Salako adds lustre to Royals' regal procession

Brighton & Hove Albion 0 Reading 1

Never mind events down under, England does finally have a defence she can be proud of. The only problem is that this is football and not cricket. But at least there is one team who knows how to shut things out right now.

Reading have now completed 10 hours of football without conceding a goal and in the process yesterday notched up a sixth successive victory. Maybe Nasser Hussain should take note of the Royals' ability to organise, stand firm and stay fit. It is these three factors, plus the ability to seize their moment in attack, that now sees them in fifth place and rising.

The crucial goal came midway through the first half when John Salako fired his shot home to give Reading their fifth 1-0 victory out of the last six games.

Brighton knew the size of the task in their quest for three points to avoid the relegation zone, but the Seagulls' back line is not quite so solid. That was proved when Salako thumped home his first-time shot from 20 yards following Nicky Forster's pass across the top of the penalty box. Salako had served Crystal Palace while Steve Coppell was manager there in the 1990s; now the midfielder was scoring against Coppell's team.

Yet by the time Salako struck, Brighton should have already taken the lead. The home side made several promising raids down Reading's right-hand flank and one after 11 minutes saw Bobby Zamora meet a cross from Nathan Jones, but the goal-bound shot deflected wide. Six minutes later Zamora should have turned goal provider, but having made good ground he failed to spot Steve Sidwell in a prime position six yards out. Having failed to take either of those chances it was the Berkshire club's turn to show what was needed in front of goal.

Reading's tactics of holding onto their lead were simple enough but unadventurous. Their manager Alan Pardew prefers, especially in away games, to flood his midfield with five men and leave a single striker to operate up front. This worked perfectly against the Seagulls, although it enabled the home side to pile on the pressure and Reading were forced to defend in numbers. Yet a good example of why Reading have such a good defensive record came with one hour played when the Brighton substitute Paul Brooker made a darting run into the box only to be thwarted by a low save from goalkeeper Marcus Hahnemann.

Pardew, once a central defender himself, took great pride from his team's performance on the road this season: "This match showed another side to our game – character and resilience.''

His counterpart Coppell acknowledged Reading's current run, saying: "They are a good side and they are not on this form by accident.''

Brighton & Hove Albion 0 Reading 1
Salako 22

Half-time: 0-1 Attendance: 6,817