Darren Bazeley fired home the decisive spot-kick to give Walsall a 4-1 penalty shoot-out victory in their FA Cup third-round replay at Reading.
In a lively match the sides finished 1-1 after extra-time, with an early goal
from Darren Wrack cancelled out by an own goal from Saddlers defender Zigor
Aranalde.
Both sides started brightly with a home tie against another First Division
side Wimbledon waiting in the fourth round.
The Royals pushed forward at every available opportunity, but it was the
visitors who took the lead with the game's first clear chance.
Lively midfielder Wrack took advantage of some hesitant goalkeeping by Marcus
Hahnemann to head home Bazeley's cross from the right in the seventh minute.
Two minutes later Aranalde almost doubled his side's lead when he drilled a
left-foot shot wide from close range.
Portuguese ace Jorge Leitao almost doubled the midlanders' lead when he curled
just wide from 18 yards with Hahnemann well beaten on 19 minutes.
Newman and fellow midfielder Sammy Igoe pushed forward trying to support the
Reading attack, and it was Newman who was at the heart of their fortuitous
equaliser.
Walsall defender Bazeley fouled Nicky Forster some 30 yards from goal, and
Newman's inswinging free-kick was diverted into his own goal by Aranalde.
That gave the hosts a lift, and Forster should have put Reading ahead when he
just failed to connect with Martin Butler's cross, and then moments later fired
inches wide from the edge of the area.
Reading came out of the blocks quicker after the restart, with Forster hitting
a powerful right-foot which Saddlers goalkeeper James Walker did well to hold.
Forster tested Walker again on 55, but the Walsall stopper brilliantly pushed
the forward's stinging 20-yard drive away to safety.
Walker also had to be alert late on to force the extra period.
First, Forster saw a powerful 18 yard shot well held, and then his clever
six-yard volley from Butler's cross was well blocked.
Butler himself was then denied by the goalkeeper, who bravely saved at the
forward's feet on 74 before again denying Forster from six yards less than a
minute later.
There were few chances in extra-time, with Reading's James Harper and David
Zdrilic for Walsall - who lost defender Ian Roper with a knee injury during the
extra period - testing either goalkeeper from long range.
But the match went to penalties, and Walsall had the early advantage when
Aranalde scored and Martin Butler fired wide.
Zdrilic then scored for the Saddlers, before Jamie Cureton put the Royals on
the board.
But when Harper missed Reading's third kick after Fitzroy Simpson scored, it
was left to Bazeley to fire Walsall into the next round.
Teams:
Reading: Hahnemann, Murty, Mackie, Brown, Shorey, Igoe, Harper,
Newman (Hughes 75), Tyson (Salako 75), Butler,
Forster (Cureton 95).
Subs Not Used: Viveash, Henderson.
Booked: Mackie, Brown, Harper.
Goals: Aranalde 32 og.
Walsall: Walker, Bazeley, Hay, Roper, Aranalde, Wrack, Carbon,
O'Connor (Corica 45), Sonner (Simpson 41), Leitao,
Junior (Zdrilic 90).
Subs Not Used: Ward, Matias.
Booked: Bazeley, Carbon, Roper, Junior, Wrack, Hay.
Goals: Wrack 7.
Walsall won 4-1 on penalties
Att: 8,767
Ref: K Hill (Hertfordshire).
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