So… as I watch the quarter final between Reading and
Bradford City my thoughts turn to happy days a long time ago when I went to Bradford
City back in 2004 when Bradford was in heavy financial difficulties and the top
tier of their mega store was closed due to financial difficulties. It shows how
far they have come in a short period of time to recover, get to a league cup
final and then make a deserved run to an FA Cup Quarter Final and somehow
continue their good form in the Cup. They really do deserve a hell of a lot of
credit.
Reading too deserve much credit and respect for their
achievements under Steve Clarke they deserve respect from learning from past
mistakes under Russian Ownership to turn it around super quick and recreate there success when they arrived
in the premier league in the early 21st century.
Make no mistakes I am an intense follower of Crystal Palace.
But I also respect Reading FC massively. This is
because they gave me hope to complete hope to complete a good education at a
great school where I had excellent support from role models like my teacher
Karen and friends like David and Andrew. Indeed another friend Stuart happened
to work at reading fc and showed me a tour of the stadium and encouraged me
massively to write my football blog since 2011. We have also worked positively
on a radio blog called definitely certainly where he could practice his improvisation techniques of famous football celebrities
such as his idle Brian Clough, Mick McCarthy, Martin Jol and Steve McClaren.
Sir John Madejski deserves massive credit and respect for
the way he has regenerated East Reading and the Whitley Wood area that also needed
a lot of work but with both the Stadium and hotel complex the infrastructure
has certainly generated a hell of a lot of income for the football club. Indeed
this result was clearly illustrated by the clubs rise to the Premier League
under Steve Coppell. Currently they are returning to form under Steve Clarke a
point made all the more clearer by an understated cup run to a quarter final
replay against the a for mentioned Bradford City next week. The Mad Stad will
be rocking.
Links between Palace and reading are close. In the history
books Reading enjoyed their biggest ever win against Palace a 10 – 2 thrashing
in the 1920’s. Yet in more modern times meetings have been a lot closer and I
especially enjoyed Palace’s 6 – 1 humbling of the Royals in 1996 when I was
able to rib my school mates following consecutive 6 – 1 victories with 12
different scorers against Reading and Southend in 1996. Both clubs are linked by
the likes of Coppell, Solako, Mullins Leigertwood and Macanuff. Both are clear
community clubs committed to youth development. In the days now when money
controls football it is important not to forget the game is a microcosm of
society and reflective of its problems not responsible for them.
When one
recalls Shankley from the Liverpool boot room stating football is not a matter
of life or death, just more important than that it is easy to forget the darker
shadows that cast the dark side of football like racism, bigotry and homophobia.
I suppose it is easy to pontificate about Shankley’s premonition especially
when you consider the dark days that especially dogged Liverpool in the 1970’s
and 1980’s but for me having worked closely with the national football museum
in the last 15 years on oral history projects I think his words sum up the dogged
determination of all football fans but especially the working man to stand up
for the belief in the game is passion spirit and escapism from the undoubted
problems and wrong doings of everyday life.
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