LATEST NEWS ON 'The Royals'
May 2003
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  • 30th May 2003 - USA Call For Marcus

    • Goalkeeper Marcus Hahnemann has been called up by the USA to play in the Confederation Cup. The tournament takes place in France and begins on June 18th. It is the big American's first international call-up for 9 years.

  • 29th May 2003 - Sidwell's England U-21 Call

    • Royals midfielder Steve Sidwell has been included in the England U-21 squad for the two forthcoming fixtures. The first is a friendly against Serbia & Montenegro at Hull City on Monday 2nd June. Then it is a UEFA qualifier against Slovakia at The Stadium Of Light on Tuesday 10th June.

  • 21st May 2003 - Fixtures 2003/04

    • Contrary to imformation previously supplied to me by my sources, the Fixtures for 2003 / 04 Season will in fact be released on Thursday 19th June and not Friday 12th as previously reported.

  • 14th May 2003 - Key Dates 2003/04

    • Make a note in your diary of the following key dates for the 2003 / 2004 Season:
    (Note that the Play-Off finals next season will be in the reverse order to normal. This is due to International fixtures the following midweek)
    12th June 2003 Fixtures released 9th August 2003 Nationwide Season Starts
    12th August 2003 Worthington Cup Rd 1 16th August 2003 Premiership Season Starts
    23rd September 2003 Worthington Cup Rd 2 27th October 2003 Worthington Cup Rd 3
    2nd December 2003 Worthington Cup Rd 4 16th December 2003 Worthington Cup Rd 5
    3rd January 2004 FA Cup Rd 3 21st January 2004 Worthington Cup SF 1st leg
    24th January 2004 FA Cup Rd 4 28th January 2004 Worthington Cup SF 2nd leg
    14th February 2004 FA Cup Rd 5 29th February 2004 Worthington Cup Final
    6th March 2004 FA Cup Rd 6 4th April 2004 FA Cup SF
    22nd May 2004 FA Cup Final 29th May 2004 Division 1 Play-Off Final
    30th May 2004 Division 2 Play-Off Final 31st May 2004 Division 3 Play-Off Final


  • 15th May 2003 - Tour Details

    • Reading have announced details of their pre-season tour to Sweden.

    The Royals will depart for Stockholm on Friday 18th July. They will be based in the town of Borlange which is 100 miles North-West of the capital. The team will play 2 friendlies during their visit. They will take on Gaule on Tuesday 22nd July and then Borlange on Thursday 24th before returning home the following day.

    The Royals have also confirmed friendly fixtures away to Brentford on Tuesday 15th July and away to Bournemouth on Monday 28th July.

  • 14th May 2003 - Curo Waves Goodbye?

    • After the game against Wolves, Reading striker Jamie Cureton did a lone lap of honour to thank the fans for their support. It is likely that the little forward will be moving on in the summer and could have played his last game for the Royals. It is likely that several others will also be leaving the MadStad, with Butler, Igoe, Salako and Viveash all favourites to depart.

  • 14th May 2003 - Brave Royals Bow Out

    • Reading's bid for Premiership football was ended for another season at the MadStad. The Royals threw everything at their opponents and played some delightful passing football, but they were unable to grab the vital goal.

    The home side were quickly out of the blocks in front of a record attendance of 24,060. They immediately went at the heart of the Wolves defence and came close to taking the lead after just 2 minutes. The visiting keeper was unable to hold on to an effort by Hughes and the ball was cleared by desperate defending just as Cureton was about to fire home. This proved to be the tone for the evening. Twice Darius Henderson was denied by excellent saves and Cureton was again thwarted by a last ditch clearance after the keeper failed to hold the ball.

    Reading were even more dominant in the second half as Wolves struggled to get out of their own half of the pitch. However, it was a rare breakaway with just 9 minutes remaining that finally killed off Reading's hopes. Alex Rae, who had only been on the field 6 minutes, shrugged off the attentions of the Reading defence and fired low into the far corner.

    So Reading's dream is over, but no-one inside the MadStad was despondent. The team rightly received a rousing reception at the end of the game for what has been a magnificent season.

    Well done boys - we're proud of you!

  • 11th May 2003 - Fozzy Blow

    • There is bad news for the Royals as it appears that Nicky Forster is unlikely to be fit to play in the play-off 2nd leg on Wednesday. The livewire striker, who has been so important to Reading this season, picked up an ankle injury at Molineux. It is doubtful that Fozzy will recover in time for this massive game, which will be a real blow to Reading. However, could this just mean that the script is written for Jamie Cureton to be the Royals hero again?

    Reading should also take hope from the fact that in 5 previous play-off attempts, Wolves have won each of their home games by a single goal margin yet have never made it to the Final. Let us hope that sequence continues. G'arn URZ!!!

  • 10th May 2003 - All Still To Play For

    • Reading still have everything to play for after a narrow 2:1 defeat against Wolves in the first leg of the play-off semi-final at Molineux.

    It was the visitors who took the lead after 25 minutes. Nicky Shorey made a darting run up the left and played in an awkward cross that the Wolves defence were unable to clear. The ball came through to Nicky Forster who kept his cool to fire the ball into the roof of the net and send the 4000 travelling Royals into ecstasy. Reading were looking comfortable and had the majority of possession in the first half. Without creating too many opportunities, they were in control of the game and deserved their lead at the interval.

    The turning point came on the hour when Nicky Forster was unable to continue after being fouled. The home side then began to dominate but it took a lucky break for them to get back on level terms. Marcus Hahnemann had kept the hosts at bay with 3 excellent saves but there was nothing he could do to prevent the equaliser. With just 15 minutes remaining, the referee waived away appeals for a penalty after a fine tackle by Adi Williams. But the ball was fired across the box and took two deflections, the last off the unfortunate Graeme Murty, to leave the big American keeper helpless.

    Nine minutes later and the tie had been turned on its head. Steve Brown conceded a free kick on the edge of the box and substitute Tony Taylor fired in a thunderous shot to give the hosts a narrow advantage to take into the 2nd leg. Royals' disappointment was compounded in the final minute when Nathan Tyson was sent off for a wreckless challenge. Although it was a bad challenge, it was borne from over-enthusiasm rather than any maliciousness, but it was serious enough for the Wolves defender to leave the field on a stretcher. The dismissal means an automatic 3 match ban for Tyson and will start with immediate effect. That means the young striker cannot play again this season, and will also be suspended for the start of the next campaign.

    Despite the defeat, this was a good performance from Reading and they are still very much in this tie. It should be a cracking atmosphere at the MadStad on Wednesday evening for the return leg.

  • 4th May 2003 - It's Wolves In The Semi-Final

    • So now all is done and dusted with the regular season, the play-offs line up is confirmed.

    The Royals will face Wolves in the Semi-Final, with the first leg at Molineaux on Saturday 10th May at 5:30pm The other semi will see Nottm forest take on Sheffield United, with the first leg at the County Ground on the same day.

  • 4th May 2003 - Potters Survive

    • Stoke City ensured First Division survival with a 1:0 victory over the Royals on the final day of the regular season, condemning Brighton to relegation.

    With the Potters fighting for their lives, they chased and harried for every ball whilst Reading rarely looked any more interested than simply trying to avoid injury. This made for an extremely poor game played on a bumpy pitch in a swirling wind. It must have been pretty awful for the Sky TV viewers. Nothing more worth saying!

  • 1st May 2003 - Play-Off Dates Confirmed

    • Following Reading's victory over Watford last night, the play-off dates have now been confirmed.

    Reading will be away to either Nottm Forest or Wolves in the first leg on Saturday 10th May with a 5:30pm kick-off.

    The home leg will be at the MadStad on Wednesday 14th May, kick-off 7:45pm