Wycombe Wanderers 1-1 Reading: Player ratings

Joel Pereira: Six.
Actually, there wasn’t much of a need for shot-stopping, which was surprising given that Reading was playing away at the league leaders.

He was almost caught off guard in the first half by a bouncing ball that threatened to go over him and into the net, but he recovered just in time. However, it was not quick enough to prevent me from experiencing slight fear.

He wasn’t to blame for the opener – he needed more help from his defenders – but he made a great stop to deny Garath McCleary late on, flinging himself to his left.

Michael Craig: Six.
Craig had a usually tenacious afternoon, but I thought he looked stronger offensively after the interval, when he pushed forward nicely in support of Campbell. However, he should have done better for the opener, as Beryly Lubala beat him to the low cross, leaving the Wycombe Wanderers forward with a perfect opportunity from close range.

Amadou Mbengue: 7.
No issues defensively, but he had a bit of an erratic afternoon with his distribution, having mixed success with long deliveries into the heavy breeze. Perhaps greater composure would have been prudent there, albeit one such pass fortunately made its way through to Smith in the buildup to Reading’s equaliser.

Tyler Bindon: Eight.
In the background, everything is calm, collected, and polished. Bindon withstood Wycombe’s second-half onslaught and nearly prevented a goal when he impressively recovered to snuff out Daniel Udoh’s chance after he had rounded Pereira. In the second half, he had one headed chance that did not concern Wycombe’s goal.

Jeriel Dorsett: Five.
Didn’t contribute as much going forward as Craig did on the opposite side, and needed to improve for the opening goal. Dorsett was caught in the centre, giving Jack Grimmer much too much time and space to pick his cross. He improved defensively later in the game, but those lapses were punished.

Ben Elliott: Seven.
Probably Reading’s most inventive player of the day. Elliott was exquisite with the ball at his feet and moved it forwards effectively, contributing to some of our best spells in both halves. He just weaves everything together so well.

Lewis Wing: Six.
He was tidy in possession but had a rather quiet afternoon, which isn’t necessarily a negative thing in a tough defensive game. Wing had a couple of long-range attempts – a first-half shot that resulted in a corner and a second-half free-kick that lacked the power to beat the ‘keeper – but couldn’t replicate his heroics from Tuesday night.

Charlie Savage: Six.
Hardworking and busy in midfield, he didn’t make much of an impact moving forward, with his only notable action being a long-range shot in the first half that didn’t challenge the goalkeeper. Knibbs took over the left-sided central midfield role after Camara was substituted in the second half.

Chem Campbell: 5.
I worked on the right side all afternoon but didn’t have much success. He only had one first-half shot from inside the area, which resulted in a corner kick.

Sam Smith: Five.
Led the line pretty well but wasn’t very involved as a goal threat, with Reading unable to create many quality opportunities for him.

Although Knibbs saved Smith’s blushes by tucking away the rebound for the equaliser, he could have done better with the one-on-one opportunity; on another day, that’s a major miss.

Harvey Knibbs: Six.
Overall, a rather peaceful afternoon for someone who is playing out of position and, as he stated after the game, is still recovering from a slight injury. However, Knibbs delivered when Reading needed it, seizing the loose ball after Smith’s attempt was saved and putting it away.

Subs: Mamadi Camara: 5
I had roughly 12 minutes of ordinary time on the pitch, plus five extra minutes, and had no impact on the game. It was tidy enough, but he would have preferred to have made a stronger attacking impression.

Bonus ratings.
Noel Hunt: Nine.
A strong return to the Reading bench, earning a point in his first game back in charge when Reading was anticipated to lose.

I was anxious before the game that Reading might appear shell-shocked as a result of everything that had happened this week, but Hunt certainly invigorated his players enough to prevent that from happening. That is the sign of a class management, not merely a coach or strategist.

I’ll have to dock him a point for Reading drawing instead of winning, but that’s as harsh as I’ll get. Good start, Noel; more of the same please!

Mikel Leigertwood: 10
It was a nice surprise to see him on Reading’s coaching staff today. I was just glad he was there; you can never have too many 2011/12 title winners. His presence just added to the positive vibes, so perhaps he’ll remain in Hunt’s setup.

Weather: 3.
Storm Darragh has brought us cold, rainy, awful, dreary, drizzling, and downright nasty weather today. The only redeeming graces were that it could have been colder (as Cambridge United fans will attest) that the weather wasn’t terrible enough to cancel the game. Still, I couldn’t wait to get back inside after the game.

The amount of time it takes to get away from Adams Park after the game (and yes, I’m still irritated about it a few hours later): 1
It takes awhile to get out of a confined away end that appears to have just one small exit.
Adams Park is located at the end of a single-carriage road, which is expected to handle a large number of pedestrians, cars, and buses. Additionally, the roads closer to the town center become congested. While Adams Park is not the worst away ground, it is logistically challenging.