Reading 3 West Ham 0

O'Brien, Taylor and Cole dropped to the bench for this game to be replaced with Demel, Diop and Piquionne. However Demel only lasted 90 seconds and had to be replaced with O'Brien after suffering what looked to be a pulled hamstring.

The first half hour of the game was fairly even with both sides struggling to create any chances in front of goal. In the 30th minute however Nolan played a square ball to Piquionne and the striker looked set to open the scoring from just 6 yards out but Federici in goal just managed to steal the ball from his feet in the nick of time for Reading.

In the 36th minute West Ham's best chance of the match fell to Diop but his shot on goal was cleared off the line. Reading's best chance came in injury time. A cross from the left wing found Karacan unmarked just 8 yards out. However the Reading player dived underneath the ball, the ball then just missed wide right of Green's goal.


Reading started the second half on the front foot. In the 53nd minute a Harte freekick from 30 yards out only just missed wide of the left hand post. In the 57th minute Piquionne should have opened the scoring when he was put clean through but from 5 yards he tamely passed the ball back to the keeper.

In the 65th minute Reading's day was made easier when O'Brien was sent off for a foul on McAnuff (I'm not sure if it was a straight red or a second yellow as minutes before O'Brien had picked up a yellow for a pointless argument with Hunt).

Minutes after O'Brien was sent off McAnuff just breezed through the empty space on the right where O'Brien might have been and pulled the ball back to Pearce who scored from eight yards.

In the 80th minute Reading made it 2-0 when a Le Fondre cross from the right floated over Green and Church headed in from only inches out. Things got even worse for West Ham in the 84th minute when Collison raked his studs down Kebe's leg and became West Ham's second player sent off.

From the resulting freekick Church got his second of the game with another headed goal.


Some pretty poor discipline for West Ham handed this game to Reading on a plate. All in all I think this is very much an afternoon that West Ham will want to forget.