Town boss Mick McCarthy was pleased with his side’s performance and delighted with the result as the Blues beat Reading 2-0 at Portman Road. Callum Connolly scored the opener in the third minute and Joe Garner added the second on 27.

“I’m very pleased,” McCarthy said. “Pleased with the performance, absolutely delighted with the result.”

Asked if the early goal suited his tactics against a Reading side which likes to keep hold of the ball for long spells, he responded: “I think getting the early goal helps settle a team down, it doesn’t matter who we’re playing or whatever way anybody’s playing, it helps, it gives confidence.

“Generally, not always, but generally when you win tactically you’ve done all right, to be fair, unless you’ve got a really lucky one, but I don’t think that was the case.”

Like a number of other sides Town have faced recently Reading dominated the possession stats but were unable to make their greater share of the ball tell in terms of goals.

“I get a bit tired of it, to be honest, because I think there would be a section of people who would want us to play that way,” McCarthy reflected.

“We’ve never played that way and we’ve finished sixth and seventh and we’re doing particularly well.

“That’s what they want to do, we do what we want to do and neither way of playing guarantees you winning, no style of playing guarantees you winning.

"What guarantees you results is people who play well in that and work hard and are solid and do all their jobs and do all their dirty jobs.

“I saw a team play last night, Wolves, I know they’ve got players who cost fees of £15 million, but boy they worked hard, they know how to do the dirty jobs and got a 1-0 win.

“It doesn’t really matter, we’ve had a really solid performance today, a really good performance and their centre-backs weren’t hurting us with the ball.”

Regarding on-loan Everton man Connolly, who scored his third goal in the opening seven minutes of a match and his third in the last four games, he said: “Callum’s having a great season, he’s really helped bolster that central midfield and he’s been very good.

“I said to him he’s got a goal in him because he shoots in training with either foot, he gets in the box and he’s proving my theory right.”

Town have now won seven of their 11 games at Portman Road this season and McCarthy says the mood in the squad is upbeat when on home turf.

“They’re enjoying playing, they’re enjoying training, they’ve always been the same,” he said. “But it’s a lot nicer when you’re winning, we all feel better.

“It’s a lot easier to come in on a Monday morning and get yourself into gear and get going again when you’ve won, so I think they’re all enjoying it.”

Given the goals which have been conceded in recent matches, the Blues’ backline will be pleased with the clean sheet, as is their manager.

“Forget the back four, I’m delighted with the clean sheet,” he said. “Of course they are, the strikers have scored lots of goals and they keep getting the plaudits and rightfully so because it’s the hardest thing to do.

“But that’s very often bolstered by a lot of hard work and a lot of determination from other people. It’s great for them, they’ll be pleased.”

The crowd of only 13,832 was the lowest Portman Road crowd for a home game in the league since 13,212 attended the Blues' 1-0 victory over Swindon in October 1998.

Asked his thoughts on that figure, McCarthy said: “I can’t do owt about that, can I? We’ve had seven wins at home out of 11, that’s my role in all of this.

“If they want to come and watch my team play, great. If they don’t there’s owt I can do about it.”

A number of managers are cancelling their players’ Christmas parties after disappointing results, but McCarthy wouldn’t have done similar even if his team had lost.

“They’re going out tonight,” he said. “Am I going? You’re kidding me, that’s the last place I want to be. Thirty years ago I might have been, I’d have been leading the dance 30 years ago. Not the dance but leading the troop out to the pub, that’s for sure. If they go to pubs any more, I’m not quite certain they do.”

He says his team, who are eighth, two points from the play-offs, deserve their night out: “Unless you’re having an absolute stinker and players aren’t working hard and there’s a horrible atmosphere in the place, I wouldn’t cancel it just on the back of a bad result.

“If we’d have lost today I wouldn’t have cancelled it. Those lads run about for me and they earn their Christmas night out like everybody else in every business earn it, I think.

“It’s not going to affect them on Saturday if they go and have a few beers. I’ve told them to go and have a few beers because I might have a few as well.”

Midfielder Cole Skuse was replaced at half-time having picked up a knock but McCarthy is hopeful it’s nothing to serious: “A really badly bruised foot and I hope that’s all it is.”

Reading manager Jaap Stam was disappointed to concede the early goal and that his team failed to take first-half chances, but admitted they didn’t show enough after the break.

“A fair result? That’s always difficult and you always need to be careful if you answer these questions. I don’t want to speak about fair,” he said.

“I think if you concede an easy goal that early in a game it’s difficult to get back into the game.

“After that we did very well, we created quite a few opportunities to maybe score and we should have scored, I think, because they sat back.

“Basically they gave us time to play, we played well, we came out, we were threatening going forward in the first half.

“But then again it’s important that you score and if you look at the opposition with all respect and how they play, they’re a good team, physical, with a lot of energy, quality in the team as well.

“But in the first half, going forward being a threat, they had two balls on target, very effective and two goals, the second from a corner kick, coming out from a break and getting that corner.

“And that’s basically from every team, if you go forward you need to be a threat and you need to score and then when you’re 2-0 down it’s difficult to get into the game because you know what the opposition’s going to do.

“They’re going to be sitting even more, waiting for us to lose the ball, biding their time, pressing a little bit and, of course, trying to get that third goal maybe.

“And then making the areas very small, playing very compact and, to be honest, we didn’t create enough in the second half to get into the game. I think we were twice in front of goal and could have scored in the second half and maybe could have made a better choice.

“But, to be honest, not enough to get that first and let’s not talk about that second goal. If you don’t score the first one then you don’t need to talk about getting the second one.”

He added: “If you create five or six opportunities to score in the first half and you don’t score, you’re disappointed about that.

“And if the opposition go forward twice and they score twice then it’s very good what they’ve done.”

Reading's day got little better after they departed Portman Road with a BMW driving into the back of their coach in Princes Street.

@AwayDays_ the Reading team bus stuck in Ipswich after Somone crashed in to it #itfc #royals pic.twitter.com/uprwn3tzcX

— Mark Walker (@WalkerSparks) December 16, 2017

Photo: TWTD

Razor added 10:42 - Dec 18 OK now comes the hard thing----playing Joey G and Waggy and ATTACKING and not sitting back tyring to grind out a 0-0 draw------we have the players to ATTACK now so lets do it (bit like Eddie Howes Bournemouth at Old Trafford last week). And some investment from the owner in January might help the final push----it is there if we want it.
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ChestnutSe added 13:42 - Dec 18 If you want to increase the crowd cut the prices, simple. It's not the football it's economics
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RRanger added 17:09 - Dec 18 Razor: And of course like Bournemouth at home against Liverpool this week!! Sides have to cut their cloth according to the oppo. By all accounts Reading passed themselves to death on Saturday and never looked like scoring. Since Stam took over he has insisted that Reading try and keep possession but if you don't score goals with 75% possession, something is very wrong. Leicester were deserving Premier Champions last season and they played with pace on the break and rarely had more than 30% possession. The game is apbout scoring more goals than the opposition and ideally keeping the ball out of your own net. I've been watching Town since 1972 and of course it was a joy watching the superb entertaining football we played in Sir Bobby's best years but it was a level playing field then, teams getting the bulk of their income from gate receipts. Those days will never come back as TV money has totally changede the game. back to Bournemouth v Liverpool.Bournemouth tried to play great attacking open football as is Eddie Howe's style and I admire him for it and I really hope he keeps them in the Premier League but attack is not always the best form of defence. If we don't go up or at least make the playoffs MM will go I'm sure but who will replace him, play attacking attractive football and keep us safely in the division (or even get us promoted). I don't know and ME's advisers I'm sure don't know either. Yes a new manager will probably bring some more fans back to Portman Road but they will only stay if the side is winning.

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ITFCsince73 added 20:25 - Dec 18 ChesnutSe; Its very much the football above all else. I've been lucky to have seen the Robson glory years. Good sides under the leadership of Lyall, Burley and Royle. I've stayed away since midway through the season before last. I was going to go to the Forest match but didn't because of last minute work commitments. I went to the Reading game Saturday and loved it. Roll on QPR...I'm back!!

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coolcat added 11:53 - Dec 19 Came up to the game from London as per usual. Have been to all the games this season so far both home and away. I really enjoyed the game. The team is looking a lot more settled with more players returning from injury. Shame about Huws but at least we have Bishop. Played really well against a good Reading side.
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