Wigan water torture for Reading keeper Hahnemann

Michael Duberry lent his keeper vocal support, as he had all afternoon on the pitch, but Wigan boss Steve Bruce, interrupting an interview nearby, stepped in to ensure cool heads prevailed.

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So brave: Kevin Doyle plays for Reading yesterday

Nobody knows better than Bruce, relegated as manager of Birmingham, that a survival campaign brings with it tension and a steep rise in temperature, although not necessarily in the showers. Reading, who face Tottenham before a trip to Derby, still can't be certain of staying up, while Wigan's finish could have been designed to faze Bruce.

Victory here would have seen him uncorking the champagne. Instead thirdbottom Birmingham, as well as the clubs in between, could pass them if they were to lose their last two fixtures.

They are at Aston Villa, where Bruce expects no quarter after his exploits as Birmingham boss, and against his old club Manchester United, now fighting to stave off Chelsea's title sprint.

You'll get a proper welcome back at Villa Park next week, won't you Steve? "Absolutely, I'm sure I will! It's sod's law isn't it, to go to Villa and then have United on the last day."

It is also why Wigan desperately needed to seal their safety with a win over Steve Coppell's strugglers, who also saw the game as a chance to put daylight between them and Birmingham.

Had Marcus Bent's early header gone in rather than rebounded off a post, Reading would have been in hot water and the game might have flowed more, but there was little to get excited about.

Bruce said: "We've got two tough games now so have everybody else around us. We're in a fabulous position. If somebody told me I'd be in this position six months ago when I walked through the door, I'd have taken it."

Coppell praised striker Kevin Doyle, who played despite the death of his cousin and her family in a house fire overnight, but remained stoic about Reading's problems.

Skipper Ivar Ingimarsson said: "I don't think it helps to worry at this stage. It's still in our hands."