There was a moment on Saturday that encapsulated just why Tom Holmes is so important to Reading Football Club. No, I’m not talking about his quite ridiculous overhead kick to give his side the lead against Hull City - but don’t worry we’ll get to that.
What I’m talking about came long before the cameras were trained on him, long before a ball was even kicked. This moment occurred in the carpark outside of the Select Car Leasing Stadium. Walking into the ground with his washbag tucked under his arm, Holmes and his defensive partner Scott Dann exited their cars and approached the cluster of excited Reading fans waiting patiently for their arrival.
Without a second thought, Holmes and Dann stopped to sign autographs and take pictures, leaving the line of children and adults alike with giant smiles. By full time a few hours later, Holmes' signature had risen in value after the centre-back swivelled and launched himself in the air to smash home a flying bicycle, breaking the deadlock on the stroke of half-time.
Any amount of statistical analysis will tell you that Holmes’ talent is considerable and watching him in the flesh just further emphasises that. But the centre-back’s full importance can not be understood without recognition of his actions in the carpark prior to kick-off and in the moments immediately following his strike connecting with the back of the net.
Mouth wide open in a scream of epic delight, Holmes could hardly contain himself as he sprinted to the corner flag and launched himself into a slide before being mobbed by his teammates. After finally coming up for air, Holmes looked towards the still delirious Club 1871 and touched the badge on his heart.
Here, this, is why Tom Holmes is so important to Reading Football Club. Alienation in modern football is far too common and far too easy. Whether it’s frustration with absentee owners, the financial power that seems to determine the football ladder or the system that punishes fans for the actions of their clubs, it’s easy to feel that football is slipping away from the common supporter - quickly.
But Tom Holmes is the embodiment of the emotional connection to Reading, a figure of pride for the fans and a figure who’s proud to be a fan. After joining the Reading academy at the age of eight, Holmes worked his way up through the youth ranks while maintaining a regular spot in the Madejski Stadium crowd with his season ticket.
📸 Tom Holmes made his first team debut for the Royals in midweek, here he is (pictured centre) meeting manager Steve Coppell when he was in the pre-Academy! 💙#OneOfOurOwn #URZ
— Reading FC (@ReadingFC) March 9, 2018
(Photo: Martin Brailli) pic.twitter.com/6apyqywGdx
His first taste of the senior environment came on a mid-season tour of Spain during the 2017/18 campaign before being given his maiden bow for a clash with top of the table Wolves. But the moment he’d been waiting his whole life for had to be delayed as the match was postponed due to snow. Fortunately, the wait was a short one and 72 hours later Holmes was once again named in the starting XI by Jaap Stam for the visit of Bolton Wanderers.
Still just 17 years old at the time, Holmes was back in school following the 1-1 draw with the Trotters as he completed his A-Levels at local Maiden Erlegh School.
“I texted my family straight away when I was in the line-up for Wolves,” Holmes later told the Reading Chronicle. “My mum couldn’t believe it. She just thought I was joking. To be fair, I thought the gaffer was joking at first.”
“I still attend Maiden Erlegh School. I wasn’t in on Wednesday but maybe later in the week.”
In some ways, the surprise debut proved to be a false dawn as Holmes appeared on the bench a handful of times over the next two seasons without entering the action. Admittedly a serious injury curtailed much of his progress in the 2018/19 season and by the time he was fully recovered for the 2019/20 campaign, there was no place for him in the Reading squad.
A loan spell to Belgian second-division side Roeselare offered slightly more game-time but a total of just ten starts proved underwhelming.
Heading into last season it would have been fair to wonder if it was actually ever going to happen for Holmes at his boyhood club. No longer the fresh-faced 17 year old that broke onto the scene against Bolton, Holmes was now in his early 20s and needing to play consistent first-team football in order to progress his career.
Fortunately, both for Holmes and Reading, that opportunity arrived in Berkshire. As so often is the case, Holmes’ sliding doors moment came through injury, Felipe Araruna limping off the pitch just past the hour mark in last September’s victory at Cardiff City. Holmes replaced the Brazilian at right-back and thus was the start of something special.
His run in the team was briefly curtailed by a hamstring injury but the genie could not be shoved back into the bottle. The secret of Tom Holmes was out, the defender going on to appear in all but one of the 35 Championship games following his recovery from the hamstring problem.
When the 2021/22 campaign rolled around there was no chance of Holmes heading out on loan to gain further experience - any such an idea was ridiculous for the breakthrough defender. It was time for Holmes to make this team his own and it couldn’t have started much better for the Reading fan as he was handed the captain’s armband for a Carabao Cup First Round meeting with Swansea City. The Welsh side beat an inexperienced Reading team 3-0, but it was still a special occasion for the 21-year old Holmes.
“When I found out I was going to lead the boys out, it hit me quite quickly,” he told the club’s official channels after the match. “I felt quite emotional but I had to put it to the back of my mind and focus on the game. But it’s something that now I’m gonna reflect on.
“All the senior boys came up to me in the changing room and said ‘Congratulations’. They know how much of a big deal it is and I know how much of a big deal it is being a Reading fan. I was really fortunate to have a lot of my friends here, and family, and extended family. It was a really special occasion for me and I know I’m going to look back on it and it’s something I’m extremely proud of and my parents are extremely proud as well.”
Debut? Check. Regular in the first team? Check. Captain? Check. There was only one more significant ‘first’ for Holmes to check off and that of course, brings us to Saturday.
As with the vast majority of this Reading team, injury has hampered Holmes’ this season, an ankle ailment knocking him out of four games at the end of September. With the arrival of Scott Dann and the continued presence of Liam Moore, Holmes had to settle for a spot on the bench upon his return.
But a switch to five at the back for the trip to Millwall in early November thrust Holmes back into action and he has not disappointed. Impressive performances against Birmingham and Nottingham Forest followed and when the team news was released 60 minutes before kick-off against Sheffield United, the Reading fanbase went into uproar. A shining light from the draw with Forest, Holmes was back on the bench as Velijko Paunovic reverted to a flat back four with Dann and Moore as his two centre-halves.
Defeat followed and when Moore picked up a soft-tissue injury, Holmes was back in the side for the trip to Swansea.
Whether it’s right-back, centre-back, right-centre-back in a five, defensive midfield, or auxiliary striker, Holmes can and happily will play them all. He just wants to play and given that shot, he has excelled across the positons.
Against Hull he formed an impressive partnership with the vastly experienced Scott Dann, recording seven clearances - more than any other player - and racking up 68 touches and 55 passes, fifth and third-best on his team respectively.
Holmes can go to war with the most physical of strikers, pass with the requisite conviction to get his team moving, put his body on the line, carry the ball forward - and apparently, - as we learned with seconds remaining in the first half on Saturday, score bicycle kicks.
“Growing up I’ve played in all the positions, I’m comfortable with the ball at my feet and doing things, so that was probably calling upon my earlier years!,” Holmes commented on his wonder-strike.
“It's a great moment for him,” Paunovic said. “He struggled with some injuries but he came through it, got stronger, more robust and is still growing as a player. He is solid and reliable, and a robust Championship defender.”
Liam Moore will have a significant role to play this season, that much is clear, but it’s fair to wonder if he even deserves his starting spot back. With Holmes continuing to get better by the game, Moore truly hasn’t been missed.
Holmes is good, very good. And his potential? Who knows. He’s certainly got the tools to go far.
But he means so much more to Reading than just what you see on the pitch. Of all the many intangibles that revolve around our sport, perhaps none are more important than identity: identity of a team, identity of a club. Supporters need to feel a connection to the team they’re paying to watch and the club they’re paying to support.
In a time where that is getting more and more difficult, Tom Holmes makes it significantly easier. No Reading fan could watch his celebration on Saturday - a celebration he’d probably dreamt of thousands of times - and not feel slightly closer to this team and to this club.
Talent and ability are the most important pieces of Holmes’ game. But his connection to Reading and the emotion he brings to each occasion can not be understated.
Reading have a long list of priorities off the pitch. Speaking earlier this week, Paunovic explained that tying down the players currently on short-term deals such as Andy Carroll and Scott Dann is paramount. While that may be true, the contract situation of Tom Holmes can not be shoved under the rug - and as of now, it doesn’t appear it has.
“We are in talks with his representatives and hopefully we can do something about it,” Paunovic said of Holmes’ contract situation after the draw with Hull.
Set to expire this summer, Reading have to do everything possible to keep their budding star. After seeing numerous academy graduates depart for pennies over the last few years, the cycle must be broken with Holmes. If not, a lot more than just the excellent player on the pitch will be lost. Just ask those kids in the SCL carpark whose smiles after meeting their hero stretched far beyond Berkshire.
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