“EMBARRASSING.” Kevin Horlock summed up Ipswich Town performance in one word after a 2-0 defeat at Reading.The Blues midfielder was one of a few who came out with any credibility after Town's dismal showing on live television at the Madejski Stadium and knows they will have to play better against Coventry City at home tomorrow.

By Derek Davis

“EMBARRASSING.” Kevin Horlock summed up Ipswich Town performance in one word after a 2-0 defeat at Reading.

The Blues midfielder was one of a few who came out with any credibility after Town's dismal showing on live television at the Madejski Stadium and knows they will have to play better against Coventry City at home tomorrow.

A Richard Naylor own goal and a Kevin Doyle header saw Ipswich slip outside the top 10 while Reading hang on to leaders Sheffield United.

Horlock admitted the players feel they let everyone down and made Reading look world-beaters.

He said: “We are embarrassed by that performance and the sooner we can put it right the better.

“We let ourselves down, the manager down, the fans down, everyone, so we need to put it right.

“Reading are not near the top for nothing but we made them look very good. The one word the manager used to us was embarrassing and he is right. It is embarrassing having to look at the fans who have travelled down here.”

Nothing went right for Town, who also suffered five booking and now face a possible FA fine for their ill-discipline, which was not helped by mistakes of their own making.

Horlock said: “We didn't play in the right places at the right time. We looked as if we didn't know each other at times. We got what we deserved, which was nothing.”

With almost three-quarters of the season to go, Horlock knows that Town can still challenge for a play-off place but only if they find their form.

He said: “There are going to be games like that but we need to get rid of them as soon as we can, otherwise we are not going to be anywhere near challenging for the play-offs.”

The former Swindon midfielder gave Reading due credit but still believes, at their best, Town could have matched them.

He added: “Reading are good at what they do. They are a fit side and caused us problems, especially the front two, but on our day we could have got a point, or even three from them, but we did not turn up.

“We never looked dangerous until Adam (Proudlock) came on and give us a lift. We nearly scored but Sonko has made a great block and, to be honest, if we had have scored it would have been unjust because we did not deserve anything.”