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Should Aston Villa – or Reading FC for that matter – be charged by the FA for the unruly crowd scenes at Madejski Stadium towards the end of the Championship encounter on Tuesday night?

I don’t think so.

Villa had just scored a last-minute penalty through Jordan Ayew and some of the visiting fans behind the goal surged forward in celebration.

Stewards failed to cope with the rush, advertising hoardings got bowled over and a few fans – little more than a handful, if that - made it on to the pitch and jigged in delight.

But let’s add the context.

It was, as mentioned, a tad unruly. Yet there was no ugly goading of the dejected Reading players, as might have been expected, and order was restored swiftly.

Villa went on to complete a 2-1 victory and the claret-and-blue hordes hailed their new hero, new manager Steve Bruce.

Quite an ovation for a former Birmingham City player and manager!

Bruce defended the spontaneous actions of the Villa fans. “They’ve maybe shown a bit of exuberance,” he said, “but it was nice-natured stuff rather than anything ridiculous.”

Absolutely. And should our learned friends at the FA need further convincing, extra context should be added.

It was Villa’s first away win in 14 months, after a horrendous Premier League campaign and a stuttering start to their Championship season.

Were I among the extraordinary turnout of 4,030 Villa followers at the Mad Stad, I’d have gone pretty bonkers, too.

Their support had been excellent throughout, much louder than the 16,000 home fans, and it must have felt as if Bruce’s braves were playing towards the famous Holte End at Villa Park in the second half.

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Two more points of note …

The Villa throng perfectly observed the pre-match minute’s silence – a mark of respect to the late King Bhumibol Adulyadej of Thailand and, by extension, to Reading's Thai owners.

I can think of many other clubs’ fans who cannot keep shtum for 60 seconds and would have shouted all manner of obscenities.

And in the 28th minute, the Villa throng joined in the applause for Jamie Golding, the Royals season-ticket holder who lost his battle with bowel cancer, at the tragically young age of 28, earlier this month.

Another warm and generous gesture from those from the West Midlands.

Should the FA decide to charge Villa and/or Reading – for, I presume, failing to control the fans – they should mull over all of the above.

Anything more than a slap on the wrists and a gentle warning would be outrageous.

Bruce was spot on. On this occasion, on an emotive evening and in a passionate sport, it was just “a bit of exuberance”.

Stubbs stubbed out at Rotherham

One of the most bewildering managerial moves during the summer was the decision of Alan Stubbs to join Rotherham United.

Stubbs had just led Hibernian to their first Scottish Cup success in 114 years, when they defeated Rangers 3-2 at Hampden Park.

Life in the comparative backwater of the Scottish Championship appeared rosy.

So why risk a switch to the ultra-competitive EFL Championship, especially at New York Stadium?

Rotherham had escaped relegation last season largely due to an impressive 11-match unbeaten run masterminded by boss Neil Warnock. Fair play to "Colin W".

Perhaps Stubbs believed that he would inherit that same fighting spirit and be able to build on it.

Well, he couldn’t.

He was sacked on Wednesday after fewer than five months in charge and just one victory in 14 league and cup matches.

Good news, you would think, for Royals, who travel to the South Yorkshire club on Saturday.

With Stubbs still at the helm, Jaap Stam’s side would have fancied their chances of arresting a mini-slump of four matches without a win.

A welcome three points beckoned.

Now, with fitness coach Paul Warne and goalkeeping coach Andy Dibble in temporary charge of bottom-of-the-table Millers, Royals should take full advantage of the unsettling void at the top.

As for Stubbs? I suspect he hugely regrets leaving Easter Road.

Joker Wallace strikes the right note

Football takes itself so seriously that when a humorous moment arrives, it doesn’t quite know how to handle it. Same with the footballers.

Sheffield Wednesday were winning 1-0 at Huddersfield Town on Sunday when Terriers head coach David Wagner decided to make a late substitution and a tactical switch.

Yet rather than Wagner communicating verbally, he instructed sub Michael Hefele to pass on a written note to team-mate Elias Kachunga.

Wednesday winger Ross Wallace spotted this, snatched the note from Kachunga and pretended to read it.

Kachunga was not amused, grabbed it back, digested the information and then placed the piece of paper in his right sock.

Wallace’s tongue-in-cheek “theft” was a priceless moment, though Wagner’s words of wisdom appeared to fall on deaf ears, anyway, as Huddersfield failed to retrieve the deficit.

The early Championship pacesetters fell again on Wednesday night, losing 3-1 at Preston North End.

Another discordant note for Wagner?