Burton Albion are coming

God, it’s only June 16th and the season has started already.

Southampton began pre season training yesterday, and the Carling Cup first round draw was today. Burton Albion could be the first team at the Madejski Stadium (we find out tomorrow with the fixtures) and its hit home that we have succumbed to another season of Championship.

But hey ho, I’m excited.

A summer of unpredictability is upon us, who will stay and who will go. It’s anyone’s guess.

We now have the manager in place, Brendan Rodgers, and now it’s about establishing a team and making them a dominate force in what is going to be a difficult league. The management team is on board with Frank Lampard snr, Dean Austin and Karl Halabi have all joined from Watford to replace Kevin Dillon and Wally Downes. Now the players need sorting.

At present, we know one game next season and it will probably draw in a crowd of 10,000 if lucky. After winning the Conference last term, Burton will be on a massive high and a trip to the Madejski will be special for them. A huge upset is, potentially, on the cards.

I’m waiting in anticipation for the fixtures tomorrow, when we go to Newcastle and Middlesbrough, when our big home games are. Will the trip to the Walkers Stadium be as good as last time?

It’s anyone’s guess , but it’s all rather exciting.

Urzzzz

My Forever Coppell

Some things are simply too much to bear, Steve Coppell has left Reading after six years, giving us the best stint of our history. It was on the back of bad form and bad results that what was hard to take. I always thought he would call his time with Reading on a good note so he can ride off into the sunset and look back knowing he has done well.

Instead, he looks back now at a squad that will be obliterated; it will not be his legacy no more.

Premier League has been and gone and it is Championship football again for another season at least. Ten years ago, even five, I would have bitten Sir John’s hand off for a fourth place finish in the second tier, now to many fans that is not deemed good enough and what fair-weather fans they are. Remember the 6-0 home loss to Bristol Rovers – we could have still been there.

End of an era indeed and an era that, in the future, my grandchildren will get quickly bored of the stories about Stephen’s Hunt winner against Everton, James Harper scarpering through against Liverpool, Glen Little’s chip at Plymouth, I easily go on all day. Coppell was the messiah and the composer of all what was good about Reading, he deserves all the praise he gets, if not more.

What Bill Shankley was to Liverpool, Coppell was to Reading. What Bill Nicholson was to Spurs, Coppell was to Reading. What Sir Matt Busby was to Manchester United, Steve Coppell was to Reading.

Coppell will not be able to boost the trophies the three great men have but his impact was very similar.

He may have only added a Championship Title to our embarrassingly small trophy cabinet but that small token means so much. It speaks volumes. It put us on the map. It made Chelsea hate us. It made Oliver Holt hate us even more. We won plaudits, and more importantly, we proved Mark Lawrenson wrong (insult added to injury, we salute you Robin Friday).

There should be a statue erected outside the stadium, at least; it would give us some much needed football culture, it gave us a history. The Coppell Stadium may be a bit too much. Renaming a stand? Possibly but his work should never be underestimated or forgotten.

I will be forever Coppell and no new man will ever be able to fill his shoes in the slightest. He would be the man that made my dreams come true, made old friends see top flight football for the very first time. Whoever this new man will be, he will have an incredibly hard act to follow.

And good luck to him. Just don’t spoil what has been done.

Urzzzz