Hornets' unbeaten home run ends (From Watford Observer)

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Watford beaten by late Reading winner at Vicarage Road

7:20pm Saturday 14th January 2012 in Match Reports By Anthony Matthews

Watford failed to capitalise on favourable results elsewhere before kick-off as Reading came from behind to end the Hornets’ eight-match unbeaten home run in all competitions with a 2-1 victory.

Sean Dyche’s men went into the contest knowing all six teams below them had failed to win and they were on course to move up the table when Shaun Cummings diverted a Troy Deeney cross into his own net in the 28th minute.

Given that seven of the previous 11 matches between the two sides had ended in a draw, it was perhaps no surprise that Reading levelled before the break when Jimmy Kebe headed in a Hal Robson-Kanu cross.

And a point apiece was how the game looked like ending until five minutes from time when a Royals corner was flicked on and substitute Adam Le Fondre pulled off his man at the far post to hook in the winner and ensure the hosts suffered a third defeat in their third televised match of the campaign.

The hosts’ preparations for the game suffered a blow when Jonathan Hogg was ruled out with a minor knee injury, meaning John Eustace returned for his first league start since the 0-0 draw at Doncaster Rovers at the end of November – the only other match Hogg has missed since his move from Aston Villa when he was suspended.

Dyche made two other changes from the side that beat Bradford City in the FA Cup, with Scott Loach, as expected, returning in goal at the expense of Jonathan Bond, while Lee Hodson came back in for Lloyd Doyley.

Reading also made three changes from the team that went out of the cup following a 1-0 home reverse at the hands of Stevenage.

Hornets old boy Jobi McAnuff was ruled out with a groin injury, while Mikele Leigertwood was absent with a thigh problem. Their places were taken by Kebe and Jem Karacan, who both missed the FA Cup tie. The other change saw Noel Hunt replace Le Fondre up front.

The opening to the contest was low key until the Royals had the first opening when Hunt headed a cross from the right down and not too far wide of Loach’s right-hand post in the tenth minute.

Watford’s first attempt came three minutes later when Mark Yeates got a 30-yard free-kick up and over the wall but Adam Federici was always behind it and saved comfortably.

The Hornets almost had a great opening in the 18th minute when Prince Buaben did well in his own half before finding Deeney but with Craig Forsyth having yards of space to run into to his left, the striker’s control let him down.

Hodson then did well to get his body in between the back post and Kebe to prevent the Reading winger from getting a clean header on a Cummings cross from the right, but the game still hadn’t really got going as the halfway point of the first period passed.

Reading were the better side at this stage though, and Loach was forced into his first save of the evening in the 25th minute to keep out a near post effort from Kebe following a cross from the left.

Yeates sent an improvised flick from a Forsyth centre wide soon after but in the 28th minute the hosts made the breakthrough - with the help of an outstretched Reading leg.

Buaben was initial instigator with a fine pass towards the right side of the area which set Deeney free and the striker played a great cross across the six-yard box and Cummings, who had to get a foot on the ball with Marvin Sordell lurking behind him, could only slide it past his own keeper to give the Hornets a 1-0 lead.

Robson-Kanu received the game’s first yellow card in the 36th minute after catching Yeates late but the Watford wide man was soon playing a delightful ball into the area that needed the quick thinking Federici to prevent Sordell from getting on the end of.

The Royals keeper had to be alert again in the 40th minute to keep out a right-footed piledriver from Deeney, who attacked the defence and ball juggled at pace after his attempted flick through to Sordell had rebounded back to him. But two minutes later the Royals were level.

Hodson went in for a 50-50 challenge and was subsequently caught out of position when Hunt spread the ball to Robson-Kanu, who broke into the space down the left flank before crossing to the far post where Kebe planted a header back across and beyond the helpless Loach to make it all-square at the break.

Reading started the second half at a good tempo and almost forced a chance when Robson-Kanu got the better of Nyron Nosworthy rather too easily before cutting into the box from the left and pulling the ball back, but Eustace managed to get a challenge in before the ball was deflected behind off a Royals leg.

Robson-Kanu was again involved soon after, playing in a cross from the left that Hunt got all wrong and headed it back in the direction it came, before Deeney had the Hornets’ first attempt of the half, chesting down a clearance before hooking a half-volley over the top from the left side of the area.

The hosts had a reasonable spell after that without creating a great deal until Yeates curled a good 25-yard free-kick narrowly over the bar around the hour-mark.

Jay Tabb was rightly booked for a foul on Hodson after 65 minutes but that came after referee Graham Salisbury had played advantage only for a promising passage of Hornets play to end with an unmarked Forsyth badly missing the target with a free header from a Eustace cross. Fortunately for him, the flag was already up for offside.

Forsyth could count himself unlucky to be booked for what appeared a good sliding challenge on Tabb two minutes later but having picked up that yellow, he escaped with a talking to for what looked a worse challenge moments later.

The Hornets were fortunate in the 76th minute when Hunt went down in the area following a challenge from Hodson that caught his ankle but the referee was unmoved by the appeals.

By the same token though, the hosts had previously had a good penalty appeal rejected when Sordell was shoved in the back by Alex Pearce after the break but that summed up a less than impressive display by Salisbury.

Dyche made the first change with nine minutes of normal time remaining when Ross Jenkins replaced Forsyth and the substitute’s first involvement was to swing in a low cross from the right that broke for Deeney, but he smashed his shot high and wide.

Le Fondre came on for Simon Church in the 84th minute and it was to prove a key moment.

There didn’t appear to be any undue cause for concern when a Robson-Kanu shot was deflected behind for a corner but that set-piece from the left was flicked on and Le Fondre pulled off his man at the back post to hook the ball over his shoulder and inside Loach’s left-hand post.

Both sides made a second change with three minutes remaining – Michail Antonio came on for Kebe before Yeates made way for Chris Iwelumo – but there were no other opportunities of note as Watford’s longest unbeaten run in all competitions at Vicarage Road since 1998 came to an end.

Watford: Loach; Hodson, Nosworthy, Mariappa, Dickinson; Yeates (Iwelumo 87), Eustace, Buaben, Forsyth (Jenkins 81); Sordell, Deeney. Not used: Doyley, Garner and Bond.

Reading: Federici; Cummings, Pearce, Gorkss, Harte; Kebe (Antonio 87), Karacan, Tabb, Robson-Kanu; Church (Le Fondre 84), Hunt. Not used: Gunnarsson, Mills and Andersen.

Bookings: Robson-Kanu for a foul on Yeates (36); Tabb for a foul on Hodson (65); Forsyth for a foul on Tabb (67).

Attendance: 11,291.

Referee: Graham Salisbury.

Comments(39)

lutondown says...
7:35pm Sat 14 Jan 12

I hate losing to those jumped up plastic Paddys
I thought we looked good for the draw until the substitutions. Readings was an attacking change ours was one that had yet to show a positive when deployed
Was it me or was Loach flat footed for their second goal?
Positives Bauben and Deeney had decent games, Nosworthy very good again
Look forward to watch a recorded version on tv but enjoying a pint in walkabout for now.
But I do f'ing hate them Birks from Birkshire