Lincoln City are visiting Berkshire for the first time in 26 years on Saturday, on the back of an incredible run of 15 games unbeaten.
Reading are sat six points clear of the relegation zone and are set for another bumper crowd, with over 1,300 travelling down from Lincolnshire.
Drawing 1-1 at Sincil Bank in December, this is the first time the Imps have played in RG2 since a 2-1 victory for Tommy Burns' Royals in the SCL Stadium's debut campaign.
Neil Clement and Mass Sarr netted in the second half to lift Reading to ninth in the third tier.
Take a look below at the side that won back in November 1998.
Scott Howie
A vastly experienced goalkeeper by the time he joined Reading from Motherwell in March 1998, Howie experienced relegation from the second tier in his first couple of months but became a staple in the first two years of the Madejski Stadium. He departed in 2001 to join Bristol Rovers after making 85 Royals appearances.
Byron Glasgow
Having spent time in Arsenal’s youth set-up, Byron Glasgow moved to Reading and made his first-team debut in 1997. A regular in 1998/99, his professional career ended before it really began after testing positive for cocaine and cannabis. Glasgow had a long career in non-league but never regained a place in professional football.
John Polston
Polston had enjoyed a long career at the top of the game, spending nearly a decade competing for silverware with the likes of Tottenham and Norwich. The win over Lincoln was to be the defender’s debut, but injury would mean that the full-back would make just 18 appearances for the club in three years before retiring in 2001.
Linvoy Primus
A fan favourite, Primus was a regular in three seasons with the club but is best-known for his nine-year association with Portsmouth, where he made over 200 appearances. He was awarded an MBE in 2015 for his services to football and charity in the Portsmouth area.
Chris Casper
One of the ‘Class of ‘92’, Casper spent five years on the books with Manchester United but failed to breakthrough barring a handful of appearances and spent time on loan with Bournemouth, Swindon and Reading. Impressing while on a temporary deal, Reading made his deal permanent in 1998 for £300,000. Unfortunately, he suffered a career-ending injury in 1999 while playing for Reading and was forced to retire at 24. He is now Director of Football at Salford City.
Phil Parkinson
A club legend, Parkinson had been a key part of the 1994 Second Division title win and subsequent First Division play-off defeat in the mid-1990s and was still crucial for the club following relegation in 1998. ‘Parky’ remained with the club until 2003 and left following promotion back to the second tier under Alan Pardew, granted a testimonial against an England XI for more than a decade’s service.
Neville Roach
An apprentice with his boyhood club, Roach made his debut in 1997 but only played a bit part until his exit in 1999. Continuing to play on the non-league circuit for over a decade, the midfielder appeared for the likes of Slough, Maidenhead, Basingstoke and Didcot in the local area.
Darren Caskey
The real star of the late 1990s, Caskey joined in 1996 after breaking through at Tottenham and made over 200 appearances in a five-year stay. Scoring some memorable goals from midfield, the England Under-19 star was in the 1999/2000 Team of the Year despite Reading only finishing 10th.
Martin Williams
Breaking through for his hometown club, Luton Town, in the early 1990s, Williams played most of his football at Reading. Moving in 1995, following play-off heartache in the second tier, Williams was a staple with the Royals until the new Millennium before spending short spells with the likes of Swindon and Stevenage.
Mass Sarr
Liberia star Sarr moved to Reading with great fanfare in 1998 following time in France and Croatia. Unfortunately, he managed just three goals in 31 appearances and was off to Australia within two years of joining. Scoring against the Imps, Sarr only had two more league goals in his Reading career.
Neil Clement
Neil Clement, born in the town of Reading, rose through the Chelsea ranks and made one appearance for the Blues. He spent the 1998/99 season on loan with his hometown club and scored his only goal against Lincoln. Departing Stamford Bridge in 2000, he spent a decade with West Brom and became a club legend with more than 300 club appearances to his name. His brother is former Royals manager Paul, who is best known for being Carlo Ancelotti’s assistant coach.
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here