On Saturday, Ryan and I went to the Madjeski to see another Premiership fixture for the Royals. I’ll make no bones about the fact I haven’t been to see Reading very often in recent seasons, but mainly this was because Ryan was too young and I had lost the appetite after Reading moved from Elm Park (and it meant that it wasn’t walkable to the ground). So, today it was the first time we took the bus.
Apart from the cost (£7.50!) it is the perfect way to go to the ground. And I’m only baulking at the cost because my wife has been able to drop us off so the cost has only been the price of the petrol. Parking starts at £7 and I’ve seen some parking at £10, so £5 per person for the bus is not too bad.
Where we get on, we are able to get seat very easily, but by the time it half way round it is standing room only. I chatted to a couple behind me to find out where the bus leaves from after the game (same place we are dropped off from) and was told I was unlike to get a seat on the return journey without leaving before the final whistle (something I’ve never done).
It took only half an hour to get to the ground (about the same as being dropped off) and much better than parking, and the return journey was even quicker, so any Reading car drivers that might ever read this; get the bus. This has to be the way forward if the ground expansion goes ahead as there will be no extra car parking spaces.
The game itself was a great one for Reading, and a terrible one for Charlton. I doubt Coppell and the Reading players thought they would get such an easy game in the Premiership, but Charlton played like they were managerless, not that they had a new manager to impress. Challenging for the ball (something Reading did well), closing down players (Reading again) and attacking with pace seemed to be missing from Charlton’s gameplan. In fact, despite missing a host of chances (probably 4-0 would have been a better scorelines) Reading placed well within themselves and will have to raise their game back up again for the next game.
Ryan really enjoyed the game. We were quite low down again, and he got to see Kingsley up close again. We got a Reading goal at our end (first since Lita against Middlesborough but we were up in the West for that) and the atmosphere was great.
At the end, mindful of the seating situation on the bus, I picked Ryan up and ran to the bus stop only to find there was only about 5 people on it when we got there. Still, it was good exercise.
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