MAURICE Evans, Reading's new chief scout who was plucked from the grasp of rivals Oxford United, revealed last night how he found Sunday's Division 2 derby an emotional experience.

But the man who guided Oxford United to the Milk Cup in 1986 said that was nothing compared to last Friday, when he had to say goodbye to staff he had worked with for many years.

"Last Friday was a terrible day," he said. "I had a great time at Oxford, 15 very good years, and it's not easy leaving under those circumstances.

"But the opportunity was there for me to go to Reading and it's an exciting challenge for me. I'll be doing match reports and it's a question of me getting players in and out. And, as everyone could see from Sunday's game, there's a lot of work that needs to be done here." Evans, a former director at the Manor Ground, was known to be upset at the route the club are taking and said he felt the time was right for him to leave.

But he insisted he did not want to rock the boat by revealing the precise reasons. "I just find it very sad what's happening there," was all he would say.

CARETAKER manager Mickey Lewis has displaced Mark Wright as the favourite to be the new United manager with local bookmakers River Racing.

Latest betting: 5-4 Mickey Lewis, 2-1 Mark Wright, 7-2 Ray Houghton, 10-1 Denis Smith, 16-1 Ian Atkins, Mark McGhee, Nigel Spackman, Colin Todd.

Story date: Tuesday 09 November

Converted for the new archive on 30 June 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.