Reading (A) match thread - Jan 13th

[rob1983]

Over £200 spent on watching 16 minutes of Football, em, hope they go down with their points reduction.

Must say I do have slightly less sympathy for them as they’ve got here simply due to overspending. It’s not like us with smurthwaite where he was refusing to fund even the basic level of the club. Instead they’ve spent millions upon millions of pounds that they don’t have. As I saw someone else say - the likes of Sam Smith, Andy Carroll et al won’t have come cheap. Appreciate it’s not the fan’s fault though so do feel a bit sorry for them.

I fully supported the Reading fans today and clapped and sang in support, however I would make the following points :
a) Many Vale fans on the coach were aware that there was a planned pitch invasion at approximately 16 minutes, if Vale fans knew, then certainly the Reading management, stewards and Berkshire Constabulary MUST have known.......but they all seemed to have no plan whatsoever to combat any disruption. 
Why did they not at least put netting on the first 10 rows of seats to deter a pitch invasion, they do it to separate fans?
b) Why did not one person from Reading FC, neither a director, the manager, Team Captain or any players attempt to reason with the mob to try and get them to disperse, they had made their point and I'm sure if at least the Team Captain, or some of the more senior players had gone onto the pitch and reasoned with the ringleaders that they wanted/needed to conclude the match then maybe they would have left.
c) We often complain about the tannoy system at Vale Park but theirs was awful, you could hardly make out any of what they were trying to say.
d) On reflection, it seems to me that Reading FC made no effort whatsoever to remove the fans, indeed it seemed almost like they wanted the game abandoned, maybe some ulterior motive at hand ?, although I have no idea just what.
e) Regards what happens next, well I assume they may be made to play some home games behind closed doors, whether or not that includes our replayed game I don't know. But I would like at least my gate money refunded, my 'contract' with Reading FC was to watch 90 minutes of football at a cost of £21.00. Due to circumstances definitely within their control I was denied and feel that I am well within my rights to receive a full refund.
f) Finally, well done Vale fans in attendance today, you were a credit to our club, SVA.
 
I'm sure I could go on, and will probably think of plenty more to say and plenty may counter-argue and fair-do's if you do. 
I wait with baited breath for Brians match report as I am sure he said he would be there ? 
 
One other point, Vale fans may have protested at games in the past, but we never got a game abandoned, they made their point and should have then left the pitch and allowed the game to conclude. It's not something I ever wish to witness 'live' again. 

The policing was ridiculous as well. How many vale games have we seen an army of police show up for a game that would never have any trouble like Cheltenham or someone. Then here as jacko said, they’ve been saying all week what would happen. So why were there only 4 of them?!

What was your sell by date

If you are saying that £304 is a small fortune to you personally, and it is a lot of money, why are you spending that much on one game of football?

What on earth has it got to do with you what he's got spends his money on ?

[Rampant Zebra]

2 minutes ago, mbycars said:

You went off . Whoosh 😁

Hilarious...

[mbycars]

I've probably missed something somewhere, but what is the reasoning in throwing tennis balls onto the pitch. Believe they've done this several times.

[mbycars]

Just now, Rampant Zebra said:

Hilarious...

Apologies, my strange sense of humour 😉

[darren1810]

1 minute ago, mbycars said:

I've probably missed something somewhere, but what is the reasoning in throwing tennis balls onto the pitch. Believe they've done this several times.

Other clubs have done it.

Only a guess . But maybe difficult to gather up for the Stewards ? Pure guess.

[Rampant Zebra]

1 minute ago, darren1810 said:

Other clubs have done it.

Only a guess . But maybe difficult to gather up for the Stewards ? Pure guess.

Tennis balls are fairly safe to throw and are easy to smuggle in. Also they are quite difficult to collect, as you suggest. Also available at reasonable cost. 

[darren1810]

1 minute ago, Rampant Zebra said:

Tennis balls are fairly safe to throw and are easy to smuggle in. Also they are quite difficult to collect, as you suggest. Also available at reasonable cost. 

Although having predicted the disruption for all to see then you'd of expected the customary frisking to be more robust ?

[smithie]

10 minutes ago, mbycars said:

I've probably missed something somewhere, but what is the reasoning in throwing tennis balls onto the pitch. Believe they've done this several times.

Hopefully they'll be in court soon.

[Rampant Zebra]

1 minute ago, darren1810 said:

Although having predicted the disruption for all to see then you'd of expected the customary frisking to be more robust ?

I think it would be a fine line between robust searching and a perceived human rights violation. I suspect that the "authorities" were happy to do as little as possible to avoid any suggestions of impropriety and let the fans be the villains of the piece for getting the game abandoned.

[Jacko51]

35 minutes ago, darren1810 said:

Why would Hull fans be happy ? I don't understand that bit. 
Surely Brighton are an example of every club of how to rise from the ashes.
Completely lost me. 
Lost myself as well. Have amended Brighton to read Reading.
 

Yongge wanted to take over Hull City but the Premier League said he failed their fit and proper test so he bought Reading instead and the EPL passed him. 

[darren1810]

7 minutes ago, Jacko51 said:

Yongge wanted to take over Hull City but the Premier League said he failed their fit and proper test so he bought Reading instead and the EPL passed him. 

Cheers Jacko. It confused me ( doesn't take much admittedly). 

[Clayts]

1 hour ago, Rampant Zebra said:

Easy with hindsight to say what the EFL should have done though! As this was an unprecedented event I guess they didn't know what was going to happen...

It's not hindsight when it's planned and predicted to happen though, it's basic risk management. It may be unprecedented, but there were a very limited number of variables and possible scenarios/outcomes, that's why the EFL needed to quickly get together to discuss and plan beforehand, so they're not left winging it, adding greater uncertainty to the situation.

[Rampant Zebra]

1 minute ago, Clayts said:

It's not hindsight when it's planned and predicted to happen though, it's basic risk management. It may be unprecedented, but there were a very limited number of variables and possible scenarios/outcomes, that's why they needed to quickly get together to discuss and plan beforehand, so they're not left winging it, adding greater uncertainty to the situation.

Maybe they did exactly what they planned then. 

[Conrad]

1 hour ago, Rampant Zebra said:

Easy with hindsight to say what the EFL should have done though! As this was an unprecedented event I guess they didn't know what was going to happen...

Everyone else knew

[Brian Johnson]

58 minutes ago, rob1983 said:

What on earth has it got to do with you what he's got spends his money on ?

With all due respect @rob1983 he brought up the money first or did you bypass that?

What's he got to do with you what I ask another OVF member?