Kenton's blunder lifts Reading into third spot

Norwich City 0 Reading 1

It is, as Norwich City's manager Nigel Worthington quietly remarked after this jolting defeat, a cruel game. And no one will have felt that more keenly on the night than Darren Kenton.

The Norwich defender's hapless own goal 17 minutes from time, when he turned in a cross from Nathan Tyson, lifted Reading to third place in the First Division and left the home side seven points adrift of the play-off places after a third consecutive defeat.

The only faint consolation for the green and yellow followers who made their way home on a miserable drizzly evening was the news that Ipswich, who inflicted a demoralising home defeat on Norwich in the derby match at Carrow Road on Sunday, had restricted the team currently filling sixth place, Wolves, to a draw. That said, the neighbours are now too close for comfort, level with Norwich on points and a difference of just one goal behind.

For Reading, who had seen their five-match winning run come to grief at Wimbledon last weekend, this was a reaffirmation that they have the strength and quality to challenge for a Premiership place as they climbed to third in the table. Their manager, Alan Pardew, was elated after a performance that was only marred by the first-half exit of their captain and centre-half, Adrian Williams, with a knee injury.

"We were fantastic tonight,'' Pardew said. "I thought we controlled the game, although I did think for a while it was going to be one of those nights when we were not going to take our chances. But in the end they did it for us.''

Kenton, indeed, might have doubled his negative impact on the game eight minutes after his opening effort when he sliced a clearance perilously over his own bar.

While Norwich struggled to regroup, Reading simply need to keep this impetus going. Asked if he felt his side were now certain of a play-off place, given that they are now 12 points clear of the side in seventh place – Norwich – Pardew replied: "We are not safe yet but we have got ourselves into a fantastic position.''

Although Norwich began brightly, they soon had to give best to a side which restricted them to just one real chance in this match. That came seven minutes into the second half when a cross by Phil Mulryne offered Steen Nedergaard a clear header which he directed tamely into the goalkeeper's arms. For Norwich, it summed up a night of unremitting frustration.

Norwich City (4-4-2): Green; Nedergaard, Kenton, Mackay, Drury; Rivers, Mulryne, Holt, Easton (Russell, 82); Abbey, McVeigh (Nielsen, 75). Substitutes not used: Crichton (gk), Roberts, Bromby.

Reading (4-4-1-1): Hahnemann; Murty, Mackie, Williams (Viveash, 37), Shorey; Chadwick, Sidwell, Harper, Tyson (Salako, 78); Hughes; Forster (Henderson, 90). Substitutes not used: Ashdown (gk), Watson.

Referee: S Baines (Derbyshire).