2005–06 Reading F.C. season

Reading F.C.
2005–06 season
Chairman John Madejski
Manager Steve Coppell
Football League Championship 1st
FA Cup Fourth Round
League Cup Fourth Round
Top goalscorer League: Kitson & Doyle (18)
All: Kitson (22)
Highest home attendance 23,845 vs Southampton
10 February 2006
Lowest home attendance 6,941 vs Luton Town
20 September 2005

Reading Football Club played the season 2005–06 in the Football League Championship, during which they set several League records on their way to winning the Championship, and promotion to the Premier League.

Review and events

Pre-season

Transfers

Following the completion of the 2004–05 season Reading announced on 11 May that veteran duo Martin Keown and Les Ferdinand, along with Ricky Newman, Bas Savage and youngster Louie Soares would not have their contracts renewed and were free to leave the club.[1] On 22 June striker Nicky Forster left the club after 6 years, opting to sign for Ipswich Town having turned down a new contract at Reading.[2] He was followed in the days after by Paul Brooker and Lloyd Owusu who both moved to Brentford on free transfers.[3][4] On 21 July Andy Hughes moved to Norwich City in a deal thought to be worth £500,000 and the next day Dean Morgan moved to Luton Town on a free transfer.[5][6] The final summer departure from the Madejski was Shaun Goater who agreed to have his contract terminated by mutual consent on 27 July.[7]

The first signings of the summer were Irish pair Kevin Doyle and Shane Long who joined from Cork City on 7 June.[8] Stephen Hunt arrived from Brentford on a free transfer on 29 June and he was followed by Graham Stack who signed on a six-month loan from Arsenal on 7 July.[9][10] Leroy Lita was signed from Bristol City for a then club record £1,000,000 on 14 July and on 22 July Brynjar Gunnarsson transferred from Watford for an undisclosed fee.[11][12] On 2 August Chris Makin and John Oster both arrived on free transfers from Leicester City and Burnley respectively.[13] Eric Obinna signed on a short term deal on 24 August and Reading's summer transfer business was completed by Sekou Baradji who was signed on loan from West Ham on 1 September.[14][15]

August

Reading's first match in the Championship was a home game against Plymouth Argyle on 6 August and despite dominating the game Reading lost 1 - 2. Having gone one down Leroy Lita equalised with a goal on his debut but a late finish from Nick Chadwick was enough to give Plymouth all the points.[16] On 9 August Reading faced Brighton in the first of two away games with goals in each half for Glen Little and Dave Kitson enough for a 2 - 0 victory.[17] Reading then faced a trip north to Preston on 13 August and a came away with a comfortable 3 - 0 win thanks to a brace from Lita and a second goal in four days from Glen Little.[18] Reading returned to the Madejski on 20 August to face Millwall in a game they won emphatically 5 - 0. Bobby Convey scored two and one each from James Harper, Kitson and Steve Sidwell completed the scoring.[19]

Reading faced Swansea City on 23 August in the first round of the League Cup. Kitson opened the scoring on 13 minutes but an 80th minute equaliser from Adebayo Akinfenwa saw the game go into extra times with the score at 1 - 1. A second goal Kitson and one for Lita in extra time were enough to earn a 3 - 1 victory and progress into the second round.[20] Reading were back in league action on 27 August away at Watford though neither team could make the breakthrough and it ended 0 - 0.[21] The last game in August saw Reading at home in the league against Burnley. Leroy Lita put Reading into the lead on 7 minutes but Burnley equalised through Ade Akinbiyi. Kevin Doyle won the match for Reading with his first goal for the club on 70 minutes with the game finishing 2 - 1.[22]

September

After a 12-day break Reading travelled to the Ricoh Arena to face Coventry City on 10 September. A second goal in two games from Kevin Doyle was only enough for a 1 - 1 draw with Rob Page equalising in the 86th minute.[23] Three days later Reading faced Crystal Palace at home in a game they won 3 - 2. Kevin Doyle opened the scoring for Reading but Andy Johnson equalised shortly after and Clinton Morrison then gave Palace the lead at the start of the second half. However goals from Leroy Lita and Ibrahima Sonko were enough to secure the win for Reading.[24] Next up was the visit of Crewe on 17 September which Reading won 1 - 0 thanks to a 78th minute header from Ivar Ingimarsson.[25] Reading were back in Football League Cup action on 20 September with a second round home tie against Luton Town. A single John Oster goal was enough to see Reading progress to the third round.[26] On 24 September Reading traveled to Norwich City in the Football League Championship recorded and a third straight 1 - 0 win thanks to a goal from James Harper.[27] The final game in September was at Southampton which finished 0 - 0 with both sides having chances but failing to make the breakthrough.[28]

Squad

First-team squad

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Position Player
1 United States GK Marcus Hahnemann
2 Scotland DF Graeme Murty[29]
3 England DF Nicky Shorey
4 England MF Steve Sidwell
5 Senegal DF Ibrahima Sonko
6 Iceland MF Brynjar Gunnarsson
7 England MF Glen Little
8 England FW Leroy Lita[30]
10 Republic of Ireland MF Stephen Hunt
11 Wales MF John Oster[31]
12 England FW Dave Kitson
14 England DF John Halls
No. Position Player
15 England MF James Harper
16 Iceland DF Ívar Ingimarsson
17 United States MF Bobby Convey
19 Republic of Ireland FW Kevin Doyle
21 Republic of Ireland GK Graham Stack[32]
23 England DF Chris Makin
24 Republic of Ireland FW Shane Long
28 England GK Jamie Young[33]
31 England FW Simon Cox[34]
32 Australia GK Adam Federici
34 England DF Scott Golbourne

Reserve/Academy squad

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Position Player
20 Republic of Ireland MF Jonny Hayes
25 England DF Johnny Mullins
26 Kenya DF Curtis Osano
No. Position Player
27 England DF Aaron Brown
33 Republic of Ireland MF Conor Sinnott

Left club during season

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Position Player
14 Jamaica MF Simieon Howell[35] (on loan to Forest Green Rovers)
18 Scotland MF Darren Campbell (released)
18 England DF Michael Dobson (returned to Brentford after loan)
22 England DF Peter Castle (to Rushden & Diamonds)
No. Position Player
27 Northern Ireland MF Ryan Catney (to Lisburn Distillery)
29 Nigeria FW Eric Obinna Chukwunyelu (to Stevenage Borough)
30 France MF Sekou Baradji (returned to West Ham United after loan)

Transfers

In

Date Position Nationality Name From Fee
7 June 2005 [8] FW Republic of Ireland Kevin Doyle Republic of Ireland Cork City Undisclosed
7 June 2005 [8] FW Republic of Ireland Shane Long Republic of Ireland Cork City Undisclosed
29 June 2005 [9] MF Republic of Ireland Stephen Hunt Brentford Free
14 July 2005 [11] FW England Leroy Lita Bristol City £1,000,000
22 July 2005 [12] MF Iceland Brynjar Gunnarsson Watford Undisclosed
2 August 2005 [13] DF England Chris Makin Leicester City Free
2 August 2005 [13] MF Wales John Oster Burnley Free
24 August 2005 [14] FW Nigeria Eric Obinna Chukwunyelu Germany Kaiserslauten Free
14 November 2005 [36] MF Republic of Ireland Conor Sinnott Republic of Ireland Bray Wanderers Free
30 December 2005 [37] DF England Aaron Brown Tamworth Undisclosed
30 December 2005 [38] GK Republic of Ireland Graham Stack Arsenal Undisclosed
6 January 2006 [39] DF England Scott Golbourne Bristol City Undisclosed
19 January 2006 [40] DF England John Halls Stoke City £250,000

Out

Date Position Nationality Name To Fee
30 November 2005 [41] MF Northern Ireland Ryan Catney Northern Ireland Lisburn Distillery Free
31 January 2006 [42] DF England Peter Castle Rushden & Diamonds Free
31 May 2006 [43] DF England Johnny Mullins Mansfield Free
August 2006 [44] MF Jamaica Simieon Howell Basingstoke Town Free
2 August 2006 [45] GK Australia Jamie Young Wycombe Wanderers Free
16 August 2006 [46] DF England Chris Makin Southampton Free

Loans In

Date from Date to Position Nationality Name From
7 July 2005 [10] 6-month loan GK Republic of Ireland Graham Stack Arsenal
1 September 2005 [15] 2-month loan MF France Sekou Baradji West Ham
23 November 2005 [47] 30 December 2005[37] DF England Aaron Brown Tamworth
24 November 2005 [48] Season long loan DF England Michael Dobson Brentford

Loans Out

Date from Date to Position Nationality Name To
4 August 2005 [49] Season long loan MF England Simieon Howell Forest Green
9 September 2005 [50] MF Scotland Darren Campbell Tamworth
December 2005 [51] One month loan GK Australia Adam Federici Northwood
10 January 2006 [52] Season long loan DF England Peter Castle Rushden & Diamonds
January 2006 Season long loan GK Australia Adam Federici Carshalton Athletic
4 July 2006 [53] November 2006 MF Republic of Ireland Conor Sinnott Republic of Ireland Limerick

Released

Date Position Nationality Name Joined Date
November 2005[54] MF Scotland Darren Campbell Colchester United January 2006
31 January 2006 [37] FW Nigeria Eric Obinna Chukwunyelu Stevenage Borough

Competitions

Competition Started roundCurrent
position / round		 Final
position / round		 First match Last match
Football League Championship —1st 6 August 200530 April 2006
Football League Cup 1st round— 1st round 23 August 200529 November 2005
FA Cup 3rd round— R4 7 January 20067 February 2006

Last updated: 17 November 2011
Source: Competitions

Championship

Results summary

OverallHomeAway
PldWDLGFGAGDPtsWDLGFGAGDWDLGFGAGD
46 31 13 2 99 32 +67 106 19 3 1 58 14 +44 12 10 1 41 18 +23

Results by round

Round12345678910111213141516171819202122232425262728293031323334353637383940414243444546
GroundHAAHAHAHHAAHHHAHHAHAAHHAAHAHHAHAHAAHAHHAHAAHAH
Result L W W W D W D W W W D W W D W D W W W W W W W W W W D W W D W W W D L W W D D D W W D W D W
Position 21 18 4 1 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1

Source: [ ]
Ground: A = Away; H = Home. Result: D = Draw; L = Loss; W = Win; P = Postponed.

Fixtures & results

League table

Pos Team Pld W D L F A W D L F A F A GD Pts Notes
1 Reading 46193158141210141189932+ 67106
2 Sheffield United 4615534322117533247646+ 3090
3 Watford 4611753924118438297753+ 2481
4 Preston North End 46111023112910428185930+ 2980
5 Leeds United 461373351888722205738+ 1978
6 Crystal Palace 461364392086928286748+ 1975
7 Wolverhampton Wanderers 469104241879726245042+ 867
8 Coventry City 4612743922481123436265– 363
9 Norwich City 4612473425641322405665– 962
10 Luton Town 4611664531641321366667– 161
11 Cardiff City 4610763224651226355859– 160
12 Southampton 4691042617491023334950– 158
13 Stoke City 46751124321021130315463– 958
14 Plymouth Argyle 46107626223101013243946– 756
15 Ipswich Town 468872832661125345366– 1356
16 Leicester City 468963025561221345159– 854
17 Burnley 4611663422361412324654– 854
18 Hull City 468872421481125343952– 652
19 Sheffield Wednesday 467882224651217284955– 1352
20 Derby County 46810533272101120405367– 1450
21 Queens Park Rangers 467792426571126395065– 1550
22 Crewe Alexandra 467793840281319465786– 2942
23 Millwall 4648111327481122353562– 2740
24 Brighton & Hove Albion 4648112134391118373971– 3238

FA Cup

Main article: 2005–06 FA Cup

Football League Cup

Player details

Appearances and goals

No. Pos Nat Player TotalChampionship FA Cup League Cup
Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
1 GK United States Marcus Hahnemann 47 0 45 0 0 0 1+1 0
2 DF Scotland Graeme Murty 44 1 40 1 1 0 3 0
3 DF England Nicky Shorey 44 2 40 2 1 0 3 0
4 MF England Steve Sidwell 40 10 29+4 10 4 0 3 0
5 DF Senegal Ibrahima Sonko 52 3 46 3 2 0 4 0
6 MF Iceland Brynjar Gunnarsson 34 4 19+10 4 4 0 0+1 0
7 MF England Glen Little 38 5 34+1 5 0+1 0 0+2 0
8 FW England Leroy Lita 32 15 22+4 11 2+1 3 1+2 1
10 MF Republic of Ireland Stephen Hunt 46 3 3+35 2 4 1 4 0
11 MF Wales John Oster 41 2 11+22 1 4 0 4 1
12 FW England Dave Kitson 39 22 27+7 18 2 0 3 4
14 DF England John Halls 3 1 1 1 2 0 0 0
15 MF England James Harper 51 7 44+1 7 3 0 3 0
16 DF Iceland Ívar Ingimarsson 53 2 46 2 3 0 4 0
17 MF United States Bobby Convey 45 7 45 7 0 0 0 0
18 DF England Michael Dobson 1 0 0+1 0 0 0 0 0
19 FW Republic of Ireland Kevin Doyle 51 19 41+4 18 0+3 1 2+1 0
21 GK Republic of Ireland Graham Stack 8 0 1 0 4 0 3 0
23 DF England Chris Makin 18 0 10+1 0 4 0 2+1 0
24 FW Republic of Ireland Shane Long 15 4 1+10 3 4 1 0 0
26 DF England Curtis Osano 1 0 0 0 0+1 0 0 0
29 FW Nigeria Eric Obinna Chukwunyelu 8 0 0+6 0 0 0 2 0
30 MF France Sekou Baradji 3 0 0+1 0 0 0 2 0
31 FW England Simon Cox 6 0 0+2 0 0+2 0 0+2 0
33 DF England Scott Golbourne 1 0 0+1 0 0 0 0 0

Top scorers

Place Position Nation Number Name Championship FA Cup League Cup Total
1 FW England 12 Dave Kitson 18 0 4 22
2 FW Republic of Ireland 19 Kevin Doyle 18 1 0 19
3 FW England 8 Leroy Lita 11 3 1 15
4 MF England 4 Steve Sidwell 10 0 0 10
5 MF England 15 James Harper 7 0 0 7
MF United States 17 Bobby Convey 7 0 0 7
7 FW England 7 Glen Little 5 0 0 5
8 DF Iceland 6 Brynjar Gunnarsson 4 0 0 4
Own goals 4 0 0 4
FW Republic of Ireland 24Shane Long 3 1 0 4
11 DF Senegal 5 Ibrahima Sonko 3 0 0 3
12 DF Iceland 16 Ívar Ingimarsson 2 0 0 2
DF England 3 Nicky Shorey 2 0 0 2
MF England 10 Stephen Hunt 2 0 0 2
MF England 11 John Oster 1 0 1 2
16 DF Scotland 2 Graeme Murty 1 0 0 1
DF England 14 John Halls 1 0 0 1
TOTALS 99 6 6 111

Team kit

Reading's kit for the 2005–06 was manufactured by Puma, and the main sponsor was Kyocera.

2005–06 home colours
2005–06 away colours
2005–06 third choice colours

References

General: Official Yearbook Reading FC 2006/07 (ISBN 1-903073-57-X)

  1. ↑ "Royals release five". Sky Sports. Retrieved 22 October 2012.
  2. ↑ "Striker Forster signs for Ipswich". BBC. 22 June 2005. Retrieved 22 October 2012.
  3. ↑ "Brooker makes move to Brentford". BBC. 24 June 2005. Retrieved 22 October 2012.
  4. ↑ "Owusu agrees return to Brentford". BBC. 27 June 2005. Retrieved 22 October 2012.
  5. ↑ "Norwich complete Hughes signing". BBC. 21 July 2005. Retrieved 22 October 2012.
  6. ↑ "Hatters seal triple move". Sky Sports. Retrieved 22 October 2012.
  7. ↑ "Veteran Goater departs Madejski". BBC. 27 July 2005. Retrieved 22 October 2012.
  8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 "Reading complete double cork deal". BBC. 7 June 2005. Retrieved 22 October 2012.
  9. ↑ 9.0 9.1 "Hunt completes switch to Reading". BBC. 29 June 2005. Retrieved 22 October 2012.
  10. ↑ 10.0 10.1 "Reading sign Stack in loan deal". BBC. 7 July 2005. Retrieved 22 October 2012.
  11. ↑ 11.0 11.1 "Reading snap up £1m striker Lita". BBC. 14 July 2005. Retrieved 22 October 2012.
  12. ↑ 12.0 12.1 "Gunnarsson secures Reading switch". BBC. 22 July 2005. Retrieved 22 October 2012.
  13. ↑ 13.0 13.1 13.2 "Makin and Oster pen Reading deals". BBC. 2 August 2005. Retrieved 22 October 2012.
  14. ↑ 14.0 14.1 "Chukwunyelu completes Royals move". BBC. 24 August 2005. Retrieved 22 October 2012.
  15. ↑ 15.0 15.1 "Reading snap up new West Ham star". BBC. 1 September 2005. Retrieved 22 October 2012.
  16. ↑ Rej, Arindam (8 August 2005). "Reading robbed by the flying squad". London: the Guardian. Retrieved 22 October 2012.
  17. ↑ "Brighton 0-2 Reading". BBC. 9 August 2005. Retrieved 22 October 2012.
  18. ↑ "Preston 0-3 Reading". BBC. 13 August 2005. Retrieved 22 October 2012.
  19. ↑ "Reading 5-0 Millwall". BBC. 20 August 2005. Retrieved 22 October 2012.
  20. ↑ "Reading 3-1 Swansea (aet)". BBC. 23 August 2005. Retrieved 22 October 2012.
  21. ↑ Kessel, Anna (28 August 2005). "Reading hemmed in by McNamee's energy". London: the Guardian. Retrieved 22 October 2012.
  22. ↑ "Reading 2-1 Burnley". ESPN. Retrieved 22 October 2012.
  23. ↑ "Coventry 1-1 Reading". ESPN. Retrieved 3 November 2012.
  24. ↑ "Reading 3-2 Crystal Palace". ESPN. Retrieved 3 November 2012.
  25. ↑ "Reading 1-0 Crewe". ESPN. Retrieved 3 November 2012.
  26. ↑ "Reading 1-0 Luton". ESPN. Retrieved 3 November 2012.
  27. ↑ "Norwich 0 - 1 Reading". ESPN. Retrieved 3 November 2012.
  28. ↑ "Southampton 0 - 0 Reading". ESPN. Retrieved 3 November 2012.
  29. ↑ Murty was born in Nunthorpe, England, but also qualified to represent Scotland internationally through his parents and made his international debut for Scotland in 2004.
  30. ↑ Lita was born in Kinshasa, DR Congo (then Zaire).
  31. ↑ Oster was born in Boston, England, but also qualified to represent Wales internationally and made his international debut for Wales in 1997.
  32. ↑ Stack was born in Camden, England, but also qualified to represent the Republic of Ireland internationally and has represented them at U-21 level.
  33. ↑ Young was born in Brisbane, Australia.
  34. ↑ Cox was born in Reading, England, but also qualified to represent the Republic of Ireland internationally though his grandmother and would make his international debut for the Republic of Ireland in May 2011.
  35. ↑ Howell was born in Reading, England, but also qualified to represent Jamaica internationally and has represented them at youth level.
  36. ↑ "Reading snap up youngster Sinnott". BBC. 14 November 2005. Retrieved 3 October 2012.
  37. ↑ 37.0 37.1 37.2 "Busy Royals sign Stack". Sky Sports. Retrieved 3 October 2012.
  38. ↑ "Stack makes permanent Royals move". BBC. 30 December 2005. Retrieved 3 October 2012.
  39. ↑ "Golbourne completes Reading move". BBC. 3 January 2006. Retrieved 3 October 2012.
  40. ↑ "Royals swoop to clinch Halls move". BBC. 19 January 2006. Retrieved 3 October 2012.
  41. ↑ ":Lisburn Distillery snap up Catney". BBC. 30 November 2005. Retrieved 3 October 2012.
  42. ↑ "Diamonds take a pair". Sky Sports. Retrieved 3 October 2012.
  43. ↑ "Field Mill move for ex Royals man". BBC. 31 May 2006. Retrieved 3 October 2012.
  44. ↑ "Simieon Howell". Basingstoke Town. Retrieved 3 October 2012.
  45. ↑ "Ex Reading keeper joins Wycombe". BBC. 2 August 2006. Retrieved 3 October 2012.
  46. ↑ "Southampton clinch Makin capture". BBC. 16 August 2006. Retrieved 3 October 2012.
  47. ↑ "Tamworth defender joins Reading". BBC. 23 November 2005. Retrieved 3 October 2012.
  48. ↑ "Reading sign Dobson in loan deal". BBC. 24 November 2005. Retrieved 3 October 2012.
  49. ↑ "Howell joins Forest Green on loan". BBC. 4 August 2005. Retrieved 3 October 2012.
  50. ↑ "Royals monitor Tamworth youngster". BBC. 12 September 2005. Retrieved 3 October 2012.
  51. ↑ "Adam Federici". Northwood FC. Retrieved 3 October 2012.
  52. ↑ "Rushden capture Reading's Castle". BBC. 10 January 2006. Retrieved 3 October 2012.
  53. ↑ "Reading starlet joins Limerick". Sky Sports. Retrieved 3 October 2012.
  54. ↑ "Reading sign Dobson in loan deal". BBC Sport. 24 November 2005. Retrieved 14 October 2013.