Reading eventually ran out comfortable winners of this vital clash between two teams vying to avoid the nerve-jangling dogfight against relegation from the top flight of English hockey.
The scoreline fails to show that this was a close, tense, encounter until the final quarter of the match.
Reading hit their straps from the outset, opening the scoring within 30 seconds of the start, inevitably from free-scoring Tom Minall who tapped the ball into an empty net from close range after a blistering surge up the left hand side of the pitch by a highly motivated attack.
The game then settled down to a far more even affair and the expectant crowd had to endure frustration as both teams tried to execute perfect passes while travelling at full tilt, many of which went inches astray, the fine margins between progress and losing possession.
On the stroke of half time, Reading added to their slender lead with a fine, accurate, strike from their other habitual scorer, Fred Newbold, from the edge of the circle.
The second half started with both teams going hammer and tongs at each other, and Exeter were quickly awarded a controversial penalty corner after the umpire brought play back after he had seemingly played an advantage and the Exeter attacker had got a clean shot away that screamed high over Chris Wyver’s crossbar.
To add insult to injury, the corner was duly despatched into the Reading goal, narrowing the deficit.
Reading then spent a good few minutes on the brink of conceding when they had a player unluckily sin-binned for two minutes, only for him to be joined by a team mate who was required to sit out five minutes, leaving Reading temporarily with only nine players on the pitch to protect their lead.
Once they were restored to a full complement, Reading regained their composure and started to attack with purpose, a tactic which opened the taps and led to three more goals without reply from an increasingly disheartened Exeter team, with a goal from Harrison Smith, who seemed to surprise himself and his team mates with his adroit finish in a tight spot, and two more goals from the electric Tom Minall who completed his hat trick with a wide smile.
All three goalscorers have much to thank the extremely talented Matt Richards for, as he was superb throughout and his strong tackling under full control constantly turned defence into attack in a heartbeat.
Reading were then cruising and played out the final couple of minutes by retaining possession to keep their opponents at bay.
Reading finish the first half of the season next Sunday at home at 2.30 p.m with a tricky fixture against Hampstead & Westminster, who sit just above them in the league but are safe from ending up in the dreaded bottom half, unlike Reading, who whilst they are in the box seat for a top half finish, will be looking anxiously over their shoulders at Beeston and Oxted who both have easier fixtures on paper and could steal their place.
Still, either a win or draw will be good enough for Reading, so it promises to be an exciting match. The club also has its vice-presidents’ lunch before the game, so a good crowd of supporters is guaranteed.
By Ronan Daffey
