McDermott: Roberts’ presence gave everyone a lift

Reading boss Brian McDermott was full of praise for new signing Jason Roberts for his man-of-the-match performance against Bristol City yesterday, scoring the only goal of the game on his debut at the Madejski Stadium.

The 34-year old signed an 18 month deal on Thursday for an undisclosed fee from Blackburn Rovers. Roberts went straight into the team and made an immediate impact, by showing great power, pace and hold up play.

McDermott told the official RFC site: ‘It’s not just a goal on his debut, it’s a goal that won us the game. He gave us a lift when he came in on Friday, he’s a good guy, I’ve known him a long time. He got the first penalty and played a one-two off David James! He still had to finish it, he was there to score.’

‘I’m delighted because it was a tough game and it’s a very valuable three points. A lot has gone on this week so it was an important result and that’s eight wins in eleven games for us now. We didn’t create enough last week, but we did today. We had lots in the first half.’

The win moved the Royals into fourth place, but the rest of teams around do have a game in hand to change that. As far as transfers go, McDermott has stated that there is a possibility he could bring more names in, with a defender high on his wish list.