Staff Changes at QPR

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[At the current time, despite the reported coaching staff departures, the official site's club directory continues to reflect no changes other than Gregory in; Waddock Assistant Manager and Mcdonald departed.]


Waddock role remains uncertain
27 September 2006
By Ben Kosky Wembley & Kingsbury Times - 27 September 2006

NEW QPR boss John Gregory admits he has yet to decide exactly what role his predecessor Gary Waddock will fill at Loftus Road.
Officially, Waddock has been appointed Gregory's number two - but the incoming manager has hinted that he may shake up the coaching structure during the coming weeks.
Alan McDonald, who had been assistant manager under Waddock, left the club within 24 hours of Gregory's appointment and the Rangers boss said: "I don't work with friends, I work with people who are good at what they do.
"Gary's going to be part of my staff, which means he'll work with me on the training ground on a daily basis and he'll be in the dugout on Saturday afternoon, unless I decide to use him somewhere else in the coaching set-up where he's more suitable.
"I think it's got to be like that - I've never worked with Gary before as a coach and I want to find out his strengths, harness those strengths and use them in the right areas.
"I want to assess what everybody here does, but I haven't dismissed the fact that I might want to bring in three or four of my own people."

Reserve team manager Justin Skinner - appointed just three months ago - and assistant physio Bobby Bacic have also left the club.
And Gregory hopes that Waddock, who spent just under eight months in charge of the first team, can take heart from his own initial experience of management - an unsuccessful year with Portsmouth and an even shorter stint at Plymouth.
The QPR manager returned to coaching with Leicester before resuming his managerial career at Wycombe Wanderers, followed by four years at Aston Villa.
He recalled: "I was 34 years of age and thought I had all the answers, but I failed miserably as a manager, got sacked and was out of work for six or seven months.
"Brian Little took me to Leicester as a coach and I sat and watched him for five years. I learnt so much from him and by the time I left to manage Wycombe I was confident in my own ability.
"I hope Gary will stay on and learn. It's a painful experience, what he's been through and it will hurt - but he's basically got a second chance.
"Even though things didn't work out the way he wanted, he can take a back seat and maybe take things in. He's QPR through and through and I want people like that alongside me."
Whether or not he initiates further changes to the coaching staff, Gregory has already outlined his intention to stamp his mark on Rangers' training ground culture - with the emphasis on winning.
And the manager will even be happy to see training ground punch-ups on a regular basis, explaining: "I love to see people that want to punch each other on the training ground and I don't mind players getting into a ruck.
"If you've not had a fight on the training ground in a month, you've got a problem - either you're too nice or they're too nice. If people want to win badly, that's infectious - having a fall-out in the dressing room is because you care.
"It's all about winning habits and, if I say so myself, that's what I'm good at - getting people into good habits.
"I don't want mobile phones going off all the time and people getting off the bus with a headset on. I don't have ghetto blasters or any of that in the dressing room - you're here to play football and win matches, so get switched on.
"That needs a drastic tidy-up. I like everything just so - if all the chairs aren't facing the same way, it irritates me."
Gregory has signed an initial nine-month contract at Loftus Road and added: "I want to stay as long as it takes, but if I'm not successful, Gianni [Paladini] probably won't want me around and that's fine - I like working with a challenge.
http://www.wktimes.co.uk/content/brent/wembleychronicle/sport/story.aspx?brand=WKCOnline&category=sportfootball&tBrand=northlondon24&tCategory=sportwkc&itemid=WeED27%20Sep%202006%2011%3A27%3A57%3A390
Captain Birch puzzled over Rs future

27 September 2006
Tom Harvey Wembley & Kingsbury Times - 27 September 2006
Marc Bircham

MARC Bircham admits he is still in the dark about his future at QPR, despite reclaiming his first-team place in recent weeks.
Bircham was one of eight players surprisingly transfer listed by then-manager Gary Waddock towards the end of last season.
An Rs fan born and bred, the 28-year-old believed at the time he had played his last game for the club.
However, after proposed moves to Leeds and Leicester fell through, Bircham remained at Loftus Road and earned a recall to QPR's starting XI against Ipswich on August 25.
The midfielder, who has since started the last four matches, even captained Rangers in Saturday's 2-0 victory over Hull as John Gregory took charge of his first game as the club's new boss.
But, while being keen to stay in W12, former Millwall man Bircham believes he is still available for transfer.
He told the Times: "I must be one of the few players to be captain and on the transfer list at the same time but I haven't been told otherwise so I suppose I still am.
"You'd have to ask the powers that be but for all intents and purposes, I think I still am on the list."
Bircham was substituted just after the hour during the Hull victory but insisted he had no qualms with the decision.
He said: "I wasn't disappointed at all. I was one of the few who played 90 minutes in the Carling Cup in midweek and because I didn't have much of a pre-season I was a bit tired so I was fine with coming off in the second half."
Bircham also believes the arrival of Gregory can give the Rs a real boost for the remainder of the season.
Gregory was appointed as manager last week, three-and-a-half years after leaving the Derby County hotseat.
The defeat of the Tigers moved QPR off the bottom of the table and out of the relegation places and a delighted Bircham stated: "The new manager lifted the place, lifted the crowd and it's worked for this week.
"It was exactly what he needed - a good win and a clean sheet. We took a while to get going but we knew what to expect with Hull - that we would have to win the battle before we could start playing."...http://www.wktimes.co.uk/content/brent/wembleychronicle/sport/story.aspx?brand=WKCOnline&category=sportfootball&tBrand=northlondon24&tCategory=sportwkc&itemid=WeED27%20Sep%202006%2011%3A31%3A42%3A867