by Mr Angry »
04 Nov 2008 15:55
CITY BLOWN AWAY-READING A CLASS APART AT ASHTON GATE
Liam Rosenior could have gloated after City had been brought crashing back down to earth in their own backyard.
After all, he departed Bristol beneath a dark cloud when Premier League Fulham spirited him away for a fraction of his true value in November 2003.
When a section of the Ashton Gate crowd chose to remind him of the fact, Rosenior must have been tempted to take a verbal swipe at his erstwhile employers – instead of which he demonstrated true class by allowing his football to do his talking for him.
And after he and his team-mates had put last season's beaten play-off finalists firmly in their place, Reading's eloquent full-back made humble reference to the debt of gratitude he still owes his first club.
He recalled: "I left on terms that were a little sad, because they'd done so much for me. But I was 19 years old and a Premiership club came in and told me I had a good chance of playing in their first team."In the end, it worked out for me and I don't think Bristol City have found it harder without me. They've moved on as a club and done very well indeed. It's a fantastic club, a big club and it's great to see them doing so well
"I got a bit of stick from some of the fans, but a lot of them were clapping as we came off and I showed my appreciation of them and of the club by clapping them back. Bristol City looked after me and gave me my first real chance in football. I feel nothing but gratitude to this club and I wanted to show it."
Rosenior also displayed the natural talent which was apparent when he broke into City's first team as a teenager six years ago, playing his part in a performance which established Reading as rivals to runaway Championship leaders Wolves and Birmingham City.
"Our front two were superb and we played our part behind them," said Rosenior. "We got on the ball, passed it well and deserved to win. When you have strikers like we have, you know you're going to win more games than you lose if you can keep things tight at the back."
No-one who witnessed this massacre in the cold November rain will feel inclined to disagree. The Royals may perform with a swagger derived from two seasons spent in the Premier League, but they also earn the right to play courtesy of the non-negotiable work ethic instilled by pragmatic manager Steve Coppell.
If City pride themselves on their fitness and work-rate, their opponents showed them there is considerable room for further improvement. Quicker than their rivals both in speed of foot and thought, Reading's players hunted in packs, closing down opponents who, struggled in the act of trying to keep pace.
When in possession, Coppell's team attacked in numbers and with the kind of clinical precision which made a mockery of City's recent defensive record. Having kept the opposition at bay for 405 minutes, the Robins conceded twice in the space of 68 seconds.
Kevin Doyle and Noel Hunt had already squandered clear goal-scoring opportunities when they combined to carve the home side wide open in the 14th minute. Hunt's perfectly-weighted through ball set Doyle free and the Republic of Ireland striker held off Liam Fontaine to beat keeper Adriano Basso from a narrow angle and prove he can deliver goals on the road as well as at the Madejski Stadium.
The home side had hardly had time to gather their thoughts when they fell further behind, Noel Hunt seizing upon Kalifa Cisse's defence-splitting pass to pick his spot from close range.
City were all over the place, their defence shambolic behind a midfield that was powerless to stem the flow of Reading raids and equally incapable of establishing an attacking platform. It came as no surprise when Reading inflicted a stunning coup de grace early in the second half.
The closest thing to grease lightning seen at Ashton Gate this season, Jimmy Kebe was allowed far too much time and space in which to pull City's defence apart with a neat drag back which presented Doyle with the most straightforward of finishes at the far post.
But Reading saved their best for last, the marauding Cisse brushing aside Lee Johnson's weak challenge and finding the top left-hand corner of the net with a rising shot which cleared Basso's despairing dive.
So utterly overrun were City, that only Stern John appeared capable of carrying the fight to Reading. Although manager Gary Johnson's decision to rest Dele Adebola and deploy the loan signing from Southampton alongside Nicky Maynard raised more than a few eyebrows, John at least warranted his selection.
Royals' American keeper Marcus Hahnemann was a virtual spectator until called upon to push John's diving header around the post 10 minutes before half time. And he again proved equal to the task when the Trinidad & Tobago striker sought out the top corner with a sweetly-struck drive on 56 minutes.
When he did eventually score in the third minute of time added on, meeting Bradley Orr's right-wing cross with an unstoppable volley from 10 yards out, John's first City goal arrived far too late to affect the outcome.
Nope, absolutely no way anyone can see any progress this season; clearly its going to be a season of dull, inispiring football, and mid-table is the best we can hope for..............................
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If you're implying that Schards has crowed on this thread, I think you're wrong. But, anyway, I don't see the need to keep bumping this up at the moment.
