Despite dominating for much of the match, Steve Coppell's team could not find a way past Watford's outstanding goalkeeper Ben Foster, and they were sunk by second-half goals from Dan Shittu and Marlon King.

Reading were furious that Shittu's goal was allowed as there appeared to have been a foul on Ivar Ingimarsson, but King's close-range header - the fit-again striker's first goal since last October - was made possible by a handling error from goalkeeper Marcus Hahnemann.

This was only Watford's second away win of the campaign in the Barclays Premiership, and, although they rode their luck, it will give manager Adrian Boothroyd optimism for next season's promotion push.

Leroy Lita returned from a three-match suspension to replace Kevin Doyle in attack, while midfielders Steve Sidwell and James Harper came back into the team, and Greg Halford came in for Ulises de la Cruz at right-back.

For Watford, French centre-back Cedric Avinel made his debut in place of the suspended Clarke Carlisle, and Marlon King captained the team in the absence of Gavin Mahon and Jay DeMerit.

Shortly before kick-off, Reading defender Ingimarsson was named the club's player of the year, with left-back Nicky Shorey the runner-up.

Watford were forced into a change after only 10 minutes. Brazilian midfielder Douglas Rinaldi took a whack in the face and had to be replaced by Mahon.

Avinel was struggling to contain the pace and strength of Lita, who drew a foul from the young Frenchman in the 11th minute which brought the first yellow card of the match from referee Dermot Gallagher.

Halford's resulting free-kick from the left appeared to be going wide, but Foster, caught off balance, was taking no chances, and tipped the ball behind for a corner.

Watford were grateful for Foster's sharpness in the 17th minute, when the recently-capped England 'keeper raced out of his goal to claim the ball at the feet of Lita, who had been released by Sidwell's through-ball.

Watford looked uncertain in defence, and it seemed only a matter of time before Reading took the lead.

They went close in the 28th minute when Halford picked up the ball on the right and embarked on an eye-catching run, beating two players before slipping the ball into the penalty area, where Foster was again quicker than Lita or Dave Kitson to the ball.

Four minutes later, Kitson drifted away from the marking of Shittu to meet Shorey's left-wing cross with a looping header which beat Foster but hit the top of the bar.

Avinel had found life difficult throughout the first half, and it was no surprise to him replaced by Adrian Mariappa for the second 45 minutes.

But the early signs were not good for Mariappa against Lita, who held off his new marker with ease in the 48th minute before unleashing a powerful angled drive from 15 yards which Foster did well to palm away.

Lita gave the visitors' defence another scare a minute later, shooting against Mariappa from close range after Sidwell had flicked on Seol's corner from the right.

At the other end, Hahnemann was forced into his first save of the match in the 51st minute, holding onto Lee Williamson's follow-up from eight yards after Smith's goalbound volley had struck his team-mate Henderson.

Reading were soon testing their opponents once more, Foster diving to stop a hard, low drive from Michael Duberry following more good work from Lita.

But to the surprise of virtually everyone at Madejski Stadium, Watford took the lead on the hour mark.

When Williamson swung over the free-kick from the right, Ingimarsson appeared to be blocked by Darius Henderson as he tried to run out of the penalty area to catch King and Shittu offside.

With Ingimarsson stranded, the Watford pair were in a legal position, and Shittu had the simple task of stroking the past Hahnemann to put his team in front.

Foster bailed out Watford again in the 75th minute, denying Seol with his legs from close range after the South Korea international had beaten the offside trap and collected Halford's cross from the right.

Watford kept their cool and, five minutes from full-time, King made the game safe for his team with a simple close-range header after Hahnemann had failed to catch Smith's cross from the left.

After scoring, King raced to celebrate with Watford's medical team as a thanks for their part in his recovery from the knee injury he sustained last November.

After the match, Reading manager Steve Coppell launched an attack on the transfer system after Watford's on-loan Manchester United goalkeeper Ben Foster inspired his relegated team to a 2-0 win at Madejski Stadium.

Coppell believes Foster should not have been allowed to stay with Watford after he helped them to promotion from the Coca-Cola Championship last season.

"I have a big issue with the loan situation," Coppell said.

"It is a nonsense that the big clubs can stockpile players, then farm them out to continue their education.

"The big clubs should decide who are their best players, then stick with them. To allow the situation to continue in this way is wrong.

"Why should young players not make their progress at the big clubs, instead of doing it elsewhere and to the disadvantage of others?

"It is a case of trawling talent, and that is not beneficial. This is not sour grapes against Ben Foster, who is a terrific goalkeeper, and England might benefit from his education at Watford.

"But everything is geared towards the big clubs. The big clubs should only be allowed to loan players out to rival Premiership clubs if they have no first-team experience.

"If this were the case, it would be a far healthier game."

Defeat dented Reading's chances of qualifying for the UEFA Cup, as they are now only two points above Tottenham having played two more games.

Reading complained bitterly about Shittu's goal as they believed Ivar Ingimarsson had been fouled in the build-up, but Coppell chose instead to praise the attitude of his opponents, whose relegation was confirmed last month.

"The players felt Ivar was blocked, but if you live by the sword, you die by it," Coppell added.

"But Watford deserve credit for their mental resilience. They have lost a number of games, but they remain competitive.

"I have a lot of respect for them, and I am glad we will not have to play them next season."

Foster returns to Old Trafford in the summer to challenge Edwin van der Sar for a place in Sir Alex Ferguson's side.

Finding an adequate replacement is Boothroyd's priority and he is already examining the transfer market for alternatives as he tries to chart a route back to the Premiership next season.

Boothroyd said: "We have a couple of ideas because we have known the situation for a long time and we have been working hard.

"But whether we can bring in our targets is another matter.

"I send Sir Alex regular letters about how Ben is doing, about his lifestyle, and about what he is doing well and what he can improve on.

"The situation is a bonus for Manchester United, because we are sending an international goalkeeper back to them.

"It is good for us, because when big clubs want to loan out young players of immense talent, they might think about sending them to Watford."