JAAP Stam confessed the manner in which Reading FC shipped two goals at Ipswich Town was the most disappointing factor in their 2-2 draw.

Mick McCarthy's Tractor Boys led twice at Portman Road on Saturday thanks to a Tom Lawrence double either side of the interval.

But Royals snatched a point thanks to a debut goal from Jordon Mutch and a rare Jordan Obita striker 12 minutes from time to extend their unbeaten run to four matches.

However, Stam was far from satisfied with his team's display.

“They did well and they worked hard for a point, but but my main frustration is how we conceded the goals,” said the Dutchman.

"They scored both times from us losing the ball. The first was when we were on the attack and we lost it on the edge of their box. They broke very well and scored a great goal, but it was our mistake that cost us.

"And the second goal that we conceded, we lost it again on the right side, trying to play that ball into the striker under pressure.

“We were left open at the back so when they won the ball they passed it straight through the middle and their striker scored the second.

"We had more of the ball, but by making two mistakes you concede two goals and we had to equalise twice, which is not easy against a side like Ipswich.

“But we still did it, and I think it's an important point for us.”


Stam says he expected nothing less that a thorough test against Ipswich based on the narrow 2-1 home win back in September.

"We knew it was going to be a tough game," he stated. “We knew how they liked to play from the first game at home, the effort that they put in, they are aggressive going forward and get into battles all over the pitch.

"They also knew how we wanted to play with possession, so they didn't want to let us play.

“There was a lot of physicality, a lot of battles in the midfield and that made it difficult for us.

"We tried to play, but we couldn't always do what we wanted to. We didn't deserve anything more, it was a fair result for both teams.”


Despite the draw – the first time Reading had dropped points in four games – Stam's men remain third in the Championship table and five points behind Brighton in second.

They are also in a strong position to clinch a play-off spot at the very least and boast a 10-point cushion over Norwich City in seventh.

Royals now head into a critical period with back-to-back home games against ninth-placed Barnsley this Saturday (3pm ko) and Brentford next Tuesday (8pm ko) followed by a trip to fourth-placed Huddersfield Town a week later.

Stam is likely to be without Paul McShane for a least a couple of weeks after a recent scan reveal the Reading skipper had suffered a slight calf tear.

Tiago Ilori, Joey van den Berg and Stephen Quinn are also injured at present, though Dennis Rakels is close to full fitness after recovering from a broken ankle.

Stam stated: "It's going to be a hard run towards the end of the season, hard to stay up there.

“Everyone wants to end up in the top six and if there is a possibility, we want to do that as well. So we'll see how it goes."