Steve Coppell was understandably a happy man after seeing Reading trounce non-league Didcot 9-0 in their opening pre-season friendly.Nine different players netted for the Royals, including fan Simon Holloway, who had won his spot in the squad via a charity auction and scored when he deflected in a Shane Long shot.

Hal Robson-Kanu, Leroy Lita, Kevin Doyle, Dave Kitson, Long, Bobby Convey, Gylfi Sigurdsson and Simon Church scored the others and Coppell - who fielded different sides in either half - felt it was a job well done.

"At this time of year every player wants to get a game under his belt, score a goal and feel good about himself, so it was mission accomplished," he told the club's official website.

"It's all part of the progression of training. The players were wearing heart-rate monitors so we could assess their workload and they will all gradually play for longer periods as the friendly programme continues."

More Football News from TEAMtalk