FOUR-KING HELL Northampton Town 1-4 Reading

The weather was Cobblers. As Floyd on Football left the public house after the traditional pre-match Cinzano & Lemonade, the heavens opened and kick-off at Sixfields was delayed by 10 minutes. The gathered crowd were entertained in the meantime with a stunning light and sound show as a thunderstorm struck Northamptonshire and just as play resumed there was a gasp from the spectators, as if impressed by a firework display as a spectacular electrical fork formed in the sky.

Another bolt from the blue came with barely fifteen minutes of this latest pre-season match played. A strong Reading side had started brightly on a sodden surface but a shanked clearance from Graham Stack gifted Northampton a throw-in which was defended atrociously and presented Scott McLeish with a simple goal which left Floyd on Football with a face like thunder. It was a mere blip however as Reading led within ten minutes of conceding; the electrically charged Leroy Lita first sprinted clear to bury an equaliser before turning supporting actor for a Doyle tap-in. Storm clouds must have gathered in the home dressing room as home 'keeper Harper flapped under pressure right on half time, gifting Gunnarsson a chance to rifle home. Reading never looked remotely like relinquishing this lead and despite the usual array of substitutions they kept a good tempo throughout; Simon Cox rounded off a useful work-out against League One opposition by bamboozling the hapless Harper with his finish after being fed by John Halls meant that we had struck four times.