Stoke boss Tony Pulis pleased to see defenders netting goals

Ryan Shawcross and Robert Huth: Praised by Tony Pulis after recent goals

Tony Pulis has admitted it is important that everyone contributes goals for Stoke City after Robert Huth and Ryan Shawcross found the net in recent weeks.

Huth got on the scoresheet for the first time this season when he broke the deadlock with a 67th-minute header in Saturday's 2-1 Premier League victory over Reading at the Britannia Stadium.

Potters skipper Shawcross got his own goalscoring account for the campaign up and running in the previous home match, a 2-2 league draw with Wigan.

Pulis is delighted that the pair have broken their individual ducks for 2012-13, and has also emphasised how important he thinks it is for mid-table Stoke - whose joint top-scorers in the league this term are Peter Crouch and Jon Walters on five - that as many players as possible chip in.

"Huthy hasn't scored for several months," said Pulis.

"Ryan scored last week, Huthy scored this week, and we are a team that relies on everybody in the group scoring goals.

"We had a sequence of about six or seven corners in the first half (against Reading) and you are waiting for Robert or Ryan to put their head on it. Then luckily we saw it go in in the second half."

After Huth had given his side a deserved lead against Reading by converting Glenn Whelan's corner, substitute Cameron Jerome made it 2-0 with his third league goal of the season, bringing a misplaced header from Reading defender Adrian Mariappa down neatly with his thigh, turning his marker Alex Pearce and lashing the ball home with nine minutes of normal time remaining.

At that point it looked as if a comfortable afternoon's work was complete for the Potters, but two minutes later Mariappa reduced the deficit by nodding in an Ian Harte corner.

Pulis said: "Our second goal was a great goal. The disappointing thing was that they then scored from a set-play.

"Up until that goal, I don't think Asmir (Begovic, the Stoke goalkeeper) really had a shot to save in either half.

"So for him to have to take the ball out of the back of the net after a set-play was disappointing."