Spurs 0
Reading 1 (Lita 29)

The Royals reserves gained a deserved 1-0 victory against Tottenham in a scrappy Barclays Premier Reserve League game at Leyton Orient on Monday night.

Leroy Lita was the matchwinner with a well taken goal in the first half, finding space at the near post to guide Hal Robson Kanu's low cross into the net.

It was a stop-start game with few clearcut chances, but the Royals dominated the majority of possession and were good value for the three points.

Reading fielded an experienced side containing full internationals Ulises De La Cruz, Andre Bikey, Emerse Fae, John Oster and Shane Long, as well as Kalifa Cisse, Liam Rosenior and Lita.

Spurs: Alnwick, Hughton, Martin, Archibald-Henville (Riley 34), Mills, Huddlestone, Prince Boateng, Routledge, Rose, Taarabt (Olsen 79), Dawkins
Subs: Forecast, Obika, Olsen, Hutton
Booked: Huddlestone, Boateng

Reading: Federici, Rosenior, De La Cruz, Brown, Bikey, Cisse, Fae, Oster, Robson-Kanu, Lita, Long
Subs: Hamer, Kelly, Webb, Bozanic, Sigurdsson
Booked: Bikey, Cisse

Full report
The Royals had the game's first attack in the opening minute when Kalifa Cisse broke from midfield to exchange passes with John Oster and break into the area, but the midfielder's touch was too heavy and the ball ran through to Spurs keeper Ben Alnwick.

Adel Taarabt had Spurs' first shot in the fifth minute, cutting in from the left wing to shoot right footed from the edge of the box, but Adam Federici was safely behind it.

Shane Long worryingly pulled up with a mysterious injury after ten minutes, but after treatment he was able to continue.

Hal Robson Kanu's very speculative and wayward long range effort was the only notable action of the next few minutes in a quiet opening to the game.

On 19 minutes Andre Bikey's pinpoint crossfield pass set Reading away down the right, and Liam Rosenior's cross nearly dropped for Cisse inside the box but the angle narrowed and Alnwick forced a corner.

The scoring was opened with an excellent goal on 29 minutes. Bikey found Hal Robson-Kanu on the left, and his precise low centre was arrowed into the left corner by Leroy Lita.

Lita nearly had a second immediately after the restart when he ran onto Emerse Fae's throughball and fired a low shot across goal, but it flew inches wide of the left hand post.

Bikey then let rip with an ambitious 40-yard free kick which managed to find the roof of the stand behind the goal, as Spurs were forced into a change with Troy Archibald-Henville going off injured.

A disappointing first half petered to a close with no further clear goalscoring chances at either end.

Second half
The start of the second half was equally quiet in terms of goalscoring opportunities, but the Royals were dominating possession and always looked the more dangerous side.

Adam Federici was called into action on 55 minutes, making a comfortable save from Simon Dawkins' weakly hit shot on the turn from a Daniel Rose cross.

Five minutes later Long crossed from the left for Oster to volley narrowly wide of the right hand upright, and then a pacy Long burst down the right led to a dangerous low cross that Spurs scrambled away.

After 62 minutes Emerse Fae made one of many bursts from midfield to find Long, who in turn fed Robson-Kanu to cut inside dangerously from the right wing but roll his shot wide of the right post.

Midway through the period Tom Huddlestone tested Federici with a well-struck long range free kick, but the Aussie stopper dived well to his right to make the save.

On 78 minutes Spurs had a great chance to level when Kevin Prince Boateng's pass beat the offside trap to send Rose through, and when Federici slipped a goal seemed certain, but the winger overran the ball and it drifted wide.

Oster came reasonably close with a half chance after 86 minutes, jinking into the box from the left wing and curling a shot too high, and the winger then clipped a 25-yard free kick into Alnwick's arms before time ran out.