Reading FC manager Leam Richardson said his side were punished for a slow start as they fell to a 2-1 defeat against Peterborough United at the Select Car Leasing Stadium.
The visitors took the lead inside two minutes when Jimmy-Jay Morgan converted from close range. Kelvin Ehibhatiomhan levelled just after the hour, but Harry Leonard restored Peterborough’s advantage with 22 minutes remaining.
Speaking to RoyalsTV, Richardson said the opening stages proved decisive.
“My initial thoughts are that we lost the game in the first five minutes,” he said. “You can’t start matches like that, home or away. There wasn’t much in the game overall – we were ahead on most of the statistics apart from the important ones.”
Richardson praised his side’s response after the break but felt they were undone by decision-making in key moments.
“In the second half we huffed and puffed and got caught doing the wrong things for the right reasons,” he said. “We worked hard to get back into it, but they haven’t had to work hard enough to score twice against us.”
The Reading manager described the squad as “a work in progress” and said consistency would be essential if the club is to push for improvement.
“It’s a mentality thing,” he said. “People can get emotionally attached to moments in games. The honesty and effort are there, but the decisions weren’t always right for the team. We will get better collectively and individually.”
Richardson added that the team had focused throughout the week on making a fast start, but felt they did not execute the plan effectively despite creating chances.
“We had 20 shots and three big chances,” he said. “We were on top in most areas except the main one. We lost the game in the first five minutes.”
Reading travel to Bradford City on Saturday as they look to respond quickly.
“When you’ve had a challenging night, you want to put it right,” Richardson said. “What’s important now is how we recover and prepare for the next game.”
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