Boss rues "surreal" Blades defeat
Anthony Smith • Published 25 Apr 2011 19:30
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Reading 2 - 3 Sheffield United
READING boss Brian McDermott is preparing for the Championship play-offs in the wake of their "surreal" capitulation against relegation-haunted Sheffield United.
Royals still had a chance of finishing second before Easter Monday's emotion-charged clash at Madejski Stadium.
But McDermott's men blew a 2-0 lead and lost 3-2 to a Blades side who still need a miracle to avoid the drop.
With second-place Norwich City snatching a late winner against Derby County, it means Royals are realistically heading for the play-offs and need another point from their last two games to be mathematically certain.
The Blades defeat ended Reading's unbeaten 13-match run, and McDermott tried to put things in perspective: "If 13 games ago we'd have talked about being in this position, in the play-offs bar goal difference, we'd have taken that," he declared.
"Ten games ago I thought second place might still have been available but it's not now. I thought we could do it, I'm an eternal optimist.
"Now the picture is different, we want to go to Coventry on Saturday and make sure we get into the play-offs by putting on a show for our supporters."
It took Royals just nine minutes to go ahead when Noel Hunt raced on to Shane Long's pass to fire
past Steve Simonsen for his 10th goal of the season.
And it looked like being a goal-fest when Hal Robson-Kanu bundled home from Jobi McAnuff's cross with 19 minutes gone after Blades' defence had gone to sleep.
Hunt, Mikele Leigertwood and McAnuff also went close to scoring as Reading piled on the pressure.
But they soon switched off, with ex-Royal Darius Henderson grabbing Blades a 30th minute lifeline with a scruffy shot before Lee Williamson levelled it up on the stroke of half-time with a sweet strike across Alex McCarthy.
McDermott must have been fuming, but it got worse five minutes after the break when Henderson put Blades in front with close-range header from Matt Lowton's cross-shot after McCarthy had done well to keep out a Williamson free-kick.
Reading suddenly looked a shadow of the side that had won eight of their previous nine matches and were unbeaten in 13. They made unforced errors, gave the ball away cheaply and steadily lost their confidence.
They were lucky not to concede a self-inflicted fourth on the hour when McCarthy's throw-out was easily cut-out by Henderson, allowing Jordan Slew to roll the ball into an empty net.
But it was ruled out by a linesman's flag, presumably for Henderson interfering with the keeper's throw.
If that decision went with Reading, luck deserted them when lively substitute Brian Howard beat Simonsen with a 20-yard curler only to see the ball bounce out off the underside of the bar.
Sheffield, though, remained a threat on the counter-attack and did enough to take the points and earn a stay of execution.
McDemrott added: "It was surreal, we started cruising at 2-0 and just didn't get the basics right.
"We were playing so well, but then we couldn't get out of second gear. At 2-2 we were in a poor situation, you have to raise yourself and we didn't do that.
"We didn't win our headers, we let it bounce when we shouldn't have, we let runners come off us from throws, so many things we normally do well.
"We didn't defend the way we should have, we stopped creating, stopped passing like we can and we have to accept that.
"We're gutted to have lost although it could be a wake-up call. We'll learn more this way. To be honest it could have ended up 5-0 to us, given the first 20 minutes, but now we've got to take this on the chin."
And he sympathised with supporters, saying: "I'm disappointed for the fans, we had a very big crowd and it's a game we know we should have won.
"We didn't win though, and I'm not going to overly criticise players who have done fantastically well for me this season.
"We'd won eight on the trot but we've had a bad day and we have to hold our hands up. It's a case of overcoming that disappointment - between now and Coventry on Saturday we have to do the right things.
"What is most important is that we take the lessons on board."
Blades boss Micky Adams said: "We did terrifically well, particularly after the start that we had.
"We were two-nil down at Reading, who are a good side. We showed character and came back into the game well."
Reading (4-4-2): McCarthy - Griffin, Mills ©, Khizanishvili, Harte - MaAnuff, Karacan (Howard 73), Leigertwood, Robson-Kanu (Antonio 65) - Hunt (Manset 65), Long. Subs not used: Federici, Pearce, Tabb, Church.
Sheff Utd (4-4-2): Simonsen - Lowton, Collins, Lowry, Mattock - Williamson, Montgomery ©, Quinn, Riise - Henderson, Slew (Tonne 76). Subs not used: Aksalu, Roe, Kozluk, Doyle, Philliskirk.
Referee: Kevin Wright (Cambs).
Attendance: 19,165 (Sheff Utd 460).
This article appeared in Reading Chronicle 26 Apr 11
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