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1871/72 Reports - The First Ever Game

Match facts:

Reading goals: None
Assists: None
Opposition goals: None
Half-time: Possibly no half-time, but if there was the score at that stage is clear
Gamebreaker: Close of game
Attendance: A large concourse of persons
Weather: Exceedingly favourable. At 9am that morning, the weather was bright with a south-westerly wind and the barometer showed 29.8 inches (1009 millibars). Over the next 24 hours, there was 0.02 inches (0.5 millimetres) of rain, presumably not during the game, and the maximum temperature was 49 degrees Fahrenheit (9 degrees Centigrade).
Referee: Probably two umpires, one provided by each club

Reading line-up: Not known for certain but according to a 1913 newspaper the first photograph of the club dates from this era and contained J W Martin, W J Martin, C Holbrook, H F Rogers, W B Haygarth (presumably should be E B Haygarth), Harry Miller, T Cook and A Margrett plus four other players (so 12 in total). As this game was played with 13 players, that photo is unlikely to date from this game. Harry Miller was the first captain of the club, so presumably he must have played.
Subs not used: Substitutes not allowed?
Reading yellow cards: Not yet invented!
Reading red cards: Not yet invented!

Match report:

From the Reading Mercury, 24/2/1872 edition:

"Foot-Ball Match - A foot-ball match was played on the Reading Recreation Ground on Wednesday between the Reading Foot-ball Club and the Reading Grammar School Foot-ball Club. The ground was in good order, and the weather exceedingly favourable and a large concourse of persons were present. Play commenced at half-past two and the game closed at four, and resulted in a "draw" neither party gaining a goal. The school were rather superior to their opponents in skill, but were inferior in weight and strength."

From the Berkshire Chronicle, 24/2/1872 edition:

"Football Match - A football match was played between the Reading Football Club and the Reading Grammar School Football Club on Wednesday on the Recreation Ground. The game was drawn, the Reading Club having a little the best of it."

A more detailed weather report, from the Reading Mercury of 24/2/1872:

As at 9am on 21/2/1872 in the Reading public gardens:
Observed height of barometer - 29.8
Hygrometer - dry bulb 39, wet bulb 38
Dew Point - 36.7
Moisture - .931
Thermometer - Max 50, Min 31
Wind - SW
Rain - 0
Weather - bright

As at 9am on 22/2/1872 in the Reading public gardens (only those items that might have applied to the previous day):
Hygrometer - dry bulb 45, wet bulb 44
Dew Point - 42.7
Moisture - .916
Thermometer - Max 49, Min 31
Rain - 0.02

Match notes:

If you're wondering why the first ever game of a club founded in 1871 did not take place until 1872, then all I can say is that you're not the only one! I have tried very hard indeed to sort out this apparent discrepancy but so far I have failed to do so. At the first Reading Football Club Annual Dinner, held at the Queen's Hotel on 29/4/1878, the then Honorary Secretary J W Martin said that the club had started in 1871. This is the oldest reference to the formation date that I know of, and given that J W Martin was around for the first game he ought to know! (On the other hand - a word of caution. Club president James Simonds, also involved in the formation of the club, stated at the next Annual Dinner, on 21/5/1879, that the club had been formed ten years previously.)

Previously, the oldest reference I had seen stating that the foundation date was 1871 was in a book called "Victoria History of Berkshire" which was published in 1907, although I had also been told of a similar reference in a 1905 book and in publications from the 1890s. The only older reference to a formation date I had seen was from 1880 and stated that Reading Football Club was established in 1874, so that wasn't much help at all!

It is entirely possible that the inaugural meeting took place in late 1871, but that it took a little while to arrange a pitch and / or an opponent. The school term began on Monday, 19th January that year which roughly fits in with this theory. However, the long-held belief that the inaugural meeting took place in February 1871 is certainly incorrect.

The club history "Biscuits & Royals" (published in 1984) says that "no record of the result exists" for this first game - I am proud to be the one to correct this after a period of perhaps as long as 80 years when no-one knew the score.

This was Reading Football Club's first ever game, and so obviously the first draw and the first clean sheet. The return match took place one month later - click here for match information.

I have seen reports of other (non-Reading) games from this period that do include a change of ends at half-time. This comes from the practice at Eton, where a change of ends was necessary in the Eton Wall Game as it was so much easier (or less difficult!) to score at one end than at the other. However, an alternative rule in football games was that a change of ends took place only after each goal was scored, which was the case in most other schools where a version of the game was played.

Other differences from standard football rules today are that there would have been no crossbar (a tape was probably used instead), no goal nets, no penalties or free-kicks, and no pitch markings other than the touchlines. If the ball went over the side touchlines, the first player to touch the ball down would get the chance to put it back into play, regardless of who kicked it out. There is no way of knowing for certain exactly what rules this game was played under, and they may just have been agreed between the two clubs before the game started.

Match preview:

Advert in the Reading Mercury, 17/2/1872:

"Reading Football Club - a football match will be played on Wednesday next at 2.30pm on the Recreation Ground between the Reading Football Club and the Reading Grammar School Football Club."

From the news section of the Reading Mercury, 17/2/1872:

"Football Match - On Wednesday next, at 2.30pm, a football match is advertised to be played on the Recreation ground, between the Reading Football Club and the Reading Grammar School Football Club."

From the news section of Berkshire Chronicle, 17/2/1872:

"Reading Football Club - the first match will be played on Wednesday next at 2.30pm on the Recreation Ground, between thirteen members of the club and the same number of the Grammar School club."

There was no advert placed in the Berkshire Chronicle similar to that in the Reading Mercury.

The three extracts from local papers in this section are therefore the earliest record of the existence of Reading Football Club that I have been able to find. So far!

Ticket information:

The game will be played at Reading Football Club's home ground of Reading Recreation Ground on King's Meadow. As this is in a public park and is not an enclosed ground there will be no admission charge. If, however, you are reading about admission information on the internet, you may just be too late for this one!

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