A crazy ending to a fairly crazy game which showed the best and worst of Cardiff City and Dave Jones. City's squad resembles Waitrose in its midfield/striking attacking quality, especially now they've rid themselves of the likeable but limited Andy Keogh yet the back line is more akin to Lidl by comparison (or 99p Stores when it comes to Lee Naylor). City will surely score enough goals to go up but will they prevent enough at the back to make sure the required number of wins are collected? On tonight's evidence, the answer to that is an emphatic no.
As far Dave Jones, the more riches he has at his disposal, the less he knows what to do. Clearly, he didn't want to drop any of Peter Whittingham, Seyi Olifinjana or Jay Emanuel-Thomas but had to start the returning prodigal son Aaron Ramsey. His ridiculous decision to drop the in-form, goalscoring, hard working, high octane Michael Chopra and pair the far too similar two Jay's (Bothroyd and JET) compounded by a truly awful first half display in which City found themselves behind, shorn of width and left playmakers Peter Whittingham and Aaron Ramsey looking lost without any great movement or runners in front of them.
Reading, led by former City player Brian McDermott (ask your dad about his goal straight from a corner that took us to promotion with Frankie Burrows in 1988) have been a slow burner this season but have been rising nicely coming into the business end of the season. Their 1-1 draw with City at Madejski last November started a run that now extends to 1 defeat in 13 (at Swansea of all places) but 8 have been drawn but they were good value for their point tonight even if City, our lacklustre tempo poor tactics played into their hands.
The first half was torrid for City unable to keep the ball, looking disjointed and slow and playing too narrow while Reading attacked at pace and with width offered by the excellent Jimmy Kebbe and Jobi McAnuff which was always going to trouble Quinn and especially Naylor.
Lee Naylor was embarrassed time and again and just isn't up to the job. City fans have long run out of patience, Dave Jones' failure to get a left back in the transfer window or refusal to drop him has helped cost City already. Kebbe is as tricky as they come but Naylor allowed him to attack and never got close on him and with it came a succession of crosses and both Reading goals. Such was his ineptness; he was warned by the ref after just 6 minutes for continual fouling.
The opener saw him lose out in midfield and beaten twice on the by-line, his cross was scrambled out but Leighterwood's powerful low drive from 25 yards was covered by Heaton had it not been for Quinn sticking a leg out and deflecting it in the opposite corner. That was on 21 minutes.
Cardiff had a brief 5 minute rally around the half hour, Bellamy's sweet free-kick beating Federici but crashing off the bar and Whittingham's blocked goal bound drive from a sweeping move proved the full extent of their first half offering. Jones, realising the mess, swapped roles for Bellamy and JET but to little avail. They weren't booed off at the interval but could not have complained if they had been.
Mercifully, City returned with Michael Chopra and the game changed with it. Olifinjana was spared more on pitch trauma, he really hasn't played well in any game over the past couple of months.
The equaliser was bizarre. Reading's keeper Federici had the ball, Chopra stood to his side but never impeded, his sidekick punt was all wrong and found Jay Bothroyd 40 yards out but his finishing and calmness was sublime as he bore down on goal, dummied around the keeper and slotted into the empty net. Reading players complained but it was perfectly legitimate. Chops nearly scored straight from the restart.
Cardiff were now dominating and had turned the game on its head but Reading's defending, bad luck and goods saves kept it level. City's closest effort saw Mark Hudson's looped header came down off the bar, Chopra's effort on the rebound blocked near the line and Rambo's effort punched away. Ramsey won't be forgotten by ref Ward for a while and he charged into him sending him to the floor semi-conscious and stopping the game for the crowd to stop laughing as much as for the ref to recover.
However having raised their game with a much needed injection of pace and energy, the foot was taken off the accelerator partly as Ramsey and JET tired. Chris Burke was waved on by DJ for JET within seconds of the whole ground chanting for him. He may play on the left, he may play on the right but his finishing was sh*te as Bellamy's wonderful skill to leave two defenders stranded and his cross-shot parried by Federici sent the ball to Burke 8 yards out in front of goal but he lifted his effort over the bar.
Both sides went for it in the closing stages, City also throwing on Jon Parkin as Jay ran out of steam but it was Reading's big sub, Manset, bought last week from Hereford who looked as though he'd won it, a sweeping move, Kebe with all the time to set him up as Naylor was missing in the third minute of added time. City fans poured out so thousands missed City's last gasp edge of area free-kick, McAnuff and Chopra square up with both booked, but Bellamy curl home a delicious leveller.
Overall, very much a point gained but it's two points lost in the promotion chase as QPR, Norwich, Swansea and Nottingham Forest all won dropping us to 5th and with Dave Jones having plenty to think about before we go to Swansea on Sunday.
For once in your life in a derby Jonesy, JUST GET IT RIGHT!
External Reports
Reading Official Website
Cardiff Official Website