Fulham 0
Reading 1 (Doyle 17 (pen))
Fulham (4-4-2): Niemi; Rosenior, Queudrue (Bocanegra 45), Knight, Pearce; Brown (Diop 75), Jensen, Radzinski (Routledge 75), Boa Morte (c); John, McBride
Subs: Lastuvka, Helguson
Sent off: Pearce
Reading (4-4-2): Hahnemann; Murty (c), Shorey, Sonko, Ingimarsson; Harper, Sidwell (Gunnarsson 33), Little (Oster 38), Hunt; Doyle, Seol (Lita 90)
Subs: Federici, Bikey
Booked: Harper, Ingimarsson, Sonko
Ref: D Gallagher (Oxfordshire)
Attendance: 22,670
The Royals held firm to take all three points from a close game at Craven Cottage this afternoon.
Kevin Doyle scored the only goal from the penalty spot after he was fouled by Ian Pearce, who was sent off for the professional foul.
Both teams had chances to score in what was an open game, and Fulham played valiantly despite having only ten men for the vast majority of the match.
The last 20 minutes of the game were incredibly open, with drama at both ends. Doyle, Seol Ki-Hyeon and John Oster could easily have made it 2-0, while Claus Jensen was Fulham's main threat but they couldn't create many true clear chances.
Reading lost both Steve Sidwell and Glen Little to injury in the first half, but were able to regroup well and earn their third away win of the season, moving up to an incredible sixth in the Premiership.
Full report
Both teams sized each other up in the opening stages, and it was Fulham who started marginally better. They had a good sight of goal when Brian McBride headed goalwards from a corner, but he couldn't keep it down. At the other end, Glen Little's dangerous cross just bounced away from the onrushing Stephen Hunt.
The game exploded into life on 16 minutes, with Seol Ki-Hyeon and Little combining to release James Harper down the wing. The midfielder looked up to find Kevin Doyle well, and he took a touch rather than shooting first time.
He was only six yards from goal, and Ian Pearce scytched him down for a penalty, with no complaints from the home side. Ref Dermot Gallagher then produced a red card, and Doyle picked himself up to send Antti Niemi the wrong way.
Reading went looking for a second, and Seol's strike unfortunately deflected off Sidwell and wide. The Royals were enjoying possession but couldn't create a clear chance.
Fulham skipper Luis Boa Morte and Liam Rosenior had what a rather heated discussion as they got to grips with going down to 10 men, but the Cottagers soon regrouped well and began to take control of possession.
The Royals then lost both Steve Sidwell and Glen Little to injury, and Fulham continued to be on top despite having a man less.
McBride had another good sight of goal just before the break, but his header was too close to Marcus Hahnemann, who got down low to save.
The last few moments of the half were rather dramatic, with first Franck Queudrue hobbling off injured, then Graeme Murty's fizzed cross causing the Cottagers problems.
Fulham then came very close to an equaliser when Collins John forced himself into a shooting position. He poked goalwards, and it seemed to run through Hahnemann's legs, but Ivar Ingimarsson was back to hack clear. The Icelander was soon booked for kicking the ball away, and half time was a welcome respite for the Royals.
The game was very open at the start of the second half, with Hahnemann saving from Claus Jensen, then John Oster prompting a good breakbut niether he or Hunt could get a shot off when well placed.
A couple of times Reading had men over in the box, but the final pass was not quite right. Sub Brynjar Gunnarsson produced a great tackle down the other end to deny Jensen a shot in the box.
Ref Gallagher then had a big call to make when Fulham claimed a penalty of their own. Tomasz Radzinski got in front of Nicky Shorey, and the defender did have a very, very slight palm on his back, but the Canadian went to ground dramatically and the official gave nothing.
Jensen was at the heart of Fulham's best play, and John headed over from his corner as rain began to teem down. Another of his set pieces then caused havoc as McBride got a shot off following a scramble.
Reading were hanging on somewhat, although Hahnemann had few actual saves to make. Shorey helped the Royals to break well, and Seol had a decent chance from his cross, but chose to check inside rather than taking the option of unleashing from 10 yards.
On 73 minutes John Oster had a good chance to seal the game, but his side-footer from a tight angle bounced into the ground and allowed Antti Niemi to save. It was a tough chance, but he had a decent sight of goal before Niemi scrambled across. From the corner, Ingimarsson header over.
Again Reading had a good opportunity when Seol headed over from Hunt's cross, and the Korean would have been disappointed not to hit the target. Then McBride unleashed an absolute piledriver from 25 yards that was only a foot wide with Hahnemann beaten.
The last few minutes of the game were incredibly open, and Doyle had a clear run at goal from a wide angle but shot straight at the keeper. Then Hunt did very well to give himself space, and his low cross was inches away from Seol and Oster.
Reading held on relatively easily in the last few moments, and they took three points from a strange game - the Royals had the best chances, but Fulham played some good stuff, especially considering they only had ten men for 75 minutes.
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