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  • Kick-off: 15:00
  • Venue: Ninian Park
  • Attendance: 14821
  • Referee: Mathieson, S

Live Commentary

90mins

The ref has blown his whistle for full time.

90mins

The referee has booked Glen Little.

88mins

The referee has booked Martin Keown.

79mins

Cardiff are replacing Cameron Jerome with Alan Lee.

51mins

Reading are replacing Paul Brooker with Glen Little.

46mins

The second half is under way with the score currently at 2 v 0.

46mins

Ricky Newman is replaced by Les Ferdinand.

45mins

Half time whistle is blown by S Mathieson

30mins

Goal!! Cameron Jerome scores for Cardiff.

28mins

Tony Vidmar is replaced by Darren Williams.

16mins

Steven Sidwell goes into the referees book for unsporting behaviour.

12mins

Goal!! Peter Thorne scores for Cardiff.

0mins

The ref has blown his whistle and the match has started.

Match Report

Cardiff City took a major step towards Championship survival with a crucial 2-0 victory over play-off chasing Reading.

Peter Thorne and Cameron Jerome grabbed the goals, both in the first half, to send the Bluebirds three points clear of the drop with two games remaining.

The defeat means that the Royals' Premiership dreams are again in the balance as they dropped out of the play-off places behind West Ham.

But Cardiff will not care one bit as they leaped to 17th place - their highest position in the Championship since August.

Both of City's goals came courtesy of the dead ball precision of Neal Ardley whose delivery was matched by the deadly finishing of Thorne and Jerome.

The 32-year-old has already tasted the bitterness of relegation with Wimbledon from the Premiership in 2000 and set about crafting a victory that would see Cardiff survive their relegation battle.

Ardley's pinpoint free-kick from the right hand side drifted over the Reading defence to find Thorne unmarked on the edge of the box.

City's top marksman needed no second invitation to pick his spot and smashed in his 12th goal of the season beyond the helpless Marcus Hahnemann after only 12 minutes.

The goal settled home nerves but only served to unsettle the Reading defence despite the presence of 43-times capped ex-England defender Martin Keown.

Thorne came close to grabbing his second only to see his looping shot cleared off the line by Nicky Shorey after half an hour.

Ardley's subsequent corner caused all sorts of problems in the Reading box. Keown managed to block an effort from James Collins only for the ball to fall invitingly to Jerome who drove the ball between Hahnemann's legs for the Bluebirds' second.

Thorne almost extended that lead twice early in the second half as Cardiff took control. The in-form striker glanced a header from Ardley's cross over the bar before smashing a right-foot drive onto the post minutes later.

Half-time replacement Les Ferdinand came closest to breaking Reading's duck when he hit the bar late on but it was too little to stop Cardiff giving their survival hopes a massive boost.

Cardiff City Team

Reading Team

Cardiff City

Reading

Corners

61

Fouls

1413

Goal attempts

137

Shots off target

74

Offsides

22

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