Reading netted in each half to progress to the fourth round of the FA Cup.
Here is every word from boss Paul Ince.
Ince on FA Cup
It’s a great trophy to be involved in. Some don’t take it as seriously as others but for the fans I think it is important to have the dream where you have the chance to go to Wembley. We need to prolong that for as long as we can. I said before the game that we have to show the trophy respect and I thought the way we set our stall out was very good. It’s great for the draw to have our fans by the TVs and radios seeing who we get in the next round.
Ince on Kelvin Abrefa goal
He claims he meant it. I said no chance. It was one of those games where we had lots of possession. We had a big chance through Lucas [Joao] and should have taken us one up. We never looked like conceding; we looked comfortable in the first half. It was the timing of Kelvin’s goal, 30 seconds before half-time. We looked comfortable in the second half. We got a bit sloppy at times. It was a great exercise in that the objective was to get to the next round and Scott Dann got 90 minutes, Naby Sarr got 90 minutes, Sam Hutchinson got 45 minutes, Kelvin played, Craigy came on and showed he was good enough to deal with the level play. It worked out very well.
Ince on Shane Long
Shane was Shane, you know what you’re going to get. He had the work rate and worked the channels. I think that’s his first goal in open play for us and a wonderful ball from McIntyre. You’re talking about Shane running away from centre-halves who have played in the Premier League, and he took off. I was going to take him off before that because he was stretching his calves and the last thing, we need is Shane getting injured. The next minute he’s speedy Gonzalez. It’s amazing how quick players can run when they’re going to score a goal. Then you’re looking for composure, and it was a fantastic finish.
Ince on squad rotation
We know where we are. It’s about bodies. Credit to Watford, they’ve got 15 injuries to top players. Some of their kids were 17 or 18. I’m not going to say I feel sorry for Watford, or any other teams, as I’ve been in that position and nobody felt sorry for me, not that I expect them to. We knew the situation and that they wouldn’t come with a strong strong squad, so we controlled that and dealt with it. It’s important to get people on the pitch, Hutch will be stronger, Femi got 65 minutes. As much as you say they’re back, they’re not really back yet as they’re still two or three weeks away.
Ince on Liam Moore
It was a disaster. I feel for the boy. He was doing everything right but yesterday we did set pieces and he went with a runner and the next minute pulls his hamstring. I’ve watched him in the last couple of months get himself back to where he was, in the gym constantly. It’s disappointing for him and for me as I’m thinking it’s like getting a new player back. He was so close.
He’s never had a hamstring injury before, so to do it on the Friday before he’s told his kids that he’s playing Saturday- it's devastating. Football is not all about winning, when you hear stories like this you feel for him. He will have a scan on Monday and he will be looking at two months. His attitude has been spot on and his character and culture, you can see the spring in his step and spark in his eye.
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