please log in to view this image Tottenham Hotspur host Reading at White Hart Lane on New Year's Day, Tuesday 1st January 2013 (KO 15:00) in the 21st round of Premier League matches. Tottenham are currently in 3rd place in the table on 36 points, while Reading are in 19th place with 13 points. This will be the 94th time the two clubs have met. Reading were founded in 1871, eleven years earlier than Spurs were, and were connected with the Huntley & Palmers bakery firm and became known as The Biscuitmen. When Berkshire became a Royal County, their nickname changed to The Royals. The first meeting came at Tottenham Marshes in January 1896 in a friendly which Spurs won 2-1. A second meeting came in April 1896 at Reading's new Elm Park ground which Spurs also won 3-2. The first competitive meeting between the two clubs came in the Southern League in December 1896 with Reading winning their home match 2-1 and the reverse fixture in March 1897 ending in a 4-4 draw. The clubs would compete together in the Southern League for a total of twelve seasons with Spurs winning 10 matches, Reading winning 7 and the remaining 7 games drawn. At the same time, both clubs also played in the Western League for seven seasons and the United League in 1888-89. Spurs won 8 of those games, Reading won 3 and the 5 other games were drawn. The clubs met for the first of their 7 encounters in the FA Cup in March 1901 at Elm Park in a drawn 1-1 game. Spurs won the replay later that month 3-0 and went on to win the competition as the first non-Football League club to lift the trophy. There was one meeting during World War One in September 1916 which Spurs won 4-2 in a London Combination fixture. The first Football League meeting came in the Second Division on Christmas Day 1928 with Reading drawing 2-2 at White Hart Lane and winning their Elm Park game 4-3 on Boxing Day. Reading took three points out of four off Spurs in the 1929-30 season but Spurs won the last of the six Division Two meetings in 1930-31 7-1 at home and 2-1 away. The clubs met 14 times in various competitions during the Second World War with Spurs winning 6, Reading winning once and 7 matches drawn. A series of eight friendlies were played after WW2 with Reading winning once in August 1988. The Royals won promotion to the Premier League for season 2006-07 and Reading won the first Top Flight League game against Spurs in November 2006 3-1 after Robbie Keane had put Spurs ahead with a 24th minute penalty. Nicky Shorey and Steve Sidwell scored to give Reading a 2-1 half-time lead and Kevin Doyle added a third late in the game. Tottenham won the reverse fixture at the Lane in April 2007 with another Robbie Keane penalty. The December 2007 match proved to be a ten-goal thriller with Bulgarian striker Dimitar Berbatov scoring four for Spurs and Steed Malbranque and Jermain Defoe making it a half-dozen. Reading goals were scored by Kalifa Cisse, Ivar Ingimarsson and a brace from Dave Kitson. Robbie Keane scored the winner for Spurs at the Madejski Stadium in May 2008 and Reading were releagated at the end of the season. The clubs met in the 2007-08 FA Cup 3rd Round with Reading drawing 2-2 at White Hart Lane. Steven Hunt had put Reading ahead but two goals from Dimitar Berbatov looked like securing Spurs progess but Hunt struck again in the 78th minute to force a replay. Robbie Keane scored the only goal of the match at the Madejski. Reading were back in the Premier League for the 2012-13 season and Spurs won their first match of the season 3-1 in September at the Madejski Stadium. Jermain Defoe opened the scoring in the 18th minute and Gareth Bale scored Spurs second in the 71st minute. Defoe scored again three minutes later and Reading pulled a goal back through Hal Robson-Kanu in stoppage time. Overall, Tottenham Hotspur have won 45 of the 93 games played with Reading winning 19 matches and the remaining 29 games drawn. please log in to view this image Full Record of Tottenham Hotspur v Reading Matches 1896-2013 please log in to view this image They Played for Spurs & Reading... Steve Archibald John Barlow Stuart Beavon Mark Bowen Garry Brooke Charlie Brown David Brown Ivor Brown Chris Carrick Darren Caskey Sid Castle Allan Cockram Bobby Cook Ernie Coquet Ronnie Dix Kerry Dixon Matt Edwards Matt Forster James Fulwood Jack Gibbons Chris Gunter Lee Hodges Sid Helliwell Bill Lane Colin Lee (Spurs player, Reading youth development) David Leworthy David McDonald Tom Meads Fred Milnes Billy Minter Tom Pangbourne John Polston Jimmy Reid Jock Robertson Martin Robinson Harry Robshaw Mark Robson John Sainty Max Seeburg Fred Sharpe Peter Shreeves (Reading player, Spurs manager) Gylfi Sigurðsson Neil Smith Brian Statham Archie Turner Dennis Uphill Pat van den Hauwe Fred Wilkes please log in to view this image Tottenham Hotspur Premier League Squad Numbers 1992-2013 Reading Premier League Player's Squad Numbers 2006-2013 please log in to view this image please log in to view this image
Dennis Uphill??...blimey, its more like a photofit of Dennis Nielsen off Crimewatch! ...and why is David Leworthy trying to look like David O'Leary?? he ended up near me playing for Dover Athletic in his latter days, he was still quicker than anyone else!, really impressively bandy legs, a spaniel walking the other way could just pass straight through!
Yes, Reading seemed to end-up with quite a large percentage of Tottenham players who never quite made the grade for us over the years. I remember that great things were expected of Darren Caskey but things never quite worked-out for him.
Another game in quick succession and Reading will have had a boost from their win against the Spammers. I expect more rotation from Villas-Boas, though some of it will be enforced, due to Bale's suspension. Sigurdsson's shown good form from the bench recently, but Dempsey's back in the frame again, following his injury.
Hi guys, my first estimate is that us Royals will be overawed after you outclassed us earlier in the season, the most comprehensive loss we suffered (in play at least, if not final score) up to now, but obviously I hope I'm proved wrong!
Fair enough. Without meaning to be disrespectful I think you're probably the easiest team to beat. You don't attempt to kill the game like other lower down teams do, defending deep and narrow which plays into our hands as it essentially brings the game down to "who's got the best players?" which we can obviously win. On the otherhand you have caused a few big team some problems this season so if you're at your best and perhaps get a bit of luck you could come out of the game with something. Do you guys think you'll be getting Pav by the way? I saw you were linked to him recently.
Bale is a huge loss and Reading will have a little confident after that win against West Ham. However, we should still have too much for Reading and I expect a comprehensive victory for us.
Im expecting Reading to come to the Lane set up in a similar way that they did at Man City the other week. We'll need to score early otherwise it could be a frustrating afternoon for us again.
The sun is with us this morning!!!! Hey hey !!!! GOOD LOL i prepar my com bk in couples of day...LOL - BAE on Twitter.
I was wondering whether it was 'Alexander' the Meerkat talking about when their Insurance website would be online after the holidays - 'bk in couples of day - Simplez'
The manager has tried to take the steam off it, but the Arsenal Arshavin rumours won't go away either from newspapers or Reading tweets, so I'd say that is actually a serious option now. Other rumours are supposedly trying to sign Portuguese defender Daniel Carrico from Sporting Lisbon on a free transfer, Sunzu, Huddleston, but Arshavin remains the hottest
I must admit I'm fairly nervous about tomorrow - hope your players do a lot of celebrating/clubbing tonite due to your very high league position!
Sounds like it's going to be Lloris; Walker, Dawson, Vertonghen, Naughton; Lennon, Sandro, Dembele, Sigurdsson; Ade, Defoe. Not the team I'd have chosen, it's about time Parker was given a start and I'd have Dempsey ahead of Ade but if Ekotto's not ready to come back I can understand that one.
Lloris; Walker, Dawson, Vertonghen, Naughton; Sandro, Dembele, Lennon, Sigurdsson; Adebayor, Defoe Subs: Friedel, Caulker, Livermore, Falque, Huddlestone, Parker, Dempsey
