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Reading suffered from second season syndrome last time out after almost qualifying for the UEFA cup first time out in the Premiership.

They got off to a good start drawing 0-0 at Old Trafford but the tight defence went missing throughout the season as they shipped seven goals at Portsmouth in an embarrassing defeat and six at Spurs in a 6-4 thriller.

Steve Coppell looked like he had got an extra gear out of his die after Christmas as they moved away from trouble after some hard fought wins. The just as Fulham found form the half hoops half blue patch hit the wall and collapsed losing to Fulham and Aston Villa at home and despite thrashing Derby on the last day of the season it was too late and they were relegated from the premiership.

Reading will be expecting to walk the division again much as they did last time but they may find the division a little tougher this time.

Steve Coppell did some soul searching at the end of last season and after much thought decided to stay on rather than leave after relegation. That decision will certainly help them as they are unlikely to get a better manager than Coppell especially at this level.

Coppell has lost some of his squad with Dave Kitson moving on along with Glenn Little. Apart from that they have kept most of their squad and how many of them they keep will determine how they do this season.

I'll base this prediction on them keeping Kevin Doyle, Nicky Shorey, Ingarmasson and Hunt. If they do keep those they have plenty of quality to do very well in this division and push for automatic promotion.

In Kevin Doyle they have the 20 goal a season man that most clubs can only dream of having and at the back they look a very solid unit that won't concede many goals.

The start of the season will be crucial to them and a bad start could be the final push out of the door that the bigger names are looking for. Reading are a tough side to predict and I've changed my mind on them a few times. If they keep Doyle and co I think they'll push hard for promotion and finish in the playoffs but I have a nagging feeling that it might all go tits up for them and they'll be similar to Charlton last season.

I'll go with a good season for them though based mostly on the defence and a top three finish.

Prediction: 3rd in the Championship

I asked fans on the Rivals message board for views on the new season and here is what they had to say.

How do you think Reading will fare this season?

Champions again

Who are your players to watch out for?

So many to choose from kevin Doyle, Grham Murty, James Harper, need I go on?

Is your Manager the right man for the job?

Yes, he;s the best manager we've ever had and will get us back where we belong

Which three teams will be promoted this season?

Reading, Birmingham and Sheffield United

Which teams will be relegated?

Blackpool, Barnsley and Doncaster

How do you think QPR will fare this season?

You'll try and buy the division but fail and be mid table.

Jamie Cureton is the most famous player to have played for both clubs.

Cureton scored the goal that won reading promotion in 2002 and had a good season in the Championship before he moved abroad to Korea. His time at QPR was pretty forgettable as injuries and a loss of form affected him.

Simon Osborn joined QPR from Reading in 1995 as a replacement for Ray Wilkins. Osborn never really settled at QPR and was dropped in favour of Wilkins after a poor start. Osborn was sold within a few months to Wolves in what was a troubled stay at Loftus Road.

Tony Witter and Paul Barron both had loan spells at Reading whilst on the books at QPR whilst wing wizard Michael Meaker also played for both clubs.

The battle of the hoops or the hoops v white backs as it be next season hasn't gone our way in recent years. We haven;t beaten Reading since August 1997 when John Spencer got among the goals in a 2-1 win.

IN 2001 Rangers drew 0-0 at home with Reading in division two and the return game was our first ever visit to the Madjeski stadium and saw us lose 1-0. Reading were promoted that year so we didn't face them again until 2004 when Jamie Cureton got himself sent off and we lost 1-0. The return game was another 0-0 bore draw.

In Reading's record breaking promotion season they beat us twice by a single goal. Lee Cook scored at Loftus Road to draw us level but we conceded from a set piece to lose the game 2-1. On the final day of the season Reading needed to win by three goals to break all records but Paul Furlong spoilt the part equalising in the second half before a dodgy late penalty gave Graham Murty his first ever goal for the club.

Click on the match for a report of the game from this web site.