4 Points Never Felt So Good

Heading into this opening week of doom, I figured 3 points would be the demarcation point for Reading. Less than 3, and they’d have fought to one or two draws, which would have been respectable, but still a slow start in a league where sluggishness out of the blocks can be fatal. More than 3, and they exceeded expectations: at least one win, and anything else was a bonus.

So it’s my pleasure to see them sitting on 4 points and firmly midtable, after facing 2 of the Big Four and one of the main challengers to that quartet. The Everton game was a perfectly timed exhibition of how refereeing can affect Reading’s rhythm — with a ref willing to keep his cards in his pocket, the Royals were able to nag and pester Everton out of their gameplan, and built the raucous pace that they thrive upon. Lots more offensive chances to be had (though the finishing still has early-season issues), and some great defensive performances from the second-team likes of Andre Bikey and Ulises De La Cruz.

However, the player of the week was undoubtedly Stephen Hunt. With injuries and suspensions accumulating at all positions, Hunt decided he was going to cover the full length of the field, and I lost count of the number of times he stole the ball away from behind some unsuspecting player or sprinted his way on to a rebound or a cross near the goal. It was poetic justice that he scored the goal Saturday, on yet another ramshackle Reading set piece. Even though I’d love to see some more of my countryman Bobby Convey, Hunt has made himself indisposable to the team. Keep it up, and I’ll forgive you that haircut, Stephen.

A much needed rest for the Royals this week, then away to a very beatable Bolton side on Saturday. With a little more time, I’ll launch some regular features on the blog in the next few days. Thanks for bearing with this hectic start to the 07/08 campaign!

Category: Team News

Tags: Reading, Stephen Hunt, Team News

Subscribe   The Offside RSS Feeds

Print

Share