READING FC defender Chris Gunter insists their Craven Cottage collapse will cause no lasting damage in the weeks to come.

Royals squandered a 2-0 lead at Fulham last Saturday when the hosts scored three times in six second-half minutes to seal a memorable 4-2 comeback victory.

It was Reading’s first defeat in five league outings and saw Steve Clarke’s men drop out of the Championship play-off places.

Few could have predicted such a dramatic turnaround in west London after goals from Lucas Piazon and Orlando Sa had put Royals in command.

However, Ross McCormack gave the Cottagers a lifeline before a Moussa Dembele brace and Alex Kacaniklic strike inflicted a painful defeat on Clarke’s side.

But Gunter is confident they will put the disappointment behind them before Saturday’s mouthwatering home clash against top-of-the-table Brighton & Hove Albion (3pm ko).

The Wales full-back said: “You’re going to go through stages in the season when unexpected things happen, especially in this league.

“You wouldn’t have seen that Fulham result coming and over the course of the season there will be days like that where things don’t go your way.

“That doesn’t mean it’s acceptable, but you have to learn to deal with it. We’ve got a group that will be able to overcome it.”

He added: “We’ll take the praise when it comes and when we’ve been doing well, and we’ll take this one on the chin, move on and try to bounce back next weekend.

“It’s all about how we bounce back, we can be down and miserable about it then we’ll be firmly focused and looking ahead.

“Brighton will be a tough game. They’re there to be caught and from the bits I’ve seen this season, they look a really good team.

“They must have something about them to be at the top, so it’ll be a difficult afternoon and we’ll have to respond in the right way.”

Reading picked up some big wins against top Championship teams earlier in the season after beating Ipswich, Burnley and Middlesbrough.

And Gunter admits he did not see the second-half capitulation at Fulham coming.

“It was a strange game,” he confessed. “At half-time we weren’t overly pleased, but we were ahead.
“We made a really good start in terms of the goal, but within five or 10 minutes we found ourselves behind.

“That’s not like us and it’s not a position we’ve been in this season, which makes it all the more disappointing.

“When you’re keeping clean-sheets and you’re looking solid, it’s never just to do with the back five, it’s the whole team.

“As a back five, we have been playing well as a unit. Sometimes it can be hard when you’re out on the pitch and without seeing the goals back to know exactly what happened.

“We’ll look at it as a group and look to improve. We’ve had a week to do that, that’s what we have to do, we’ve got no choice.”

Reading also travel to Huddersfield Town on Tuesday night (8pm ko).