English League Championship:MICK McCARTHY'S contention that his team's Premier League credentials cannot be accurately assessed before Christmas now carry more weight after Wolves's seven-match undefeated run was brought firmly to an end by a side regarded by many as their strongest rivals for promotion.
The only change he made to the side which beat Bristol City on Saturday was to bring back the highly-rated young goalkeeper Wayne Hennessey, so it was doubly unfortunate that the Welshman should be at fault when Wolves went behind after only four minutes.
Having allowed himself to be crowded into immobility on his own goal-line, his attempt to punch away Stephen Hunt's inswinging corner resulted only in the ball dribbling over the line.
It might have been two soon afterwards, when Karl Henry appeared to handle as he cleared another corner. The referee waved the appeal away but having made a habit of coming out of the blocks quickly this season, Wolves were looking lethargic.
David Jones curled a long-range effort wide, but Reading had done their homework and McCarthy must have been disconcerted to see how the closing down of his wingers, Michael Kightly and Matt Jarvis, left his side lacking ideas.
Their best chance of the half came from a break; having almost gone two down when Kevin Foley had to clear Noel Hunt's header off the line, the resulting counter-attack saw Andy Keogh run clear only for Marcus Hahnemann to save well to his left.
Reading continued to thwart Wolves after the interval and looked certain to kill the game off shortly before the hour, but in a remarkable scramble first Kevin Doyle and then Jimmy Kebe hit the post before Hennessey used his legs to bring off a point-blank save against Ivar Ingimarsson.
Even that miraculous escape did not inspire any belief and it took the latest of tackles from Stephen Ward on the six-yard line to stop Kebe in the act of shooting.
A goal was coming, and it was supplied by Andre Bikey, who rose to head Kebe's right-wing cross past Hennessey. Things went from bad to worse for Wolves when Jarvis was carried off on a stretcher after pulling a hamstring and the match ended as badly as it had begun for them, with Reading's ascendancy confirmed by the substitute Kalifa Cisse.
WOLVES:Hennessey, Foley, Stearman, Collins, David Jones, Kightly (Vokes 40), Henry, Jarvis (Edwards 77), Stephen Ward (Shackell 77), Ebanks-Blake, Keogh. Subs not used: Ikeme, Gray. Booked: Stearman.
READING:Hahnemann, Rosenior, Ingimarsson, Bikey, Armstrong, Kebe, Gunnarsson, Karacan (Cisse 84), Stephen Hunt, Doyle (Henry 90), Noel Hunt (Long 84). Subs not used: Andersen, Kelly.
Referee:Rob Shoebridge (Derbyshire).
Guardian Service
