We Were Top Of The League - Our Best Ever!

Reading topped the Coca Cola Championship - for a couple of hours

Reading Football Club are forever being dismissed as a 'small time' club.

Despite the huge all-seater stadium and Premiership aspirations, the criticism is in many ways justified. After all, the Royals have never played in the top flight nor won a major trophy.

Yet mega money has been invested in the swish Madejski Stadium, the academy, the team (£800,000 for Bobby Convey), a new ticketing system and even a scoreboard that can screen video replays.

As a result, on the field things have increasingly been coming together in recent seasons.

The fourth place finish of the season before last was unprecedented - yet today's 3-2 win over Brighton put the Royals top of the Football League for the first time in their history, albeit for just two and a half hours.

For a short, short time the Royals became the 21st placed team in the country - a higher position than they have ever occupied. The previous best had been 2nd in the First Division or the 22nd placed team in the country.

However, Coventry knocked Reading off their perch with a classy 2-0 win over Sunderland in a game that kicked off at 5.35pm. Wolves or Stoke will also go above the Royals tomorrow if either side win by two or more goals.

Reading's highest ever placing may not have lasted for long, and the season may be in it's absolute infancy, but it is a moment to be remembered - and represents the dramatic growth of Reading Football Club in recent seasons.

And should we win against West Ham on Tuesday we could be back at the top.


LINKS:
>Reading 3 Brighton 2 - Match Report
>Coppell Satisfied With Opening Day Win

The Coca Cola Championship Table - as it was at 5pm on Saturday 7th August

Last game played on Saturday 7th August 2004		Pld		Home						Away						Overall						Pts	GD
				W	D	L	F	A		W	D	L	F	A		W	D	L	F	A
1	Reading	1		1	0	0	3	2		0	0	0	0	0		1	0	0	3	2		3	+1
2	Ipswich Town	1		1	0	0	2	1		0	0	0	0	0		1	0	0	2	1		3	+1
3	Preston North End	1		1	0	0	2	1		0	0	0	0	0		1	0	0	2	1		3	+1
4	Leeds United	1		1	0	0	1	0		0	0	0	0	0		1	0	0	1	0		3	+1
5	Cardiff City	1		0	0	0	0	0		0	1	0	2	2		0	1	0	2	2		1	0
6	Crewe Alexandra	1		0	1	0	2	2		0	0	0	0	0		0	1	0	2	2		1	0
7	Burnley	1		0	1	0	1	1		0	0	0	0	0		0	1	0	1	1		1	0
8	Nottingham Forest	1		0	0	0	0	0		0	1	0	1	1		0	1	0	1	1		1	0
9	Queens Park Rangers	1		0	1	0	1	1		0	0	0	0	0		0	1	0	1	1		1	0
10	Rotherham United	1		0	0	0	0	0		0	1	0	1	1		0	1	0	1	1		1	0
11	Sheffield United	1		0	0	0	0	0		0	1	0	1	1		0	1	0	1	1		1	0
12	Wigan Athletic	1		0	1	0	1	1		0	0	0	0	0		0	1	0	1	1		1	0
13	Leicester City	1		0	1	0	0	0		0	0	0	0	0		0	1	0	0	0		1	0
14	Millwall	1		0	0	0	0	0		0	1	0	0	0		0	1	0	0	0		1	0
15	Plymouth Argyle	1		0	1	0	0	0		0	0	0	0	0		0	1	0	0	0		1	0
16	West Ham United	1		0	0	0	0	0		0	1	0	0	0		0	1	0	0	0		1	0
17	Coventry City	0		0	0	0	0	0		0	0	0	0	0		0	0	0	0	0		0	0
18	Stoke City	0		0	0	0	0	0		0	0	0	0	0		0	0	0	0	0		0	0
19	Sunderland	0		0	0	0	0	0		0	0	0	0	0		0	0	0	0	0		0	0
20	Wolverhampton Wanderers	0		0	0	0	0	0		0	0	0	0	0		0	0	0	0	0		0	0
21	Brighton & Hove Albion	1		0	0	0	0	0		0	0	1	2	3		0	0	1	2	3		0	-1
22	Gillingham	1		0	0	0	0	0		0	0	1	1	2		0	0	1	1	2		0	-1
23	Watford	1		0	0	0	0	0		0	0	1	1	2		0	0	1	1	2		0	-1
24	Derby County	1		0	0	0	0	0		0	0	1	0	1		0	0	1	0	1		0	-1

COLOUR KEY:		Promotion place(s)		Transfer place(s)
		Play-off place(s)		Relegation place(s)