RECORD BREAKERS Reading 2-1 QPR

The only thing missing was a fist-pumping Kris Akabusi. Otherwise the day on which the Royals were crowned as decisively deserving champions had everything you could possibly wish to round off a season to be cheerful. A late penalty from the captain who hadn't scored for five years clinched an english football record points total of 106, this was once again the stuff of dreams in a fantastical campaign.

The champagne flowed at the end of the game as the exhultant Reading players paraded their silverware around every corner of a packed and delirious MadStad, but for the most part this was not a champagne performance. Typical of our season though, we hit back from the inconvenience of a Queens Park Rangers equaliser to take the points late on in dramatic and fairytale style with a little over 5 minutes of our league season remaining. Interestingly, goals in the last ten minutes of matches this season have earned us a total of 10 league points - stageering when you remember that the first game of the campaign was lost in injury time to Plymouth Argyle. However, August seems a long time ago now and Floyd on Football suggests that perhaps even the most optimistic Reading supporter wouldn't have expected our team to finish 16 points clear of our nearest challengers.

Despite this not being a vintage Reading performance there was still plenty of gutsiness about the display and perhaps the players could be forgiven for not quite firing on all cylinders having clinched promotion so quickly. There was a carnival atmosphere about the day, mexican waves swept around the stadium in the second half and pre-match there was a spectacular Raise The Hoops demonstration as pieces of blue and white plastic were held aloft around the bowl to create a colourful collage of our proud colours. It was however QPR who seemed to be the more inspired by the ocassion in the opening exchanges with the lively Lee Cook giving us plenty to think about. The Reading support grew increasingly irritated by the officials, particularly the linesmen who made a number of suspect looking calls - a flag which halted Kevin Doyle came not so much late as almost posthumous. Reading grew in stature the longer the half went on, playing some typically neat football at times but they were foiled by QPR's impressive defensive double-act Santos and the inaptly named Shittu.

We always had a bit more class than QPR though and the first goal of the game shortly before half time was well crafted and a delight to watch, so fiendishly clever in it's intricacy as it was. Hahnemann collected a long QPR freekick, releasing Convey who played a one-two with Shorey before crashing over a powerful centre which seemed destined to go begging before Oster crashed it back across goal from the far post for KITSON to poke home. Truth be told, QPR had much the better of the second half and deserved to level with a little under twenty minutes left when FURLONG drilled home a knock down from Jones. Convey responded with a smart volley into the side netting but QPR missed a guilt edged chance when Shittu found only the side netting at the other end after Hahnemann had dropped a corner. There seemed to be only one team likely to win it at this stage and the points record looked in real doubt until a little miracle happened.

A Shorey cross was handled in the box, penalty. For many weeks supporters had joked how a spot kick in our last game might give our captain the chance to net his first competitive goal for RFC in 5 long years and once again Murty's every touch this afternoon was greeted with urges of shoot! Our right back strode decisively over to take the penalty and after an agonising wait for QPR gamesmanship the ball was placed on the spot. A chance to cap off the best season in the club's long history giving one of our most popular players the chance to end that long, long goalscoring drought. After what seemed an age, the North Stand attempted to suck the ball in but they had no need to as MURTY dispatched the ball high to the left as the keeper dived low to his right. The stadium rocked and acclaimed a most popular goal as the players bundled Kingsley Royal. It was an apt epilogue to a fairytale.


Reading: Hahnemann, Murty, Shorey, Ingimarsson, Sonko, Oster (Hunt, 61), Sidwell, Harper, Convey (Gunnarsson, 85), Doyle (LOng, 85), Kitson. Subs not used: Stack, Makin.

Floyd's Favourite: Murty. Roy of the Rovers stuff brought the house down.

OWLS OF DESPAIR Sheffield Wednesday 1-1 Reading

Yesterday's fixture at Hillsborough, Reading's final away game of the campaign, was like coming down off a high from an acid trip of a season. The match was already a bit of a dead rubber after Sheffield Wednesday had secured their Championship status with a win at Brighton on Easter Monday and this tame game was played out with testimonial-esque tepidity.

Reading needed a win or a draw yesterday to give themselves chance of breaking the points record for an english league season against Queens Park Rangers at the MadStad next Sunday. The points record is currently held by Sunderland who notched up 105 points in their 1998/99 Division 1 title season. This drawn game yesterday moved us a step closer to that target but having led and dominated the first half it was a minor disappointment to be pegged back in the second half. At last, something to moan about - however trivial - in this sensational season.

Hillsborough was a fitting venue for the last stadium gig of the 05/06 Reading FC Promotional Tour. It is a massive arena and the Owls crowds are the envy of some Premiership teams. You get the sense that this is a club desperate for a bit of success and the way in which relegation avoidance was acclaimed as a triumph seemed a bit like Abu Hamza clutching at straws - being better than Brighton, Crewe and Millwall is a hollow boast indeed. Not that Reading had anything to brag about performance-wise on an afternoon in which we showed little of our usual style and swagger. Despite a succession of early wretchedly wasted short corners we made few, if any, inroads on the Sheffield Wednesday goal. Floyd on Football is of the opinion that short corners are entirely pointless, the footballing equivalent of driving from Reading to Oxford via the M4 - you could have used a more direct route.

With Reading unusually looking more toothless than Iwan Roberts, the first clear cut opportunity of the game took half an hour to arrive and came the way of Wednesday. The Owls striker MacLean was once linked with Reading and he proved that our loss isn't exactly Hillsborough's gain as he was granted the freedom of Sheffield to bounce a free header down into the arms of the grateful Hahnemann to the derision of the 3,000-odd Reading supporters behind the goal who entertained themselves throughout a dull match with the usual array of random inflatables on their final away trip of the season. The coaching manuals always teach a good striker to head the ball down, but unfortunately MacLean most certainly isn't a good striker. Clear cut opportunities, much like Swindon women, are like buses - you wait half an hour but no sooner had MacLean wasted Wednesday's best chance, KITSON had swivelled down the other end to put Reading ahead with a delicate clip over Carson following good work from Doyle and Oster.

Reading were only denied what would surely have been a clinching goal early in the second half when Kitson's neat volley from Sidwell's centre was ruled offside and from that moment the home side, urged on from the sidelines by their kilted buffoon of a manager Paul Sturrock, were lifted and seemed keen to put on a show for the Hillsborough faithful. They began to dominate as Reading continually gave the ball away as if were full of risin and it was no surprise when referee Mason pointed to the spot after Convey clumsily felled Simek in the box. Even MacLEAN can get a penalty kick on target, sending Hahnemann the wrong way for 1-1. Coppell made a string of substitutions which freshened things up but truth be told failed to really inject any new emphasis into the team and MacLean again was wasteful, putting the loose ball well wide of the target having been initially foiled by Hahnemann.

Reading rallied briefly with Long's snapshot deflected wide after hard work from Hunt, Oster rashly stabbed straight at Carson following a corner like a nervous young ASBO with a carving knife in a post office raid. Floyd on Football appealed loudly for a penalty when Sonko's shirt was almost ripped clean off his torso at another Reading corner kick but 27,332 others barely acknowledged it; were this offence to occur anywhere else on the field of play but the opposition penalty area it would be punised with a free kick without any doubt whatsoever. The final salvo in a desperate match was fired by Deon Burton whose header from a corner was denied by the unlikely intervention on the goaline of John Oster and the draw was ultimately a fair result. Lines of police and stewards prevented the Wednesday followers from invading the pitch in their final home fixture, instead they waited patiently for the promised post-match player parade to mark the achievement of avoiding the drop; this is in reality a little like having a lap of honour to celebrate finishing above Bella Emberg in a Miss World contest and Floyd on Football left them to it. After all, we have something more significant to celebrate next weekend.

Reading: Hahnemann, Makin, Shorey, Ingimarsson, Sonko, Oster, Sidwell (Gunnarsson, 65), Harper, Convey (Hunt, 65), Doyle, Kitson (Long, 70). Subs not used: Stack, Murty.

Floyd's Favourite: Sonko. Immoveable object.

WAVE GOODBYE Reading 3-1 Stoke City

Reading and Stoke City have tended to follow each other about. Royals succeeded Stoke City as Division 2 champions in 1994, the clubs were relegated together in 1998 and subsequently promoted together in 2002. 12 seasons in succession we have played the Potters and it is with great regret that we won't be able to take our usual 3 home points against them next season. Parting is such sweet sorrow.

Following a bruising draw at Elland Road which moved us onto 99 points, Coppell reshuffled his pack and came up with another winning hand. 6 changes to the usual line-up but we still made light work of a typically poor Stoke side. It was another sell-out at the Madejski as this triumphant season moves towards its close; the only empty seats were to be found amongst the chavs and pikeys in the ASBO-infested away end. Stoke brought barely 400 of their charmless followers who embarassed themselves with a half-hearted conga as the game reached its conclusion.

The football match was another mediocre one with precious little at stake. The power-house Sidwell, playing further forward in a 4-3-3 formation, had a long range volley deflected wide early on as Reading saw plenty of the ball and even with the copious amount of changes we looked a far superior side to Stoke. Hunt's clever backheel to release Doyle was only foiled by the offside flag of the useless East Stand side linesman and the ever willing Shane Long was putting himself about a bit. The opener came with twenty minutes remaining in the first half; a foul on Hunt was punished effectively, Ivar Ingimarsson swung in a smashing left flank delivery which SIDWELL was allowed to head home unchallenged from 8 yards out. Reading almost gifted Stoke a leveller before half time, for the visitors didn't look likely to do much themselves, as Ingimarsson almost put a Duberry header into his own net but that was as close as our toothless visitors came in the first half.

Stoke came out with more purpose in the second half, however. Half time sub Adam Rooney played in Darrell Russell who was foiled by the alert Stack, but it was Reading who scored next. DOYLE chased a long ball into the box and was clearly shoved off the ball; picking himself up and dusting himself he buried the penalty past Simmonsen. This goal lifted the home crowd into the usual celebratory chants and songs we have enjoyed so much recently, but it was the pathetically small contingent of visiting supporters who were next to celebrate. Ivar Ingimarsson did his utmost to give them a goal by deflecting a Gallagher cross onto his own post, substitute ROONEY rifling home the loose ball; the Reading supporters, ever willing to take the piss, sarcastically celebrated the visitor's goal to the familiar tune of Tom Hark.

Amusingly, after the Stoke supporters had earlier booed their former player for having the temerity to move on to a bigger and better club, John HALLS made the most of a rare start by putting his one time employers to the sword a matter of moments after the consolation, crashing home Hunt's cross at the far post. And that was more or less that really; Coppell made the most of another comfortable winning lead by giving RFC's debuts to Michael Dobson and Scott Golbourne and the last half an hour was played out amidst a chorus of oles, demands for a wave from the managerial staff and Stoke City baiting. Sonko attempted a 40 yard shot on goal which was last seen heading towards Caversham which fairly summed up the day - anything is worth a go when you are playing opposition as poor as Stoke.

And so that was that and the last time we shall see the charming supporters of Stoke City for a little while. Show me the way to Aston Villa, Man United and Middlesbrough. Wave goodbye to Coca-Cola. The Premier league awaits for me.

Reading: Stack, Makin, Shorey (Golbourne, 65), Ingimarsson, Sonko, Halls, Gunnarsson, Sidwell (Dobson, 53), Hunt, Doyle (Cox, 71), Long. Subs not used: Hahnemann, Kitson.

Floyd on Football: Gunnarsson. Boris Becker was boss.

BACK TO THE NORM Leeds United 1-1 Reading

Yesterday's game at Elland Road had an air of end of season/after the lord mayor's show about it. With Reading already uncatchable and seemingly untouchable at the top and Leeds United without a goal in their last 4 matches this was a scrappy match desperately short on entertainment.

Fortunate then at Floyd on Football did not pay a penny to watch this particular fixture having enjoyed an afternoon of free food and drink at the expense of Match Sponsors Westcoast. A fine day out; greeted initially in the Jack Charlton Suite by Leeds United legends Norman "bites yer legs" Hunter, Paul Reaney and Mick Jones as well as Allan "sniffer" Clarke who was so delighted to meet Floyd on Football that he asked for a photograph to be taken. A look into the Leeds United home dressing room and out pitchside for more photographs was followed up by a talk on the history of Elland Road by a local fanatic and then into the plush Banqueting Suite for a fabulous meal of Broccoli and Stilton Soup, Rack of Lamb and Sticky Toffee Pudding. With free Bucks Fizz, wine and copious amounts of Guinness being consumed it was almost a bind to be led to our posh padded seats 5 minutes before kick-off.

The first half, in direct contrast to the hospitality we had enjoyed thus far, was diabolical. Leeds United had their chance to catch Sheffield United and take that 2nd spot behind Reading in recent weeks but on the showing of the opening 45 minutes you can see why they have found goals so hard to come by of late. The first real sight of goal took 20 minutes to come and it was Reading and Convey who fired a low effort into the side netting after good work by Sidwell. Hahnemann was alert to take Douglas's tame effort into his body which skimmed through a crowd of players. Reading looked laboured, almost lazy, but with their job long since done they could perhaps be excused and one must wonder what was the Leeds excuse for being so lapsadaisical with the play-offs looming on the horizon.

They did however have the best of the first hour or so of the game as Hulse failed to get his blonde crown onto Crainey's generous cross before half time but made ammends barely a minute into the second half after Reading failed to clear their lines and Derry was allowed a chance to slip a ball across to HULSE for a simple tap-in whilst many of the Banqueting Suite guests were still enjoying coffee and biscuits downstairs. Ironic given the meat and drink we had enjoyed earlier that Leeds should re-open their goalscoring account with such a meat and drink goal. Reading were struggling to get their usual passing and movement game together against the abrasive hosts who were not extending Yorkshire hospitality off the pitch to the actual football match itself. Eirik Bakke tried his luck from somewhere near the half way line, such was the dearth of chances being created and the linseman's flag foiled Hulse more than once and the frustrated floppy haired fop threw himself to the ground in a manner in which Norman Wisdom would have been proud after a 'challenge' by Sonko. Experienced referee Halsey, excellent throughout, was having none of it.

Coppell made changes and Reading forced their way back into the game in unconvincing fashion. Before he was withdrawm, Oster had put in a magnificent centre which Hulse had to head over from underneath his own crossbar with Ingimarsson waiting. That was about the only decent cross Reading put in all game until Brynjar Gunnarsson's arrival; our Icelandic pair combining to great effect with just 5 minutes left as Ivar headed Bryn's ball back across the box for Steve HUNT, lively as ever after coming on as substitute, to score from one yard out off his bollocks - it really was that kind of match. The pocket of Reading followers in hospitality celebrated vigorously on the opposite side of the ground from the packed allocation of loyal Royals who were going potty. We had dominated possession and territory for 15 minutes or so before the game and Leeds could have no complaints whatsoever and the draw meant that the home side could no longer overhaul Sheffield United and were therefore doomed to the play-offs.

Back in hospitality the booze continued to flow as man of the match presentations were made to Shaun Derry and Norman Hunter was asked for a post-match analysis from the compere. Far from being a villain, the leg-biter was generous in his praise of Reading and from the top table we enjoyed some fun and banter with our hosts. There was an amusing moment during the presentations when the ugly mug of Neil Warnock spraying champagne came up on the big screens in the Banqueting Suite and the compere asked for the channel to be changed - which brought about an amused round of applause from the gathering of guests.

Leeds United were magnificent hosts and are a top class club off the pitch. Whether they have that same class on the pitch remains to be seen; they will have to contest those nervy play-offs whilst Coppell's squad will already be on the beach.

Reading: Hahnemann, Murty (Gunnarsson, 83), Shorey, Ingimarsson, Sonko, Oster (Hunt, 63), Sidwell, Harper, Convey, Doyle (Long, 78), Kitson. Subs not used: Stack, Makin.

Floyd's Favourite: Sidwell. Outstanding.

OF HEAVEN Cardiff City 2-5 Reading

You know when people say "they could have played all night and not scored"? Reading's latest win at Cardiff yesterday was the opposite of that. Both teams defended like Giraffes on roller-skates and with the striking talent on show there were always going to be goals. Reading scored 5 of those 7 goals. That's why we're champions.

A trip to the welsh capital is often a promotion graveyard for the Royals. As Dylan Thomas once said: "The Land of my Fathers? My fathers can keep it". Nearly 5 years ago now Reading led twice in the Millennium Stadium but still lost a play off final to poxy Walsall. And around this time last season a powder-puff 2-0 loss at Ninian Park put the breaks on another play-off push and we failed to win another game all season. That late collapse last time around was perhaps a blessing as it almost certainly provided much of the inspiration behind this magical campaign and that knife-to-the-heart defeat last season was most certainly avenged this time out.

With promotion and the championship secured almost laughably quickly and easily, Sir Steve Coppell decided against widespread changes against a welsh side who harboured their own play-off ambitions. A lively game only had to wait ten minutes for the first goal, which followed defending so charitable you'd have expected Terry Wogan and Gaby Roslin to have introduced it. The hard working Kitson, the mighty oak tree of Reading FC, charged down an attempted clearance down the channel from the ever hopeless Darren Purse which Convey ran onto. The yank's cross was shanked home by HARPER past the dive of Alexander in front of the massed ranks of vocal Reading supporters who enjoyed a rare day out on a good old fashioned terrace by celebrating in true crowd-surge style.

Reading defended wretchedly throughout this game, the highly rated Cameron Jerome missing a guilt edged chance as the Reading defence sliced itself open to leave the Bluebirds top scorer in the clear - the attempt on goal ended up somewhere near Swansea. The Reading supporters were enjoying their day out safe in the knowledge that for once fingernails would not require chewing in the final few weeks of a season, the chants of championes, championes were in abundance along with plenty of obscene songs which were bordering on the racist were it not for the fact that these things should be tolerated, nay encouraged, when the welsh are on the receiving end. With the ASBO army of Burberry-capped cretins to our right returning insults and gestures it was another sweet moment when we went two up with another soft goal shortly before half time; Shorey's cross, Doyle's overhead attempt and KITSON's ridiculously easy finish with time enough spare for our top scorer to have prepared and eaten Welsh Rarebit.

Always pleasant to beat such bad hosts, and the third goal less than ten minutes after the break looked to have it sewn up. Kitson chased onto Convey's through ball and Cardiff centre-half LOOVENS bulleted a header into his own net. Floyd on Football had remarked to his terrace neighbour not moments before that a comedy own goal to round things off would be a sweet way to drown what little welsh enthusiasm there was left, and Loovens duly obliged. What should have been plain sailing from here on in became decidedly choppier as the foot came off the pedal of the Reading FC title juggernaut. Shorey's sloppiness was punished by the lively Koumas pulling the ball across for a goal that even the hapless JEROME couldn't miss and soon after Parry put a header across goal and past the post from another Koumas centre. Murty rallied with a well hit freekick for Reading but as we all know there is more chance of getting the Thames to flow backwards than our captain scoring, and there was an air of inevitability than we would let Cardiff back into the game during a frankly bonkers last ten minutes.

Sonko, having one of his less cerebral games, was looking more Franz Kafka than Franz Beckenbauer and with Shorey also well off his game PARRY was allowed a shoddy free header from a near post corner to make it 2-3 and finally the welsh male voice choir cracked into life to our right. With the welshmen urging their side on to claim an unlikely draw, Purse was mugged again and Hunt provided the centre for DOYLE to make things safe. Hahnemann had to be alert to save with his feet from Ardley and there was hardly any time left at all when HARPER smashed home his second after the lively sub Hunt had his effort blocked. Our midfield maestro always gets booed on his visits to Ninian by the locals for the heinous crime of having had a loan spell at Cardiff some 5 years ago, so these two goals will have been sweet for him.

And sweet for us as well, as we depart the Coca-Cola Championship the Reading fans bid farewell to the principality with chants of no welsh, in the Premiership. 10-3 on aggregate for our two games against against Cardiff this season. Ieuan Evans, Aneurin Bevan, Neil Kinnock, Gladys from Hi-de-Hi, can you hear me? Your boys took one hell of two beatings, your boys took one hell of two beatings.


Reading: Hahnemann, Murty, Shorey, Ingimarsson, Sonko, Oster (Gunnarsson, 89), Sidwell, Harper, Convey (Hunt, 75), Doyle, Kitson (Long, 69). Subs not used: Stack, Makin.

Floyd's Favourite: Harper. Tidily pinged in two goals.

SCHADENFREUDE Reading 5-0 Derby County

April 1986 and a young Floyd on Football watching RFC for the very first time, witnesses Reading beat Derby County at Elm Park to all but clinch the 3rd division championship as the supporters invaded the pitch in joyous celebration. April 2006 and an older, wearier if not necessarily wiser Floyd on Football watched on once again as Derby County were defeated to take the Championship title as once again the pitch was awash with thrilled fans at the end.

And in this story-book season, what better victim of a demolition job in biggest-win-of-the-season style than Derby County who were more Darby and Joan in the second half when Reading ran riot. It was way back in 2002 and our first game back at Championship level took us to Pride Park, Derby - home of the newly relegated Rams. The Derby programme wrote along the lines of "you know you've been relegated from the Premiership when you're first game the following season is against Reading". The home supporters obviously believed their own hype, and chanted "you're only here for the champions" (remember, dear reader, this was the first game of the season) and as their team notched up a flattering win "3-0 in your cup final/to the champions". It has in fact taken Derby four subsequent seasons to seperate themselves from little old Reading - we have left them well and truly behind in our wake, just the fifty points ahead of them.

The sad fact is, as Reading supporters serenaded the handful of Derby supporters stupid enough to want to gatecrash our party, those few visiting fans probably had no recollection of the background to our triumphantly familiar chants of "you're only here for the champions" and "5-0 in your cup final". Not that that takes any gloss off another deadly and decisively emphatic performance. The first half may have been exhbition stuff at times with Reading enjoying plenty of the ball without being able to fashion any good chances, but the team clicked into gear in the last half hour to well and truly Ram Derby's misplaced arrogance down their throat. The crowd was lifted by news of an early goal for Stoke against Sheffield United, in the knowledge that if the Blades failed to win and Reading could beat Derby County as they were destined to do so then the title would be ours, won on our own patch in front of the home fans. And win we did - in style.

An hour of frustration gave way to a roar of relief as James HARPER pounced on Kitson's back heel to muscle past Idiakez and bury the ball past the helpless Lee Camp. This was the start of an astonishing fifteen minute spell; Little thumped an effort into the side netting with half of the ground momentarily acclaiming a second goal, and unmarked DOYLE headed Convey's cross, unfamiliarly from the right hand side, easily past Camp. Enter the substitutes - it was fitting in a season in which Reading have used barely twenty players in the league campaign that two patient squad members should wrap up the rout. OSTER pounced on Derby's embarassing failure to clear Hunt's hopeful looking centre and Shane LONG also made an immediate impact heading home Murty's wonderful cross for a picture book goal. Four goals in fifteen minutes was like our season in microcosm as we showed what Reading FC in 2005/06 has been all about - hard work, talent, accurate service and class finishing. As the massed ranks enjoyed pointing out five times over: that's why we're champions.

By now there was a Walls Carnival Stores atmosphere of colour, balloons and inflatables as the hoardes began to make their way down the gangways onto the perimeter of the pitch, taunting the stewards with cries of "you ain't gonna stop us, you aint's gonna stop us". It was abundantly clear that a good natured putch invasion was the order of the day and when LONG stole in on fellow substitute Hunt's pass to smash the ball across that only heightened the desperation for a right royal knees up. Long's second of the game as a subtitute, the teenager's 4th goal of the season despite only having played in ten matches, with only four starts. It was also his third goal against Derby this season having scored the unbeaten run saving late equaliser on New Years Eve at Pride Park in the return fixture. Long, who has only been playing competitive football for just over a year, sums up much of the recent luck we have had in the transfer market which has transformed our status as perennial hard-luck-story also-rans to a Premiership side with games to spare.

There was time for John Oster to hit the post with another skidding effort as news filtered in that Sheffield United had equalised late on at Stoke. The final whistle was prompt for streams of supporters to take to the pitch as the scoreboard flashed up the final score of Stoke City 1-1 Sheffield United, which prompted a triumphant roar around the Stadium. Floyd on Football, ever keen to soak up history in the making, joined the party on the pitch before a tannoy announcement warned supporters that the team would not be coming out to take the delirious plaudits of the spectators unless the pitch was cleared. There followed an uncertain couple of moments of hugs and handshakes before yet another roar came up - the team were desperate to show their faces asnd had emerged in the Director's Box. For the second Saturday in succession Reading supporter were in the mood to celebrate and shower their heroes with songs of praise. In reality, it was the Reading players who did the showering using bottles of champagne to douse that wild child Steve Coppell and the front few rows upon rows of pitch-bound supporters.

The spring sunshine shone down on a mild day as scores of well-behaved Reading folk acclaimed their heroes with songs, chants and applause with another wild night of celebration out on the town in prospect. A perfect way to clinch a perfect title against perfectly chosen opposition. We had only come to see the champions.

Reading: Hahnemann, Murty, Shorey, Ingimarsson, Sonko, Little (Oster, 68), Sidwell, Harper, Convey (Hunt, 68), Doyle (Long, 72), Kitson. Subs not used: Stack, Gunnarsson.

Floyd's Favourite: Harper. The George Gershwin to the RFC Symphony Orchestra.