Joel Pereira: 6
It was a case of the good, bad and the ugly with Pereira tonight. He made a brilliant triple save to keep it at 0-0 in the first half, but there have been one too many hairy moments from him this season for my liking.
He got very lucky in the second half when his poor pass was picked off by Aaron Connolly, but fortunately the Orient striker couldn’t capitalise. Both moments cancel each other out for me, so he gets a 6/10.
Udoka Godwin-Malife: 6
I have a feeling he’s going to turn into our new Mr Reliable. Did brilliantly
to win the penalty in the first half, and was solid defensively all game up against a tricky customer in Connolly.
Paudie O’Connor: 7
Leyton Orient knock it about nicely, and we came under the pump a little bit in that second half. But anything the visitors did put in the box seemed to meet the head or foot of O’Connor before getting any further.
I think we tend to focus a bit too much on what he isn’t that good at, and he fails to get the plaudits for the things he is good at: organisation, defending his box and just getting in the way of things.
Jeriel Dorsett: 6
The kind of calm, uneventful performance Dorsett desperately needs. I still think left-centre-back is his best position, and he’s a more than able deputy to have to Benn Ward.
Haydon Roberts: 6
He’s got a wand of a left foot, but in a bitty game he failed to get in the positions to make the most of that. Ultimately he was part of a back four that kept a well earned clean sheet, and got another 90 minutes under his belt.
Lewis Wing: 5
Boy does he need that first goal. He said himself in the post-match interview with Sky Sports that he’s snatching at things a bit at the moment, and that’s the perfect way to sum up his missed penalty.
However, he did brilliantly to first win the ball back high up the pitch and then link up with Jamie Reid to set up Paddy Lane’s winner. That’s why you keep him in the team.
Andy Rinomhota: 5
Should be a stalwart of this midfield going forward really, shouldn’t he? It was by no means our most free-flowing performance, and we saw very few if any of his infamous marauding midfield runs. But he’s always big part of this team.
Kyreece Lisbie: 5
It may become a theme going forward that teams come with plans to try and stifle Lisbie’s threat, and he’s going to have to find a way to do more than he did tonight to overcome that.
Was nowhere near as involved high up the pitch as he has been in recent weeks, and it just wasn’t his night.
Josh Stokes: 5
He huffs and puffs but, again, that last bit of quality was missing. A different player to George Earthy, but when you compare the impact they both have on the team when they play, then it’s clear who’s first choice when they’re both fit.
Paddy Lane: 7
I’m so happy for him, truly. He had a rough time of it last season but has fought really hard to get himself back into the starting XI.
His goal was a superb finish, and on a night where we struggled for rhythm, he was always a threat down the left-hand side.
Jamie Reid: 5
His goalless start in a Reading shirt stretches to eight games now. While he was never going to be a goal machine, a striker’s currency is putting the ball in the back of the net and more than anyone he’ll be desperate for that first goal.
The visitors had a lot of the ball, which is never good news for your striker, but he struggled to affect the game.
Substitutions
Jacob Brown and Charlie Savage: 5
Added some much-needed energy at the top of the pitch when Reid and Stokes started to flag a bit, particularly Brown. We played the result in the last 20 minutes or so, and they did their defensive duties well enough.
Daniel Kyerewaa and Randell Williams: N/A
Both came on late in the day – too late to get a rating.
Average: 5.61/10
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