Neil Warnock was furious with the match officials after 10-man Leeds' defeat at table-topping Reading.

Leeds boss accuses Reading of influencing match officials

Neil Warnock was furious with the match officials after 10-man Leeds' defeat at Championship table-topping Reading on Good Friday afternoon. The Elland Road club had to play the majority of the bad-tempered match at the Madejski Stadium with 10 men after Zac Thompson was shown a straight red card in the 12th minute. Warnock did not believe Thompson's challenge on Jimmy Kebe merited a dismissal in a game littered with wild challenges and he thought Reading influenced referee Darren Drysdale. After the match, the Leeds boss could not hide his anger having seen his side lose to two late goals inside the final six minutes from substitute Adam Le Fondre. "I have never seen so many players from one team surround a referee," Warnock told. "That is why he (Thompson) got sent off. "He got sent off, because the players surrounded him (Drysdale) and influenced him beyond all recognition." Warnock added: "I suppose it is a learning curve. We get punished for referees learning their trade. It is wrong." Warnock also said: "Bill Shankly used to say, 'officials know the laws. They just don't know the game'."