McDermott hails Royals' character

Reading boss Brian McDermott admitted his promotion-chasing side had to dig deep in order to pull off a 1-0 win at Brighton.

A deflected first-half free-kick from defender Ian Harte proved enough to give the Royals maximum points at The Amex as Brighton went down to their first home league defeat in nearly four months. McDermott said: "It was a night of resilience and character. Brighton are a difficult side to play against, they had a lot of the ball and we had to hang in there." Reading now boast 12 away wins - more than any other side in the Championship - and McDermott is targeting another victory on the road against leaders Southampton at St Mary's on Friday. The Royals are only behind Southampton on goal difference and McDermott added: "We have followed up a hard-fought win over Leeds with another win and all I'm thinking about now is the Southampton game. St Mary's will be the place to be on Friday, I'm sure."