Murty's Testimonial

[Thaumagurist*]

Personnally i found it a total cringe fest.

Leona Lewis is a lot more cringable than anything at Reading.

I was impressed by the number 11 (Robson-Kanu?), I'd never seen him before. I didn't know just about half of our players, but I'm pretty happy with what I saw - think we have some promising players.

[Row Z Royal]

Indeed. Couldn't hear shizz in the East Stand.

However, by the time they'd got it working and I could hear the new announcer...well, they shouldn't have bothered.

[wickedwhispers]

Chelsea friendly>Murty testimonial.

[Sun Tzu]

Chelsea friendly>Murty testimonial.

Not in any way !

Chelsea friendly = for the newer fans

Murts testimonial = for those with a bit of history at the club

[Stranded]

Great that Murts scored three pens all at the end that 'the' pen was scored, couldn;t have been better if it had been planned !


Err, I think you'll find it was.

A rare thing, a Stranded whoosh !!

I did kind of spot that all 3 pens were slightly generous.....

God damn it, I knew it as soon as I hit enter too.

I need my holiday tomorrow.

[CMRoyal]

Indeed. Couldn't hear shizz in the East Stand.

Who was shizz? Some kind of modern beat combo, no doubt...



Most surreal moment of the night - that bunch of indie kids presenting Murts with a copy of their CD. Did I miss something there? Are they mates of his?

[brendywendy]

Good night out. Great to be able to give our greatest ever captain a send off.as well as marcus doobs etc. Some great talent on show with sidders and shorey etc- shows the talent weve lost. And great to see curo and butler again. And nice to see how the kids are shaping up together. Bertrand looked promising.karacan kanu and henry looked sharpe. Shame about the crowd, especially when compared to parkys testimonial. And like that game it signals the end of another era in the history of our club. Sniff

[Murts-is-Lej]

Even though school's not yet broken up in these distant parts we still managed to get there last night as a whole family. And I'm really glad we did - what a fun night!
- Newbies and humbugs may not have enjoyed seeing the old guard changing for the young guns but there were plenty of us there who did. Of course there was the M-U-R-T-Y chant (especially the cheerleader-led one, but maybe the extra eye-candy helped with that!) but I enjoyed the ones for Parky, Shorey ("for England"!) and U-S-A just as much.
- And as for the football it may not have been the most competitive ever but there were some choice moments: Gunnar's 180 turn in the 1st half to beat both orange tacklers; Igoe's great shot and Hamer's even better save; Salako's left wing dribbles; Murts' volley & Parky's shot both just over the bar; Davies' goal.

BTW, you gotta laugh at the pixxxcks who think it wasn't up to League match standard either in football or attendance. Err, "TESTIMONIAL" - decidedly better fare than most of the Carling Cup matches I've been to...

Not goodbye, Ledge, just au revoir..

[Dirk Gently]

For me one the things that stuc in the mind was seeing the transitions - Henry trying to get the ball past Little, Sidwell and Karacan going in for a tackle in midfield.....

Oh, so many memories - Butts & Curo together again up front (and both of them missing sitters....)

[Scarface]

Good night out. Great to be able to give our greatest ever captain a send off.as well as marcus doobs etc. Some great talent on show with sidders and shorey etc- shows the talent weve lost. And great to see curo and butler again. And nice to see how the kids are shaping up together. Bertrand looked promising.karacan kanu and henry looked sharpe. Shame about the crowd, especially when compared to parkys testimonial. And like that game it signals the end of another era in the history of our club. Sniff

It's all about the timing of the game and also the utter dejection most Reading fans are feeling after what Coppell served up last season. Parky had his testimonial when the club was on a high, plus it was right at the end of the season. Perhaps a few more new signings would of swelled the crowd as well!

It's a shame for Murts.

[Dirk Gently]

Good night out. Great to be able to give our greatest ever captain a send off.as well as marcus doobs etc. Some great talent on show with sidders and shorey etc- shows the talent weve lost. And great to see curo and butler again. And nice to see how the kids are shaping up together. Bertrand looked promising.karacan kanu and henry looked sharpe. Shame about the crowd, especially when compared to parkys testimonial. And like that game it signals the end of another era in the history of our club. Sniff

It's all about the timing of the game and also the utter dejection most Reading fans are feeling after what Coppell served up last season. Parky had his testimonial when the club was on a high, plus it was right at the end of the season. Perhaps a few more new signings would of swelled the crowd as well!

It's a shame for Murts.

Plus there were the likes of Stuart Pearce and the players he brought along that would make the match appeal to non-Reading supporters also.

[SLAMMED]

is it too much to ask to...have a PA system that allows people to know who is being introduced. I had no idea who half the Reading team was in the first half.

Were you in the West Stand? We made a rare pilgrimage to that place of milk, honey and sunkissed maidens and could hear every word, including every player announcement. How the other half lives, eh?

East Stand - the PA wasn't switched on and the echo from the other speakers made it as unintelligable as a snowball stat post.

Would have put my house on you using me as an example!

[URZZZZZZZZ]

Anyone know why Doyle didn't bother coming?

Didnt have clearence from Wolves. Record signing isn;t he, didnt want to risk him.

I thought the EP had reported he had got clearance. And surely, he could have just turned up and not played?

He was there, HTH.

[wickedwhispers]

Chelsea friendly>Murty testimonial.

Not in any way !

Chelsea friendly = for the newer fans

Murts testimonial = for those with a bit of history at the club

Hey, I was at the Stuart Beavon testimonial - now that's better history.

[URZZZZZZZZ]

I thought last night was great. The attendance was low, but its understandable really, many contributing factors. I thought it was quite sad in a way, I was gutted Fozzy didn't play. Igoe's long range shot deserved better than what it got, that man always underachieved. Im chuffed Murty got a night in his honour, which without a doubt he deserved, a true gent in an industry that is fast becoming more about the money than the football. I thought Murty was going to well up when he was doing the interview at the end, was emotional.

Current Reading team wise, was very impressed with some of these youngsters. Not sure how much you can read into the match due to the opposition, and I fear the 2-1 loss to Kettering may be more telling than last night, but there were some good signs there. HRK pace was unbelievable, I've heard a lot about him, but hadn't seen him play before last night. All this against a former England international ( ) who would have been through a similar stage of pre season. Davies' goal was superb, worthy of winning any match! Was also very impressed with the passing and movement off the ball. This is clearly the Brendan Rodgers style of play, and I was impressed with the warm up of passes and shots before the match. I must say I've never seen a pre match warm up like that.

Overall, an enjoyable match, looking forward to the new season now!!

[Rev Algenon Stickleback H]

I thought last night was great. The attendance was low, but its understandable really, many contributing factors. !

It was low, but a lot better than many were fearing.

Mind you, other than Parky's testimonial, which benefited hugely from tthe buzz of us just having clinched promotion, how many have there been for Reading players that have got bigger crowds?

[AthleticoSpizz]

(purely from memory)

Gilksies was about 5.5k

Deathy's was close to the 7k

[Berry]

Yes, loved last night, first time ive been to thre stadium since Norwich last season, Murty = Ledge, loved his attitude last night, I remember when we first signed him all those years ago.
My brother and i were chatting about the game as we headed back up the M4 and realised that Muts was the last player from the Burns era and is it right that Harps is the last from the Pards era? It certainly makes you feel old.
I really wished Butts had finished off the Igoe deflection, I was willing him to just stab it in, a great servant for the club as well. Of the new team loved Robson Kanu he looks fantastic and Bertrand but Henry and Church lack that sharpness maybe more matches but looked indecisive.
One last thing Watson, Jeez can the guy pass forward, he is like a crab, I could feel myself welling up with anger the more he recieved the ball, some things should stay in the past!!!

Well Done Murty, You are a Legend

[Whore Jackie]

Thoroughly enjoyable night, Murts seemed quite overwhelmed by the whole thing, despite the low turnout. The match timings were a shambles and car parking prices a joke. The matchday programme was pretty good. If you thought the pitchside PA was bad, then post-match in the Princess Suite was unbearable.

Brendan’s a class act, made a lot of effort afterwards, happily signing stuff and chatting to people all night long. Apparently the training ground is a completely different environment, very professional. Barry Hunter is Manchester City European scout and Frank Lampard Snr really should ditch the white socks when he’s suited and booted.

[Sarah Star]

Can anyone tell me what the presentations were last night that we couldn't hear?