It was a short trip up the M4 for the first game of the New Year and it was a huge one for both sides. A win for us would have put us right into the automatic promotion shake up whilst Reading had the chance to go joint top. Almost 5,000 QPR fans made the trip to the impressive Madejski stadium to cheer on the team in the battle of the hoops.

Rangers were without three key players for this game with Danny Shittu, Danny Murphy and Doudou all suspended. Paul Bruce replaced Murphy at left back and Marcus Bignot came into midfield. The big news though was the appearance of Richard Langley among the substitutes, which brought a huge cheer from the QPR end of the ground.

As the game kicked off it was clear that Reading saw this as a huge game and piled on the pressure early on. We had a good chance for an early goal though when Matthew Rose was in space on the edge of the area but the keeper saved his shot. Reading then took control of the game and pushed us back to defend.

A number of corners caused some worries but we defended well as Reading threw everything at us. Nicky Forster went closest for the home side when he ran through the defence and went round Fraser Digby but his shot, which was heading for the top corner was brilliantly headed off the line by Terrell Forbes.

Rougier was looking good for the home side and caused us several problems and Reading had several half chances, which went wide, or over but Digby didn't have many shots on target to deal with.

The first 20minutes belonged to Reading as they looked by far the better side but we eventually settled down and began playing some good stuff. During this period Matthew Rose suffered a heavy knock on his ankle and was replaced by Alex Bonnot in midfield.

Kevin Gallen showed why he is so highly rated among some supporters when he held the ball up outside the box and held off several challenges on a great run to shoot at the keeper. Gallen was impressing up front and another strong run should have given us the lead as his shot across the goal was turned in by Andy Thomson but the goal was ruled out despite television evidence showing it to be a fair goal.

Both linesmen were very poor throughout the game as the ref made sure he gave the majority of decisions to the home side. It's no use moaning about refs though as virtually every game this season has seen some unbelievable decisions both for and against us and the standard at this level just seems to get worse as the season goes on.

Reading ended the half stronger but again they didn't create to many clear cut chances and at half time it was probably a fair result to be level. The second half was much better from us though as we started the half attacking with a lot more purpose. This time it was us in the final third of the pitch with corners and throw ins but not too many chances.

Reading looked very fragile at the back though and we got into several good positions only for poor final balls to be cut out before Gallen and Thomson could get in.

Several offisides were given against Thomson whose intelligent late runs into onside positions are wasted on officials in this division. If Michael Owen played at this level he'd see most of his goals ruled out for tight offsides as linemen at this level seem to forget that tight decisions are supposed to go in favour of the attackers. It works both ways though as Reading had a few counter attacks ruled out to dodgy offsides.

Our best chance fell to Karl Connolly after a corner was half cleared and his shot cannoned off the bar and the rebound missed the on rushing Gallen by inches.

It was looking good as we continued the pressure before we got caught on the counter attack. Rougier did well again and beat Ben Askar easily on the left, Askar swung wildly at Rougier but missed and the forward had time to cross for Andy Hughes to tuck his chance away at the near post.

The Reading fans were jubilant but at the QPR end we put the disappointment to one side and got behind the team again. We were given a quick boost though when Paul Bruce was taken off and on came Richard Langley almost twelve months after his cruitate knee ligament injury.

Langley was given a standing ovation by the home crowd and played wide on the right away from his normal position but he soon settled into the role showing all the class that makes him so popular with the fans and scouts of Premiership clubs. Reading had several chances to kill the game off but some woeful finishing kept us in the game and we finished the stronger side with lots of possession but we missed the creativity of Doudou in the final third of the pitch.

Ian Holloway then made another change with time running out as Carl Leaburn came on for Karl Connolly and Langley moved onto the left.

Langley was involved in a frightening moment as he held off two tackles and used his skill to cut inside before being hacked down with a wild tackle on the same knee, which has kept him out for so long. Reading Phil Parkinson should hang his head in shame for such a disgusting and needless tackle, which could have put Richard out for a few more months.

Langley was down in agony clutching his knee but after some work by the physio he got up and finished the game looking fine at the final whistle.

We continued to throw everything at Reading but they held on for the three points and celebrated as if they had won the FA Cup at the end. Their celebrations just go to show how much of a threat we are to the clubs near the top and the team can take heart from this and get onto a good run in the second half of the season.

The players were given a standing ovation off the pitch, we can play a lot better than this but the commitment is there for all to see and as long as every players giving their best the fans will acknowledge them and that was the case again this afternoon.

Man of the Match: Kevin Gallen

Players Ratings

30. Fraser Digby: His kicking is awful at times and tends to put us in trouble but he is an excellent shot stopper and is proving to be a good signing. 7/10

17. Terrell Forbes: He kept Salako quiet and was very strong throughout the game, he missed Doudou going forward though and his crossing is still not good enough. 7/10

3. Paul Bruce: Always looking for the long ball when a short pass is on but the players seemed to recognise this and rarely gave him the ball. He did a decent job though and can be pleased with his overall performance. 6/10

4. Steve Palmer: Very slow at times which gets him caught out at the back but he is an excellent defender and had his usual game today. 7/10

28. Aziz Ben Askar: At fault for the goal and not at his best today as he allowed the ball to bounce rather than attack the ball which put us under pressure at times in the first half. 6/10

11. Marcus Bignot: Always tries his best but doesn't have the guile to play on the right wing and our attacking options on that side were virtually none before Langley came on. He did a good job at left back though in the last 20 minutes. 6/10

12. Matthew Rose: He continued his recent improvement early on before getting injured. Hopefully he won't be out for to long. 7/10

8. Gavin Peacock: Always wanted the ball and kept things simple. As the years have caught up with him he doesn't get forward as often as he used to but he is offering more to the team now with his work rate and vision. It's only a matter of time before a first division club signs him up in my opinion. 7/10

10. Karl Connolly: Was involved throughout and is excellent at times with the ball at this feet but his crossing is awful and he is far to slow at times as he waits for the ball rather than making something happen. 6/10

27. Andy Thomson: Intelligent running throughout but we didn't create enough chances foe him. One chance and one goal was all he was given but that was ruled out for offside. 7/10

18. Kevin Gallen: Not his best game for us but his hard work up front and his vision to being others into the game is outstanding at times. He was unlucky not to score and his fitness seems to be improving with every game. 8/10

Subs

26. Alex Bonnot: Linked well with Peacock in midfield but still gives the ball away in dangerous areas and someone please give him some shooting practice. 6/10

9. Richard Langley: Fantastic to see him back and that late tackle on him disgusted the QPR supporters and gave us all a fright. He doesn't look fully fit yet but that will come with more matches and he showed he has lost none of his ability in his long lay off. 8/10

34. Carl Leaburn: Not really involved much as he was only on for the last few minutes of the game. 6/10