It was a lacklustre opening at the Cardiff City Stadium, with Clarke's side struggling to make an impact in the first-half.

Kenwyne Jones' bullet header put Cardiff ahead in the 25th minute and the Royals only had a couple of long-range shots to show for their efforts.

Reading were much-improved in the second-half though, and progressed to the next round of the FA Cup courtesy of Oliver Norwood and Hal Robson-Kanu.

It was what Reading deserved for a solid second-half against a poor Cardiff side, and Clarke praised his side's belief for ensuring their heads didn't drop after a below-par start.

“It says a lot about the team,” said the Reading boss. “Their spirit was good. We thought we could come here with three good passers in midfield and cause Cardiff a problem.

“It didn't quite pan out that way and the game kind of drifted in the first-half. We weren't really at the races but we had a little chat at half-time and the second-half was a bit better.

“The performance in the second-half shows we have the qualities to be a good team. All I'm asking from the players is don't lose the 45 minutes and don't wait until the opposition go ahead to respond.

“Get the first goal in the game and kick on from there. You can't always wait to go behind and hope you come back.

“I'm sure the supporters on their way home will be dreaming but we've got to just wait and see who we draw. We'll try and give the supporters a cup run that they'll enjoy.”

Reading have one of their biggest games of the season on Tuesday as they travel to Millwall in what can only be dubbed as a six-pointer.

The Royals' unbeaten run of four games came to an end last week but Clarke hopes Robson-Kanu's late winner can help regain the teams confidence.

“We were on an unbeaten run,” added Clarke. “It wasn't a run where we were winning and winning but we were unbeaten until Fulham. “Today was all about trying to get the momentum back.

“In the second-half we regained that momentum and now we try and take that into Tuesday night.”