Reading Preview - Saturday Oct 20 - Ewood Park 3:00 Pm Kickoff

[Eddie]

3) Tugay proved those who thought he was finished wrong yesterday. When he is allowed licence to get further forward up the pitch, and is not wasted at sweeper, he still looks like he has plenty of petrol left in the tank.

Tugay still has it as long as he isn't closed down quickly and tightly marked. If sides make that mistake then he has more than enough ability to punish them for it. Reading made that mistake, most won't.

[Fife Rover]

I'm gutted I decided not to travel to Reading yesterday,absolutely gutted.

The one thing I really have to say is that Dunn's through ball for Roque's goal was absolutely sublime.

Otherwise, from the highlights, our passing looks excellent and the goals were all very good. Roque and Benni really are turning it on at the moment. Also, while Tugay's strike was very good, any decent goalkeeper should have had that easily covered. Hahnamen (sp) messed it up big time.

Errrrmm! Were you planning on watching Reading reserves then TCJ?

[vyeo]

Very impressed by our first half performance, though we were a tad sloppy in the second. Benni seems to be getting back into form, which is good, and dunny is looking every bit the player we knew he could be. I'm already of the opinion that Roque is the best striker we've had since Shearer! The next four or five games will define our season, and if we can negotiate them successfully, we'll be well on our way for the rest of the season.

[American]

You are a sad, sad individual. Can the moderators please stop this numpty posting anything with the word Dunn in it, please, or any topic that mentions Dunn in the table, or any time he can quote someone else discussing Dunn.

Thanks

Yes, Jan, it really gets annoying when people go on about a person they have a personal agenda against...

[John]

Good win and good performance. Give us space and we will hurt teams. Benni Mac looks much sharper as well, which is nice to see.

Reading are a team really struggling at the moment and we will get a good indication of how good we are in November, when we have some really tough games.

[tcj_jones]

Errrrmm! Were you planning on watching Reading reserves then TCJ?

You know what I meant

[Roar of the Rover]

Blackburn vs Reading Goals

[Claytons Left Boot]

Santa looked like he was really struggling 10 mins or so before half time. Stretching his leg, limping and so on. Thought Derbyshire would have come on for the whole of the second half seeing as we were 3-0 up. Presumed it was his knee trouble but perhaps it was a knock he managed to run off?

Happy with the result and the 3 points but the difference between us and a top, top side is that the top, top side would have taken them to the cleaners in the second half and not let them back into the game somewhat. Other than that, no complaints.

[Exiled_Rover]

Good win and good performance. Give us space and we will hurt teams. Benni Mac looks much sharper as well, which is nice to see.

Reading are a team really struggling at the moment and we will get a good indication of how good we are in November, when we have some really tough games.

I don't buy that one, we've had an incredibly difficult start to the season. We've played a good majority of the teams around us and come out favourably.

[RoyRover]

Yesterday was another performance and result by Rovers. I watched the highlights and some of our passing, movement and creation of chances was first class. I'm delighted that McCarthy scored two goals, he looked a lot like his old self and he and Santa Cruz are forming a very good partnership. Tugay's goal was a brilliant strike, even if the keepers should have saved it. The two goals we conceded were soft, but overall it was a good day at the office. It was also nice to hear that praise that was coming our way from the media. Long may it continue.

[USABlue]

Interesting some of the best footy I have seen us play in years and only a handful of posts, what do we only come on when there is a good moan to be had. The plonker knocking Dunn, come off it, he was excellent in the first half and his pass for the goal was simply sublime.

Loving Cruz more every time I see him play, he has a fluidity and a natrual movement that is sooo smooth and awesome to watch. I have been very impressed by Torres in the way he moves so well and make it look so easy, this fella is right up there with him. Makes teh difficult touches look easy and once him and Benni get it together proper I think there will be some delightful link up play between them.

Benni's resugence, coincidental with Mourinho leaving Chelsea or???. Anyway it is good to see. He is definately putting in more effort. I thought Ooyah looked pretty decent at the back, did not fill me with fear every time he got near the ball and Zura did well coming on. Matty well done too the lad goes straight line for the goal. So all in all looking pretty good but still room for improvement by one or two individuals. If we ever hit full stride with every body on their game someone is in for a hammering, let's hope it's against one of the "big" media darlings. Mullering spurs would be nice.

[Anti-Dingle-Brigade]

Did anyone else spend the whole game watching the progress of the white bird that was wandering round on the pitch?

[Paul Mellelieu]

Yes. We wondered if the bird would change ends with the Rovers. It didn't.

[Anti-Dingle-Brigade]

We all noticed it was following a new mate - Robbie Savage.

[sussexrover]

Was good to see a convincing victory for my first trip to Ewood of the season (looking forward to the Pompey CC game now) and once we took control it was hardly surprising to see us relax perhaps more than we should have. However, I have to admit (and perhaps this won't be overly popular) but I am hardly surprised that Pedersen's head has gone down. I made the effort to watch him closely yesterday, in light of the criticism he has received lately (admittedly he has not hit his best form). On a number of occasions he would make what were intelligent runs into great positions and the player on the ball would decide not to pass to him for one reason or another. At that point a number of members of the crowd (I was in the JW Upper, not somewhere I have sat often) would harangue him for being in an offside position (Get back onside you lazy......). We all know Pedersen is a confidence player, as evidenced by his performances over the last 2-3 seasons so it just seemed to me to that we need to encourage him to try to rediscover his form.

[Hasta]

I thought in general play MGP did OK when he come on. However as I mentioned earlier he was at fault for both goals with individual mistakes which could have proved costly. To be fair he's far from a liabilty in defensive situations normally but had we drawn 2-2 he would be coming in for bucketloads of flack.

[Tris]

Did anyone else spend the whole game watching the progress of the white bird that was wandering round on the pitch?

Yes. We wondered if the bird would change ends with the Rovers. It didn't.

Thought it might have been the same bird which had to be carried off on a stretcher at the MyPa (or maybe Vetra or Larissa) game, although if it was, someone's given it a proper wash bleach and blow dry ...

[American Rover12]

Just saw the replay of Toog's goal. Class. Nothing short of fantastic.

[JAL]

The word used to describe Dunny's performance was outstanding from Revidge blue, to match outstanding with the raw reality of the performance of David Dunn yesterday for me doesnt go the two where are totally independent of one another and have nothing in common whatsoever .

Good to average maybe but outstanding no way your having a laugh

[mjs]

First half yesterday was some of the best football I have seen us play for a very long time. Great movement, great passing and Reading (who set up very defensively) just couldn't live with us. We had quality throughout the team and we were very mobile, and Samba (who IMO was MOM by a mile) looked like Beckenbaur on speed!!

Definitely the best group of players we have had since 95!!

[Exiled_Rover]

We were sublime at times yesterday. Benni came to play, and when he does we're a much better team for it. His work rate and commitment have been stellar the past few games, that lay off has done him good. Obviously Santa Cruz gets a mention with his continued exceptional play. Utter bargain. The midfield of Tugay, Savage, Dunn and Bentley played Reading off the park at times. Samba was his usual excellent self and Ooijer played probably his best match of the year. Emerton was my vote for man of the match though, he never stopped running up and down his wing and was a thorn in the side of Reading all game. Not to mention his cross lead to the opening goal.

I shudder to imagine what Hughes and his backroom staff could do with money to play with in the transfer market and an established set of talented players.........erm, no on second thought, that Hughes bloke is absolute twaddle. Toshack has it right. Rubbish manager. Not a clue tactically. Couldn't coach his way out of a wet paper bag.

[philipl]

Yes, I was left wondering at the paucity of responses having watched extended highlights.

I think everybody must have been left purring and lost for words at the quality of football Rovers were playing. And yes Mr JAL, Dunn was outstanding.

Guardian eulogising the Benni/Roque combination. "Rovers could make a decent fist of challenging for the top four"

Roque talks about needing to win trophies before making the SAS comparison.

[Saltysellars]

Two things to me were made even clearer by our performance and players at the weekend.

Despite it being said for the past seven years, how good is to have a goalkeeper between the posts who is consistent. I thought Hanneman was a half decent keeper, and he probably is, but he'll be disappointed with at least two of the goals. Admitedly, Brad made an error against Arsenal, but apart from that I can't think of any serious blunders that have led to an opposition goal. I wouldn't swap him for anyone (Well maybe Petr Cech!)

When Zurab came on for Warnock, and I know he's a defender playing out of position, but he did well defensively, but when it came to crossing the half way line he didn't really know what to do. Brett Emerton, on the other hand, did and looks comfortable on the ball. Again, makes you appreciate what you have, and he was probably unlucky not to be MoTM on Saturday!

A great win, but being sadistic, I would have loved to have seen us beaten them by six or seven, although I'm glad they didn't play Doyle and Lita from the start.

[herbergeehh]

Stan The Man with a well-written piece on Rovers and Pompey.

[Eddie]

He must have put a lot of effort into that one.