Pictures and analysis of Reading 3 West Brom 2
Sorry West Brom fans but it wasn't a bad dream.
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Sorry West Brom fans but it wasn't a bad dream.
Baggies supporters could be excused for wondering whether they imagined the shocking events of a crazy final 10 minutes in Berkshire. But, frankly, the average fan is incapable of conjuring up such horrors.
For the neutral observer, the closing stages of a seemingly routine fixture at the Madejski Stadium on Saturday encapsulated perfectly the enduring magic of sport.
That will be of no more comfort to West Brom or their followers, however, than knowledge of the damage that Reading's barely believable win could do to rivals Villa.
Even the memories of an impressive first 81 minutes from Steve Clarke's men could not come close to masking the horrible images that will stick in the minds from a truly ludicrous game.
In its 20-year history, the Premier League has provided countless dramatic finales – many far more significant and much more analysed than West Brom's late giveaway at the weekend.
Yet it's hard to imagine the competition has ever seen a turnaround quite as unlikely as the one Royals and Baggies supporters witnessed.
Such was the freak nature of events late on Saturday afternoon, it seems almost impossible to draw wider conclusions in the context of West Brom's season.
Better instead to attempt to convey the sheer incredulity of everyone present at a turn of events they will only witness a handful of times in a lifetime.
Rarely can a team have been lulled into such a false sense of security as Albion were with Clarke's men virtually sleep-walking to defeat before they realised quite what was happening.
For 80 minutes, Albion were as comfortable as they have ever been in a Premier League fixture against a Royals side who struggled to trouble their visitors' rearguard and seemed unable to cope at the other end.
Clarke's men led 2-0 and might easily have bagged two or three more goals as Romelu Lukaku and James Morrison ran riot against a side who lacked the organisation and ability to stop them.
Had West Brom led 5-0 going into the closing stages, Reading manager Brian McDermott could have had few complaints.
What followed was utterly surreal for everyone and thoroughly agonising for Baggies fans as Reading's impressive home lived up spectacularly to its local nickname.
Jimmy Kebe's 81st-minute goal for the Royals at 'the Mad Stad' was akin to Ian Botham's famous hundred against Australia at Headingley 1981 – a contribution that altered the course of a contest in a way his victims did not realise until it was much, much too late.
Just like the Aussies believed 'Beefy's' blistering knock in Leeds was just a bit of fun, so Albion seemed to believe Kebe's far post header with nine minutes remaining was no more than a minor moment of irritation.
By the time they realised its significance, Adam Le Fondre and Pavel Pogrebnyak had delivered the Bob Willis-esque hammer-blows and left Clarke and Co in a state of shock, heads spinning and brains fried.
Such a conclusion had seemed impossible when Lukaku rifled his 69th-minute thunderbolt past a leaden-footed Adam Federici in the Reading goal to give the visitors a 2-0 lead.
The big Belgian had already linked up with Morrison to fire the Baggies in front on 19 minutes, then seen a header from the midfielder's cross rattle an upright early in the second-half.
A thunderous shot from another Morrison pull-back shook the crossbar moments later.
The Royals head no answer to Morrison – who had been denied well by Feberici when the scoresheet was blank – or Lukaku with the pair's impressive combination play the feature of their side's almost total dominance.
Yet perhaps it was just too easy for the Baggies, who could not stir themselves from their self-imposed daze once Kebe had capitalised on Liam Ridgewell's ball-watching to nod home Gareth McCleary's cross.
Jonas Olsson's clumsy challenge on Kebe told of a strange defensive malaise and, suddenly, Le Fondre had converted the resulting penalty and the scores were level.
By the time Alex Pearce beat Olsson to Ian Harte's free-kick and Pogrebnyak pounced to snatch the winner, Baggies fans were rubbing their eyes in complete disbelief.
Victory over Queens Park Rangers tomorrow and Villa on Saturday could still make this week at the Hawthorns one to remember. But it has started in the wake of a crazy day that will be tough to forget.
By Steve Madeley
