As the 2026/27 season kicks off, it feels like the perfect time to reflect on a big personal milestone I hit last season supporting Reading.
I am a self-confessed stats nerd, and I track every competitive Reading game I’ve ever attended, from the opposition and scorelines to line-ups, nationalities and substitutions. Last December, when The Posh overcame The Royals at the SCL, I was celebrating attending my 500th home match, and this article shares some of the statistics and findings from the matches I’ve watched during that time.
I first attended a Reading match in 2000 when my grandad took me to watch Reading vs Colchester. Names like Adi Viveash and Ricky Newman never became household names for me personally, but despite us losing 1-0 to a direct free-kick, I was hooked.
I attended a handful of games over the next few seasons and got my first half season ticket in 2004/05. I then had a rather special year to have my first full season ticket, and I have had one ever since.
As I write this ahead of the first league match of the new season, against Luton Town, I am on 641 total games: 512 at home, 126 away and three neutral fixtures, which every Reading fan knows we don’t need to discuss.
Despite my passion, one thing my records often make me realise is the futility of watching your football team. Not only are we back in the division I first watched us in 26 years ago, but I have sat through 49 goalless draws.
That’s over 73 hours of football matches when nobody has scored, and a further 104 games that finished 1-0 either way. That said, the overall aggregate scoreline of my matches is 949-784, so the results are in my favour at least. Who will score that golden 1000th goal?
I have seen us play 90 different opponents across 74 stadia, with Cardiff City (21), Derby County and Birmingham City (both 19) our most frequent foes.
When it comes to the opposition, one statistic on my spreadsheet surprises me every time: of the 327 players I have seen represent the Royals, I have watched 46% of them also face up against us! The EFL often feels like a merry-go-round of players, and facts like this certainly make you raise an eyebrow at those who kiss the badge.
Speaking of player loyalty, I have often wondered whether my increasing sense of distance from the club stems from my own aging, club ownership changes, the team’s recent performances or something else.
Having looked through the names of my 10 most seen players to represent Reading, it struck me that no new regular name has been added to that list in a long time.
Andy Yiadom snuck into 10th recently, but he has not been a regular for a while, and you have to go down to 24th and 25th in the list to find a player who made their debut in the last 10 years – in Lewis Wing and Charlie Savage. Gone are the days when you knew the core of the team and could expect to see the same faces represent your club for years.
When looking at the top marksmen for my matches, it will surprise nobody to learn that Adam Le Fondre crashes in alongside three Irish club legends. Shane Long sits 11 goals clear of Alfie and Kevin Doyle, with Noel Hunt just five further back.
Wing’s free-kick against Lincoln was the 20th goal of his that I’ve witnessed, which moved him into my top 10.
Strangely, 20 is the exact number that Simon Church, Gylfi Sigurdsson, Yakou Meite and Harvey Knibbs all ended on, while Kelvin Ehibhatiomhan and Sam Smith both ended on 16. Seemingly 15-20 goals seen by me is the point where other clubs begin to take notice.
The top 10 players to score against us include some familiar names too. Chris Martin’s seven goals and Billy Sharp’s six mean they make them the top two, and Darius Henderson’s four sneak him onto the list as well.
Of the 151 players I’ve seen play both for and against us, 35 of them have bagged a total of 57 goals in games I’ve attended. Perhaps there is some reasoning in the fear of a former player?
When it comes to managers, Sir Steve has the second-highest win percentage, behind Ruben Selles, although I did not go to many away games under Selles. It wasn’t always pretty under Noel Hunt, but his 50% win rate ranks above Brian McDermott’s successful first spell.
I only saw a lower win rate under Brendan Rodgers and Veljko Paunovic than so far with Leam Richardson. However, having seen just 15 games under Richardson, I’ll reserve final judgement for now.
There’s still plenty of noise in the data, and considerably more in the stands, but perhaps both will settle with time.