The Royals picked up a disappointing point after going ahead twice in a 2-2 draw against Plymouth Argyle at the SCL Stadium on Saturday.
Reading took the lead through Randell Williams early in the first half, with Alex Mitchell equalising for the visitors just minutes after. Paudie O’Connor put us ahead again in the 18th minute but Plymouth scored through Caleb Watts in the second half to share the points.
The draw moves us down to eighth, still one point off the playoffs. Here is what Royals manager
Leam Richardson had to say, he spoke to the Reading Chronicle.
Richardson on the draw
“It was a very good game of football. I think it would have been really good for the neutral.
“First half, we were excellent in spaces. The performance level was very pleasing. We’ve got to remind ourselves that we’re probably playing one of the most in-form teams in the league at the minute, [who’ve] come back from the Championship last year. They’re probably not where they still want to be.
“But I thought we gave a really good account of ourselves today. We were disappointed with the goals conceded. I think we can be better in the moments. But overall, I thought it was a game that we could have and should have won.
“I think there was a danger that we lumped that together, just because there was a second-half equaliser with some of the games, three or four where you were conceding in the second half late. But it felt a bit different to that, really.
“I thought we controlled a lot of the moments. I thought we were in control in large parts of the pitch. We were a bit of a game plan. We were very clean with it.
“I think we’ve just got to be better in those final moments, which, probably like everybody, we’re still working away at to be that complete team. We’ll be always working away at that.
“But, yes, you’ve got to be very respectful of the team you’re playing against. I think they’re the most in-form team away from home as well. They’ve got some really good Championship players in the squad. So, yes, overall, we’re disappointed that we didn’t get the result that the performance probably deserved.”
Richardson on Benn Ward
“I just spoke to Benn after the Mansfield game. You’ve got to be mindful of Benn. It’s a bit of a whirlwind for him, hasn’t it? He’s come, he’s moving house, he’s playing game after game. He’s had a couple of niggles with his foot and his hamstring and his calf.
“And I just felt like, if we keep going to the well with him, we might lose him for the season. We spoke together with the medical team and we all came to that conclusion. So, yes, that was that.”
Richardson on Jeriel Dorsett and Kadan Young
“I thought Jeriel Dorsett, he came in, stepped in, I thought he was excellent today. Barring their second goal, I thought he was excellent. That’s what you want as a club who wants to go forward, who wants to build, who wants to try and get out of this league. You have to have that, you have to have the depth.
“Yes, Kadan again, it’s good that he’s back on the pitch and on our pitch as well. So, competition replaces everything for me.”
Richardson on Burton Albion and Reading’s development
“Very similar profile, very similar environment, so it’s up to us to keep learning, to keep evolving.”
“We’ve still got a lot to do. We’ve still got things to either resolve or evolve. And that’s my job as the manager of the football club. Obviously, not just the performance and the results, it’s everything that goes with it, because it’s the football club that needs putting back in the pyramid where it deserves to be.
“And to do that, we’ve got to make sure all departments function. So, we’re trying to evolve as a team in different departments, but we’re also still trying to resolve things.
“It’s all right us rolling out our plan and us trying to do what we do. Other teams are trying to make us do what we don’t want to do. It’s up to us to be better in them moments.
“Like you say, we’ve got young lads on loan who are learning. Hopefully, we can learn from last Tuesday, give a really good, solid performance, where we get a really good result on Tuesday.”
