Reading FC and the play-off have been far from a match made in heaven throughout the club’s history. In fact, quite the opposite.
Reading’s last adventure ultimately in the play-offs in 2017 ended in heartbreak. The Royals were just one kick away from getting back to the big time in the Premier League.
The cruel nature of penalties ended with missed spot kicks from Liam Moore and Jordan Obita as Huddersfield Town went on to reach the top flight, leaving the Reading fans with an all too familiar feeling of dismay in the capital.
A return to England’s top league seems far out of reach right now, but fans must dare to dream. A prime example being Luton Town’s incredible rise from non league to the Premier League in less than a decade.
Six years on from that both sides were locked in a relegation battle in the Championship which again saw the Terriers come out on top as Reading were relegated to League One.
Reading are now on the verge of a new era in England’s third tier as they look to appoint a new boss imminently in search of a return to the Championship.
The League One play-off final at Wembley Stadium between Barnsley and Sheffield Wednesday provided a stark reminder of the highs and lows of high stakes match. Jubilation for one team. Despair for the other.
After completing a seemingly insurmountable comeback in the semi-finals against Peterborough as Wednesday came back from a 4-0 first-leg deficit to win on penalties, they completed their fairytale under the arch on Monday.
After a tame first-half, the second-half was full of all the action, drama and emotion synonymous with a play-off final. Controversial referee calls. Disallowed goals. Crossbar strikes. A dubious red card. A match winning goal with quite literally the last play of the game.It had it all.
The prospect of a Wembley final next season is a genuine prospect for Reading who will be one of the favourites for promotion having just come down from the Championship.
Although that does seem a far cry away with a mammoth 46 game season to navigate through before any hopes of ending the Wembley hoodoo can be realised.
With that said, I’m sure automatic promotion would suffice for Reading fans rather than going through the gruelling journey of a play-off campaign. Every football fan knows the play-offs can be as cut-throat as any match in the football calendar, as Barnsley fans found out the hard way on Monday.
Now instead of making an immediate bounce back to the Championship, Barnsley are the final team to make up the 2023/24 League One line-up. Joined by Carlisle United, who confirmed their promotion with a penalty shootout win at Wembley over Stockport County on Sunday.
Reading will know who their first League One encounter will be up against, and the other 45 league fixtures for that matter when the fixture list is announced on Thursday, June 22. Until then, plenty is still to be decided on what is likely to be an engrossing summer at the club.
