TOWN penalty hero Tommy Miller continued hismarvellous spot-kick record at Portman Road on Saturday and then revealed: "I had to really settle myself beforetaking it.

By Dave Allard

TOWN penalty hero Tommy Miller continued his

marvellous spot-kick record at Portman Road on Saturday and then revealed: "I had to really settle myself before

taking it."

The man now wearing departed

former skipper Matt Holland's

number eight shirt went on: "There was such excitement when the

penalty was awarded, so I had to

compose myself as best I could.

"I was so pleased to see it go in and I think we deserved the point."

Former Hartlepool favourite Miller never missed a penalty for the Victoria Park club and he has now made it four out of four for the Blues.

Miller got his chance after Steve Brown was controversially ruled to have tripped Jim Magilton.

Miller said: "Jim hasn't been giving that much away about it, but the

decision was given and I think it was a fair one."

He added: "We didn't deserve to lose it and Reading didn't deserve to lose it either. I feel it was a fair result. It was certainly a hot afternoon. The heat was incredible. Conditions were not easy, but it was the same for both teams."

Town's Dutch right-back FABIAN WILNIS, who was substituted towards the end of the game, considered that it was far hotter in action on Saturday that it had been in any of the club's pre-season games.

He said: "It was a fair result from the first league game and our main problem was that the vital killer ball was missing. We can improve of course and will be working hard to do so.

"We didn't create an awful lot of chances, but on the other hand we didn't give many away. I think that Reading are a team that will do well and I will follow their progress this season."

MARTIJN REUSER, an early second-half substitute for Darren Bent, was the man who played the ball through for Magilton to earn the penalty.

Reuser said: "I had a good view and it was a clear penalty. It was

certainly a late tackle. In my view the referee was right to make the decision he made."

DARREN BENT said he felt "a bit groggy" in the heat.

He said: "The main thing is that we got a first league game under our belts and didn't lose. I didn't think we deserved to lose it. Reading are a good side and they certainly worked hard."

JAMES HARPER, the Reading midfield man who regularly draws the attention of Premiership scouts, said it was heartbreaking to see victory snatched away right at the death.

He said: "The referee certainly did us no favours with the sending off and the penalty, but if someone had told us before the start of the game that we could take a 1-1 result from this game then we would probably have taken it."

Town fan ARTHUR RICHARDS of Woodbridge Road was particularly impressed with the display of central defensive new boy Drissa Diallo.

"I thought he was really good. He read situations well and generally had a good game," he said.

"You can always expect a bit too much from a first game of the season. Reading came and did their stuff. If our team had fired a bit more up front as they can do it would have been a different story."