Reading 2-1 Rotherham: Andy Carroll inspires Royals comeback win

Reading halted a six-match Sky Bet Championship run without a win as they edged past relegation-threatened Rotherham 2-1 at the SCL Stadium.

Though the Royals had the better of the opening exchanges, Rotherham went in front in the 37th minute through a rare goal from veteran defender Lee Peltier.

Andy Carroll levelled with a powerful header early in the second half and substitute Tyrese Fornah nodded in a dramatic 90th-minute winner.

Reading had been in poor form since early October, managing just four league victories in 19 outings and last winning in the second tier in the 2-1 home success over Swansea on December 27.

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Rotherham had been similarly struggling, with two wins in 16 Championship games leaving them four points off the relegation zone.

However, going into the game in Berkshire they were unbeaten in four in the league - including draws in their past three matches.

Carroll sent a weak header at Millers goalkeeper Viktor Johansson and Jeff Hendrick then saw a powerful shot blocked by the visitors' massed defence in a bright start for the Royals.

As Reading kept up the pressure, a well-struck effort from skipper Andy Yiadom was deflected past Johansson but narrowly wide.

Rotherham gradually eased their way into the game, mostly through the tireless running of winger Tariqe Fosu-Henry - a former Reading academy graduate.

And as Reading's early promise faded, the Millers almost took the lead just past the half-hour mark when a Peltier volley skimmed the top of the crossbar.

But the 36-year-old right-back enjoyed better fortune eight minutes from the break, heading home superbly from a deep Conor Coventry free-kick.

It was Peltier's first goal for nine years, scored when he was playing for Leeds.

Though booed off by their fans at the interval, Reading responded positively and were level within seven minutes of the restart.

Half-time substitute Femi Azeez sent over a free-kick from the right and former England striker Carroll thundered home a header for his fifth goal of the campaign.

Rotherham were quick to recover, with Ollie Rathbone seeing a shot blocked, but they almost went behind shortly afterwards when Azeez scampered clear.

But with team-mate Tom Ince better placed, Azeez selfishly chose the wrong option - and Johansson saved well from his fiercely-struck attempt to the near post.

Rotherham battled hard to regain their lead but were undone in the last minute when Carroll headed on an Azeez corner for Fornah to nod in from close range.

The managers

Reading's Paul Ince:

"I knew that once we got the first goal our crowd would come alive and we would all start to believe again. It was a wonderful header from Andy. You could see it coming (from a Femi Azeez free-kick) and you just knew that he was going to win it. It was fantastic. Andy just frightens the life out of people.

"I'm not sure whether we deserved to win. I thought we started quite well in the first half but then, for some reason, we sort of came off it. We played into Rotherham's hands and played their game rather than playing ours. It was scrappy, it was just one of those games. At times we looked tired, we looked jaded and we couldn't get to the ball. All the things that you don't want as a manager were happening. And then we're suddenly 1-0 down, when no one really deserved to be winning the game. We needed to get more up the park in the second half and that's what we did. It put the pressure on Rotherham and I knew that they would get tired."

Rotherham's Matt Taylor:

"That was tough to take. But football is a simple game to evaluate and we shouldn't have given away those set-pieces that led to the goals. They were preventable. Carroll is obviously a focal point for Reading, a real handful, but I can't hide my frustration at our inability to defend at those moments. We had to defend those balls into the box better than we did, there was a mismatch in terms of physicality in there.

"I felt that we were the better team, we played the better football and created the better chances. But I'm sat here now with a 2-1 scoreline against us. Yes, we've been on a pretty good run, but we need to pick up more points. A good run, a good performance tonight, but no points. It's all about the points and that's why it's so frustrating. We planned, we prepped, but our execution in these moments was what cost us tonight."

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