Team: Coggins, Russell, Rowe, Allen, Bartlett, March, Abel, Lowe, Cheetham, Samuel, Ovenstone
Attendance: 5,123
Rangers travelled to Elm Park on 15th January 1936. J. A. L’s match report appeared in the ‘Reading Standard’ two days later:
‘Shed a tear for Reading’s wonderful home record. It has gone – gone beyond recall, and it is no use seeking an explanation from the underfoot conditions.
The ground was frozen hard, and good football was out of the question, but Queen’s Park Rangers were up against exactly the same difficulty as Reading.
They won – an achievement no other visiting league team has accomplished since Brentford’s visit in April 1933 and they deserved this distinction because they adapted themselves to the conditions much better than did Reading.
While the home men were playing football better suited to a muddy ground, the visitors faced facts and hit the ball hard and often; they gave it no time to play the pranks which upset all of Reading’s well-planned work.
Yet the home team should have won. For these reasons: there was no excuse for Fielding missing that penalty in the first-half. Liddle was brought down in the area and Fielding “blinded” the spot-kick, with the result that instead of depositing the ball into the back of the net, he struck the crossbar.
Then, again, Queen’s Park Rangers should never had scored their second goal, which came but five minutes from the end.
A minute after the interval Reading conceded an early goal by Cheetham, but all their efforts to secure the winner were ruined by the determination of Queen’s Park Rangers’ defence. “At least” though, the crowd, “we have saved our undefeated record.”
The Reading defenders appeared to be taking comfort from the same thought when an innocent looking pass reached Cheetham. He had previously done nothing of note to warranta particularly close watch, but this time he steered the ball clear of Robson and Hayhurst and sent it at high speed past Wildman.
There is one slight consolation. Had Cheetham failed with this shot, Reading would have lost the distinction of being the only team who have not figured in a drawn game this season!
The Reading attack, as a whole, never struck one as being good enough to force home the middle-line advantage.
Undoubtedly the best forward on view was Owen, the newcomer from Manchester. He was badly neglected in the first-half, but after the interval he was given better support and delighted the crowd with some tricky work, which had the defence guessing.
Conditions were all against Owen’s style of play, but even so he struck me as being a definite asset to the attack.’
Rangers followed this victory with a 3-1 win at Aldershot three days later.
Steve Russell