 to Reading. 

At the final whistle, nothing was going to keep the Reading fans from invading the pitch and start their own celebrations. By the time that I had, packed up my gear, and started to make my way across the pitch, well if everyone else is going on the pitch then why not me, the pitch was a sea of cheering Reading supporters.

Having pushed through the throng now surrounding the dugout area, I finally made it to the front of the crowd, and was allowed pass through the ring of security men.

Before I had time to catch my breath, I was once again told, “bring your camera and follow me”. Hang about I thought, that’s the second time I have heard those words in the space of a week.

To be continued…………

James Harper opens the scoring on 59 minutes

Kevin Doyle, scorer of Reading's second goal

A winning team

John Oster scores his first goal for Reading

And is mobbed by his team mates

Steve Sidwell at full stretch to control the ball

Dave Kitson shoots for goal

Promotion Celebrations with the Fans

From here on in, I will let the pictures tell the story. How on a cold damp Saturday afternoon in March 2006, in one corner of an empty Walkers Stadium in Leicester, the players, management and 3,000 travelling fans celebrated promotion to the Premiership. It was maybe sad that promotion could not have been won at the Madejski Stadium in front of more fans, but for all those fans that were there, it was maybe made all the more special because they were the privileged few.

With the Championship still to play for, the rest of the home fans would still have a chance to celebrate the next target, promotion as Champions.

Travelling Royals Fans hear the promotion news

News of promotion gets through to the players

and it's smiles all round

This scarf says it all as fans show their joy at winning promotion

Marcus Hahnemann salutes the fans

Steve Coppell gets ready to lose his coat...!!!!

John Madejski and Steve Coppell show their joy

Steve Sidwell goes a little "over the top"

Glen Little applauds the travelling fans.

As Glen Little left the chaning room, he hung his matchday pass round my neck, not sure why but it made a nice momento of the day.

The "Management" team come together to celebrate promotion

Just in case anyone was in any doubt....!!!!

More happy faces..............

.....and a "silly" one.....!!!!

Graeme Murty arm in arm with kit man Ron Grant

New boy Shane Long applauds the crowd

Reading fans to wild with delight................

some more than others.........!!!!!

After sometime celebrating with the fans, pictures taken, and generally everyone having a great time, the players and staff slowly began to make their way back to the changing rooms. With nothing left to photograph and needing to catch my breath, I began to disassemble my camera for the second time since the game had finished. Now pack away, and chatting with my opo, I felt a tug on my sleeve. It was Craig Mortimer, now Communications Manager at Reading FC, "Hey mate", he whispered, "come with me and bring a camera", he sounded out of breath having run across the pitch to fetch us. What, bring a camera, it's not that easy to just bring a camera. I quickly unpacked my gear a-g-a-i-n, attached lens and flashgun, and was told to follow him. We ran, he ran, I followed at a more sedate pace, I wasn't going to leave my gear unprotected beside the pitch, while I was going god knows where. By the time I caught him up, just inside the tunnel, it was my turn to be out of breath, and with no time to explain,  on again into the stand.

When he finally stopped outside a door some way inside the stand, I only had the briefest of chances to see where we were, before the door was opened and I was shoved through............

To be continued.......