Match Two : Reading 1 – Ipswich 0
After the Fulham match this was a disappointment in many ways.
But the visit to Reading started well with this greeting from the structural steelwork of the station.
Steelwork At Reading Station
I had wanted to have a delicious egg and watercress sandwich from Marks and Spencer, but their stores in both Paddington and Reading stations were gluten-free free zones. Or at least as sandwiches were concerned!
The Police on duty at the station didn’t know where to get the buses to the Madejsky stadium, so in the end I guessed. And luckily right! The Police did say they weren’t from Reading, but surely they should be briefed on basic questions.
When I got to the stadium, I was at least met by these bikes.
Ready Bikes
The name of Ready Bike is certainly memorable and there’s more here.
In the stadium I was treated to the worst cup of hot chocolate I’ve ever had.
A Very Bad Cup Of Hot Chocolate
I have the same drink at Ipswich and they make sure it’s all mixed up. They are obviously berks in Berkshire, when it comes to making hot chocolate.
They also expected me to climb to the top of the back of the stand.
Wot No Handrails!
Surely there should be some form of handrail! I did climb up and down without any trouble.
Throughout the match we had to put up with the worse public address system,I’ve not heard in a long time. They also weren’t putting up things like substitutions on the big screen.
The match was the final disappointment in that Ipswich lost to a single goal scored after a bad mistake by David McGoldrick.
Let’s hope it’s all a lot better on Tuesday in Birmingham.
Child Wins European 400m Hurdles Gold
This headline appears on the BBC web site. Surely a child would find it difficult to jump the hurdles.
But of course the article refers to the Scottish athlete, Eilidh Child.
Headline writers should be more careful.
On Line Rail Tickets Aren’t Always Cheapest
I’m going to Reading today to see Ipswich play Reading at the Madejski Stadium. It is one of the easiest out-of-town stadia to get to, as there is a bus service from the main Reading station.
I live about a ten minute walk away from Dalston Junction station on the Overground.
They have recently updated the ticket machines there, so you can buy any point to point ticket for use on the day or the next one after 16:00.
So yesterday, I would my ticket for Reading today at Dalston Junction station. As I have a Freedom Pass, which gives me free travel to any station within the Zone 6 Boundary, I was able to buy a ticket from the machine that took me from the Zone 6 Boundary to Reading. Previously to this clever machine appearing on the Overground, the only way to buy this extension ticket was to go to a Ticket Office and queue for often twenty minutes or so.
Zone 6 Boundary to Reading Ticket
The ticket cost me £7.40 with my Senior Railcard.
That seemed cheap to me, so this morning I looked at the First Great Western web site, to see how much they’d charge.
It would have cost me £11.70.
Was the ticket machine programmed by a senior citizen with a Freedom Pass or just somebody, who understood how holders of such passes think and behave!
I suspect though that over a season buying my London to Ipswich tickets at an Overground station, might save me nearly a hundred pounds.
The only problem for some people will be that their local Overground or Underground station doesn’t have these new ticket machines.
But as they are so comprehensive and surely every non-London ticket sold is revenue to Transport for London, it can’t be long before these are the universal ticket machines in London.
The only thing they don’t do is to issue Oyster cards, which is probably not needed, as they will probably not be needed for ticketing at some point in the next few years.
The Anonymous Widower 