Stam On Penalty Rebound Practice And Fulham Victory

What a result! A great 1-0 win with the added extra of Ali Al-Habsi saving a penalty against a good Fulham side. The victory takes us back up to third place.

Just like many times this year, a penalty has been awarded to us, and then someone steps up, penalty saved, rebound, GOAL! Roy Beerens this time scoring after John Swift's shot was stopped.

Jaap Stam was a happy man last night, and he spoke about rebound practice after the game, he told the Official Club Website:

"I don't know if it's luck anymore! Maybe Swifty told Roy... right, I'm going to hit the goalkeeper over there and then you're going to finish it off!

"It's a good thing that they are there to finish it off every time and I'm happy that we eventually scored. But it is stressful! It's a bit of a nightmare to be fair...

"It looks like the players are practicing it, scoring on the rebound. If we get a penalty, now you're thinking oh no, not again! And then it happens again! It's a lot easier if you score straight away from the penalty!"

Roy Beerens' goal meant all three points for the Royals and we move back to a good position in the third, Stam added:

"We played very well.

"We knew from the start it was going to be a difficult game. Fulham have got a great side, great players individually and as a team they play possession football very well.

"So our plan was to be straight on top of them, don't give them any space, but be comfortable in what we can do on the ball going forward as well. We were very focused and very sharp in everything we did. And with the pace we have, we were a threat going forward all the time.

"In the first half we had a couple of good chances but didn't finish them off. Second half we started well again, Fulham started playing 4-3-3 - but every time we went on the break we were a threat, we created chances and we could have scored more.

And on his side bouncing back from two defeats, he said:

"After two defeats in the league, we wanted to win. We didn't need to be dramatic about it, sometimes you lose games in a row. It happens. But no-one over here panics.

"And we did a great job, not only in the work ethic we put into the game but also in how we played as a team. I think you can say we deserved it.

"And we have to thank Ali. It was a good save, especially when you think about the chances we had to finish it off earlier in the game.

"He is a great goalie - he's been very important to us all season. And he was patient, he knew he was going to strike it like that, he blocked it and it was a great save. You need a goalie to get you the points sometimes and that's what he did tonight."

Next up, Cardiff visit the Madejski Stadium on Saturday afternoon, and another rebound goal from a penalty can be guaranteed!

URZ!