Simon Johnson’s Cityzens welcomed near-neighbours Holyport to RG30 in the first of four consecutive home games in what we’ve coined as ‘The Rivermoor Festival of Football’.

Last season saw both sides fighting for promotion and will probably be up there again this season and those who had turned out to watch this all Berkshire clash were treated to a great game of football.

Holyport kicked off the game shooting towards the Railway End and their first chance game with seven minutes on the clock. A defence-splitting through ball was played in to McCalmon, thankfully Charlie York was quick to react and the ball ricocheted off him and not the net.

With seventeen minutes played after a late challenge in the City box, Holyport earn a penalty. Charlie York was in fine form this evening as he denied Holyport yet again with a superb save i which he dived to his right and clutched Ocansey’s effort close to his chest.

As we approached the half hour mark, Tesfu was cautioned becoming the first name to be entered in to the referee’s book.

With thirty six minutes played, City gained the lead via a superb right-footed finish from Ewan Lynch, with Ellis Cowd providing the headed flick off a long-throw.

Holyport replied three minutes later as Fabien Etienne saw his headed effort from a well-delivered corner go in off the crossbar.

With half-time approaching another another long pass over the top of the city defence caused mayhem, Ellis Cowd slid in and city unfortunately conceded another penalty, similar to the one awarded earlier in the half.  This time Holyport debutant and ex-Reading FC youngster Lynford Sackey stood up to take it and beat Charlie York to regain the lead for Holyport.

An action-packed 45 minutes with plenty of drama is exactly what you’d expect from a derby clash.

Half Time: Reading City 1 v Holyport 2 

Consecutive passes from skipper Josh Baines and Luke Donville got the second half going for the Cityzens. The trickery from Donville caused problems down the right-hand side for Holyport but it the danger came to nothing.

With fifty-five minutes played Holyport would extend their lead as yet another ball was delivered in behind the City defence which was met by Ocansey who rounded Charlie York and side footed his effort in to the bottom, far-hand corner.

With an hour gone Simon Johnson rang the changes in the hope to salvage something from the game and swapped Josh Baines, Joe Pilling, Jake Impiazzi and Will Shaw for Liam Baker, Lamin Sankoh, Eddie Lazarczuk and Ben Hutchings.

The substitutions worked their magic and the ball found Ewan Lynch who scored his second to reduce the deficit to one but also earn himself a brace with sixty-two minutes on the clock.

In one last throw of the dice, Johnson once again turned to his bench and introduced Max Laschok to the game in place of Joel Valentin with just under twenty minutes of regular time remaining.

In the eighty-ninth minute City’s latest moved epitomised the urgency of the situation, after some crisp passing from Charlie York and Luke Donville the ball eventually finds Ben Hutchings whose grounded cross from the right was unable to pick out a blue shirt in a sea of yellow.

A narrow defeat on derby night.

Full Time: Reading City 2 v Holyport 3