Reading FC beat MK Dons to secure place in Berks and Bucks final

A first half strike from Mamadi Camara was supplemented by second half strikes from Kian Leavy, Rashawn Scott and Jahmari Clarke to put the seal on a truly dominant display by the hosts.

Reading started the fastest and had the first effort within five minutes when Claudio Osorio cut the ball back for the oncoming Kelvin Ehibhatomhan, but his shot was blocked at close range and deflected from the corner. It really should have been 1-0 just moments later and high Royal pressing wins the ball back on the edge of the MK Dons area, only for Ehibhatomhan’s shot to deflect wide for a corner. From the resulting set piece Reading made the breakthrough, with an Osorio corner falling to the edge of the box and an onrushing Camara fired the ball high into the net past Ronnie Sandford in the Dons net. Osorio had the next effort himself, receiving the ball on the right and cutting in, but his shot fired past the far post.

Five minutes of Reading possession and they almost scored the perfect goal with possession from Jokull Andresson in goal, out wide to Rashawn Scott, who switched the ball and it fell to Osorio, who’s strike goes across goal and is eventually cleared. Again, Ehibhatomhan starts the next attack when he anticipates a short back pass and nips in to steal possession on the edge of the Dons box. Holding it up for the racing Scott, the former Chelsea players shot is smothered away to safety.

On the half hour mark the Buckinghamshire side had their only shot on target in the opening period when John Freeman curls a delightful free kick on goal. It was nestling into the back of the net were it not for Andresson flying across his line to palm it to safety.

Midfielder Kian Leavy had the next chance when Kelvin Abrefah cuts a ball to the edge of the six-yard box, but Leavy can only turn it over the bar while on the move. With just five minutes to the break, it really should have been two when Osorio cut in from the left and fired a shot onto the crossbar, rebounding to safety.

After surrendering a lead on the weekend, Reading supporters could be forgiven for fearing the worst, but they need not worry as the Royals were rampant in the second period. It took just 10 minutes for the second goal as Camara won the ball high in the MK Dons box before cutting it back for Leavy to fire into the opposite top corner.

Just five minutes later, Scott got himself on the scoresheet in truly magnificent fashion, intercepting a lose pass, beating three defenders and curling an unstoppable strike into the far top corner, even clipping the post as it went in.

The score was beginning the match the level of performance, but it was not over yet, with over half hour still to play. Clarke, who has scored twice for the first team this season, came on as a substitute and made his mark when Leavy threaded the ball into his path, leaving the striker with the chance to roll the ball past a helpless goalkeeper to keep the hands of the fans in attendance warm.

Despite being comfortably clear, full credit goes to the side and coaching staff as the young Royals did not stop pressing for the 90. Chances came, with Giscombe almost scoring after a dazzling run and Camara nearly adding a second, but the referee blew and the outclassed MK Dons escaped with just the four against.

The final, against Ascot United, is set to be played at Slough Town's Arbour Park on Saturday, May 7- unfortunately for many Reading fans, the same day as the first team travel to Kenilworth Road for the final Championship fixture of the 2021-22 season.

However, with a small away allocation and hopefully our Championship fate sealed, a large contingent will still travel to support the youngsters in their quest for a first Berks and Bucks Senior Cup victory since 1995.