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Monday, February 28, 2011

QPR Report Monday Update and Flashbacks...Reading Praise Leigertwood and Thank Warnock...Helguson's Non-Hatrick...Richard Langley to Abderdeen

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- On This Day in Football: February 28 - QPR in the Cup 1948 (Video Snippet)... Gerry Francis's Return Debut...

Throughout the day, updates, comments and perspectives re QPR and football in general are posted and discussed on the QPR Report Messageboard...Also Follow: QPR REPORT ON TWITTER
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- June 2011 "race for Life, Herne Bay): "Neil Roberts Dying Wish for More Runners"

- Bhatia Update? (Don't currently have the answer!)

- Richard Langley to Abderdeen

- Caliendo Payday? (Unless already paid) "A £2,000,000 interest free loan owing to Mr. A Caliendo is repayabale on 28 February 2011 and redeemable at any time prior to that date at the sole discretion of QPR..." QPR Annual Report, July 2009

- Pre-Season Champiosnhip Previews/Predictions

- Year Flashback and quite a contrast!: QPR: 21 Games WITHOUT a clean sheet: Worst in all four divisions!

- Two Year Flashback (April 2009): QPR Torn Over Warnock Appointment!

- Update: The Dangers of Working for Chelsea! The Cole Shooting


- Middlesbrough vs QPR: Compilation of Match Reports and Managerial Comments


STAR By Jason Mellor - MIDDLESBOROUGH 0 QPR 3: HELGUSON’S HOPES ARE LEFT DERAILED

HEIDAR HELGUSON threatened to be a pain on the train after his hat-trick hopes hit the buffers.

The Icelander’s double helped keep Rangers’ Premier League dreams on track as branch-line Boro were shunted into the sidings.

But Helguson was put out after being denied a memorable treble when Adel Taarabt refused to let the 12-goal striker take a late penalty.

The Moroccan ­midfielder picked himself up after being felled by Merouane Zemmama to seal the rout with his 15th goal of the season.

Shaun Derry admitted Neil Warnock’s squad had their work cut out to keep their two-goal team-mate happy on the train journey back to London.

The midfielder said: “I asked Adel to let Heidar have a chance of his hat-trick with the penalty.

“But, then, we all appreciate Adel’s a goalscorer, so we just needed to put a smile on Heidar’s face on the way back.

“Otherwise, even after two goals, he’d sit there with the hump all the way home.” Helguson made it four in three games with a deflected effort and a header either side of the break to help restore QPR’s five-point lead and extend their unbeaten run to 10 games.

Boss Warnock plans to reward the well-travelled hitman with a new deal, despite being told the 33-year-old was ready to be put out to grass when he took charge exactly 12 months ago.

Warnock said: “Heidar was ready for the knackers yard last year, so they tell me, but he’s always been a good player in my book.”

Boro have now been dragged back into the fight for survival after one win in four games.

Skipper Nicky Bailey said: “Our main priority is to stay in this division. The sooner we achieve that, the better.

“We need to string a few decent results together because that’s something we’ve not been doing.


“If you don’t raise your game enough against the best sides in this division, they will pick you off.” Daily Star


INDEPENDENT Helguson forced to cool off after missing hat-trickMiddlesbrough 0 Queen’s Park Rangers 3
By Jason Mellor at the Riverside Stadium


His fellow passengers on the early evening service out of Darlington bound for King's Cross might not have been able to discern the fact from his slightly miffed misdemeanour, but the rugged-looking chap in the blue club tracksuit had plenty to celebrate. Two goals, fulsome praise from his manager and his QPR side having emphatically restored their five-point advantage at the Championship summit.


The only minor downside for Heidar Helguson? Like any forward worth his salt, the 33-year-old wanted more, but was denied when Adel Taarabt trampled over any morsel of sentiment by refusing to allow his team-mate a chance of a hat-trick by swiftly grabbing the ball after he, Taarabt, had been brought down in the area to ram home from the penalty spot.

It meant Neil Warnock's squad had their work cut out to placate the Icelander on their return journey south, although Helguson's disappointment at his inability to add to his deflected shot and unmarked header either side of the interval was no doubt tempered by now having scored four goals in his last three games.

"I asked Adel to let Heidar have a chance of his hat-trick with the penalty," Shaun Derry, who again excelled in his holding midfield role, said. "But then we all appreciate Adel's a goalscorer. So instead we just needed to put a smile on Heidar's face on the way home. Otherwise he'd sit there on the train with the hump all the way home, even after two goals."

Warnock showed little sentiment for Helguson. "If I'm honest, I didn't want him to take it. We've got to be professional and it was Taarabt's to take. If Heidar had taken it and missed it I'd have battered him."

It is now 12 for the season for the well-travelled forward, who is likely to be rewarded for his impressive form with a new contract as the club head back into the Premier League after a generation's wait.

A 19th clean sheet for Paddy Kenny came under its biggest threat inside 60 seconds when the his mis-cued clearance offered Scott McDonald a clear run on goal. The goalkeeper atoned with a fine block and from that point the visitors exerted an increasing stranglehold on the contest.

"If you don't raise your game enough against the best sides in this division they will pick you off," Nicky Bailey, the Middlesbrough captain, conceded. The hosts have been dragged back into the scrap for survival after gaining a single win in four games, and with Nottingham Forest due at the Riverside Stadium tomorrow, matters could get worse before they get better.

A five-point cushion on the bottom three provides little comfort after the comprehensive manner of this defeat for the pre-season title favourites and Bailey added: "We need to string a few decent results together but that is not something we've been doing. Our main priority is to stay in this division, and the sooner we achieve that, the better."

Middlesbrough (4-4-2) Steele; McMahon, Hines, Davies (Haas, 82), Bennett; Emnes (Zemmama, 60), Bailey, Arca (Robson, 60), Taylor; Lita, McDonald. Substitutes not used Ripley, Boyd, Grounds, Smallwood.

Queen's Park Ragners (4-2-3-1) Kenny; Orr (Connolly, 78), Hall, Shittu, Hill; Derry, Faurlin; Routledge, Buzsaky (Ephraim, 70), Taarabt; Helguson (Hulse, 84). Substitutes not used Gorkss, Vaagan Moen, Cerny, Miller. Booked Faurlin, Hall.
Man of the match Helguson
Referee K Stroud (Hampshire)
Att 16,972 Independent


Reading Official Site - Praise for Warnock on Mikele deal


Boss Brian McDermott has given credit to QPR manager Neil Warnock for allowing Mikele Leigertwood to come to Reading on loan.

The midfielder joined us in November when he was out of the team at QPR, and we have not lost any of the 14 games he has started for the club.

Warnock has managed Leigertwood at both Sheffield United and QPR, and enabled him to secure a loan move so he could play regular first team football rather than being a substitute at Loftus Road.

We have reaped the benefits, and if Mikele is unbeaten in his next three games, he will overtake a club record currently held by Brynjar Gunnarsson, who did not lose in his first 16 games as a Royal. In fact, Mikele has not lost a single League game this season, having also made nine unbeaten appearance for Rangers in this campaign.

McDermott said, "He wasn't playing at QPR, and to be fair to Neil Warnock he likes Mikele, he's had him a few times. He was doing right by Mikele, letting him out on loan. You have to give him credit and I can only thank him for that."

Asked about the 28-year-old's unbeaten stretch, Brian said, "It's an incredible stat. People want to play alongside him, he's a leader, a great lad, we're really pleased to have him.

"He does the simple things really well, and when there's a tackle he always comes out with the ball. He's a box-to-box player, he scores goals as well, full credit to him."

Our bookies Coral have very generous odds of 33/1 for Mikele to score first at Everton on Tuesday evening, and 275/1 on him to score the only goal - go to the Coral website to take full advantage!
http://www.readingfc.co.uk/page/NewsDetail/0,,10306~2303944,00.html



FLASHBACKS...

- Year Flashback: A Sad Day - Raheem Sterling Joins Liverpool

- Year Ago, Pre-Warnock: QPR's Form and Relegation Stats: After 32 Games, 37 points (After 24 games, had 33 points)

- Year Flashback: The Amit Bhatia Interviews

- Ten Years Ago: Article "Rangers disease has fans reaching for the pills"

- Ten Years Ago (Yesterday): Ian Holloway Appointed Manager of Queen's Park Rangers!

- Three Years Ago: Briatore - Why He Loved QPR!

- RIP: Ex-Wolves/Southampton and Spurs Defender Dean Richards (Aged 36)

- Great Video: QPR vs Ipswich - As much for the close-up/Match Atmosphere (As posted on Twitter)

- Gavin Mahon Extends QPR Stay by Another Month (till mid-March)

- Serbia Threatened With Expulsion from Euro 2012

- On This Day in Football: February 28 - QPR in the Cup 1948 (Video Snippet)... Gerry Francis's Return Debut...

Sunday, February 27, 2011

QPR Report Sunday: Middlesbrough Reports and Comments...Year Flashback: Raheem Sterling Joins Liverpool

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Throughout the day, updates, comments and perspectives re QPR and football in general are posted and discussed on the QPR Report Messageboard...Also Follow: QPR REPORT ON TWITTER
_____________________________________________________________________________________

FLASHBACKS...


- Year Flashback: A Sad Day - Raheem Sterling Joins Liverpool

- Year Ago, Pre-Warnock: QPR's Form and Relegation Stats: After 32 Games, 37 points (After 24 games, had 33 points)

- Year Flashback: The Amit Bhatia Interviews

- Ten Years Ago: Article "Rangers disease has fans reaching for the pills"

- Ten Years Ago (Yesterday): Ian Holloway Appointed Manager of Queen's Park Rangers!

- Three Years Ago: Briatore - Why He Loved QPR!

- On This Day in Football: February 27

- RIP: Ex-Wolves/Southampton and Spurs Defender Dean Richards (Aged 36)

- Great Video: QPR vs Ipswich - As much for the close-up/Match Atmosphere (As posted on Twitter)

- Neil Roberts Dying Wish for More Runners (Race for Life Herne Bay: June 2011)

- Gavin Mahon Extends QPR Stay by Another Month (till mid-March)

- Serbia Threatened With Expulsion from Euro 2012

- The Dangers of Working for Chelsea!


MIDDLESBROUGH-QPR MATCH REPORTS & COMMENTS

1 QPR 34 36 67
2 Swansea 34 18 62
3 Cardiff 34 17 61
4 Norwich 34 12 59
5 Nott'm F 33 16 58
6 Leeds 34 7 54 BBC


SKY - Iceman cometh with brace at Boro

..Heidar Helguson struck a double as QPR boosted their Championship title challenge with a comfortable 3-0 victory at Middlesbrough.

The Iceland international netted either side of the interval in Saturday's clash at the Riverside as Rangers extended their advantage at the summit to five points.

If Helguson was impressive, it paled in comparison to Adel Taarabt, who was at his irresistible best.

The dynamic midfielder was at his brilliant best as he terrorised Boro's backline, capping his performance with a goal from the penalty spot which wrapped things up.

Clearly buoyed by last week's 3-2 victory at Millwall, Middlesbrough started the brighter of the sides and should have taken the lead in just the first minute.

Australia striker Scott McDonald found space in the area, but, after finding room to work an opening, he saw his effort saved by Paddy Kenny.

QPR, though, were quick to get back into the game with Taarabt and Wayne Routledge causing problems with their direct play.

The former, in particular, was proving particularly difficult to deal with, forcing a smart save from Jason Steele a 20-yard snap-shot.

As the game wore on, Taraabt's influence was becoming increasingly prominent with the the mercurial Moroccan hitting just wide form range before forcing another excellent save from Steele.

He came agonisingly close to breaking the deadlock in the 35th minute when he found himself clean through courtesy of some poor Boro defending, only to hit over.

The home side, meanwhile, were playing plenty of good football but their final ball was leaving a lot to be desired.

The Hoops finally got the reward their endeavour deserved in the 41st minute through Helguson.

Predictably, Taarabt was involved, squaring a lovely ball to the striker, who made no mistake from 12 yards.

Picking up where they left off, Rangers continued to dominate after the interval with the hosts often finding themselves chasing shadows.

And the league leaders soon extended their advantage through Helguson's second.

The impressive Routledge was the architect, jinking his way down the left wing before sending in a delicious centre which Helguson nodded past Steele.

The goal seemed to take the wind out of Middlesbrough's sails as QPR continued to dominate.

They found themselves three-up in the 68th minute when, after being brought down by Merouane Zemmama, Taarabt netted from the spot.

Neil Warnock's side took there foot off the gas thereafter, but, with their defence looking impregnable, they easily saw the game out.
http://www.skysports.com/football/match_report/0,19764,11065_3284512,00.html


QPR Official Site GAFFER: WE WERE RUTHLESS


Neil Warnock thinks his side's improved ruthlessness in front of goal played a major part in the R's excellent 3-0 victory at Middlesbrough.

Heidar Helguson's deadly double, as well as an Adel Taarabt strike from the penalty spot, clinched victory for QPR, on an afternoon when Rangers dominated proceedings in every single department.

Warnock told www.qpr.co.uk: "The goal came just before half-time. We were a little bit fortunate with it, but we've had plenty of them go against us - like Nottingham Forest's at Loftus Road a few weeks ago.

"I thought in the second half we were by far the better side and thoroughly deserved the victory.

"We were a lot more ruthless, put our foot on the pedal and scored three good goals.

"I thought the second was a fabulous goal, but also thought the first was fabulous too.

"A deflected goal will do for me - don't worry about that!"

He added: "It was just good to come away to a place like this and win in such convincing style.

"To get such a positive result in front of our travelling fans - who made the long journey - is rewarding for us all.

"It's another game chalked off and we're down to the last 12."
http://www.qpr.co.uk/page/TheGaffer/0,,10373~2303263,00.html


[b]SPORTING LIFE RANGERS HAVE RIGHT RECIPE - WARNOCK [/b]

Neil Warnock said his table-topping side should be playing with a smile on their faces after a steely 3-0 win at Middlesbrough took them a step closer to the Premier League.

QPR went ahead in the 41st minute with a deflected opener from Heidar Helguson before the striker netted his second goal of the afternoon in the 60th minute. Captain Adel Taarabt wrapped up the points with a late penalty.

"It was difficult early on and we couldn't quite get on the ball but we get better as the game went on," said the Rangers boss, who celebrates a year in charge next week.

"We got a break with the first goal because it took a deflection but we've those go against us at times so we won't complain. And we still worked hard for it.

"The second goal was fabulous, the whole move was fabulous. In fact we played some good stuff today and it is a bonus when you do that.

"I've been delighted with the determination the team have shown and their willingness to put their bodies on the line when they have too. At times there has been a real Northern grit in this Southern team.

"But I've told the lads that they should be playing with a smile on their faces because we have the right recipe here now. We have the grit to battle when we need to but we have the ability to win games well too. You don't get many moments in football when it comes together like that.

"We're not getting carried away because we have a long way to go, six home games and six away, but if we can keep getting that consistency and keep getting results in games like this, then we are well on the way,"

Boro boss Tony Mowbray insisted his team were not far short of Rangers on a day when they slipped to their first defeat by more than a one goal margin since he arrived at the club to replace Gordon Strachan in October.

"I didn't feel we were out-classed," he explained. "They are a good side but for long spells, especially in the first half, we more than matched them. For an hour it was a decent performance.

"It turned out to be a disappointing afternoon but it could have been very different. Scott McDonald had a good chance in the first minute and had that gone in, who knows.

"But they are a hard team to play against. They attack with four players, four good players, but the rest defend very well and they hold a high line. It is hard to get behind them. What they do, they do well and that's why they are where they are.

"So we are disappointed - but we haven't had too many results like that of late. Its the first time we have lost by more than one goal since I came here. We have take it on the chin, learn from it and bounce back on Tuesday against Nottingham Forest."

http://www.sportinglife.com/football/live/quotes/story_get.cgi?STORY_NAME=soccer/11/02/26/SOCCER_Middlesbrough_2nd_Nightlead.html&BID=3660


[b]MIDDLESBROUGH MANAGER COMMENT Individual Talent Sees Off Boro[/b]

MOMENTS of individual brilliance were the difference between Boro and the runaway league leaders in a game where Tony Mowbray felt the scoreline did not tell the full story.

Adel Taraabt and Wayne Routledge were Boro's main tormentors, while QPR's veteran striker Heidar Helguson capitalised on their creativity with two goals in what might sound like a one-sided affair.

But the first goal near the end of an even first half came courtesy of a wicked deflection and the third was a penalty conceded by Merouane Zemmama's forward's tackle when there seemed to be little danger.

"I think 3-0's a bit harsh," said Mowbray. "Sometimes when you're top of the table things roll for you like that. They've got some decent players in the forward line and their tactics are to let them go forward and win games.

"To coin a Mourinho phrase they park the bus - the full-backs don't cross the halfway line and the front four have individual talent that can win them matches. That's a formula that seems to be working very well for them this year.

"I'm not taking anything away from them - if you're top of the table after 30 games, you must be a decent side and they undoubtedly are. They've got some good individuals, a big, strong, powerful back-line and they get the job done."

Boro's best chance came with just seconds on the clock when a poor clearance from goalkeeper Paddy Kenny gifted Scott mcDonald's with a glorious opening.

But Kenny atoned for his error with a fine save and the visitors rarely looked back.

Asked how much difference it would have made if the ball had gone in, Mowbray said: "It would have made a difference - we would have been one-nil up. But I don't know if it would have made a difference overall."

Mowbray knows the headlines won't be favourable after the heaviest defeat of his reign so far, but he said: "In journalism, you see the result and decide one team played well and the other team didn't.

"But I don't think there was much in it. For 40 minutes it was 0-0 and we'd had the outstanding chance of the game.

"When you're top of the table you're just waiting for one piece of quality from one individual to make a difference and I think that was it today.

"There's not very much in it. We did fine for long enough spells but the two goals in the second half killed the game as a contest.

"It's football and you have to take it on the chin sometimes when you play a team at the top of the table."

Andrew Davies, who was playing at the Riverside for the first time since his loan move from Stoke City, picked up an injury late in the game but Mowbray said it was too early to say how long he will be out.

"It looks like hamstring but what grade I don't know. It could be eight weeks, could be one week. We'll wait and see."
http://www.mfc.co.uk/articles/20110226/individual-talent-sees-off-boro_70606_2303289


BBC


Queens Park Rangers maintained their drive towards automatic promotion with a straightforward win at Middlesbrough.

Midfield playmaker Adel Taarabt, an influential figure for the visitors, squared a ball for Heidar Helguson, who fired in from 12 yards.

Helguson nodded in a second after an inviting cross from Wayne Routledge.

Taarabt got the reward for his display when, after being brought down by Merouane Zemmama, he scored a penalty against a deflated home side.

Taarabt is his side's creative force and had terrorised Boro's defence as he helped his side to a win which keeps then five points clear at the top of the Championship.

However, it could have been different had home striker Scott McDonald done better than to see an early shot saved by keeper Paddy Kenny.

QPR quickly responded and Taarabt forced two smart saves from Jason Steele with long range strikes before putting an effort over when some poor Boro defending left him clean through on goal.

Boro's build-up play was not matched with a cutting edge in the final third and QPR eventually went ahead after 41 minutes with Taarabt and Helguson combining.

The Hoops forward got a second after the break as he benefitted from the quality of service he was getting, with Routledge the provider as Helguson nodded in his second.

Taarabt's penalty delivered the final blow as QPR eased to victory without alarm.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/eng_div_1/9405034.stm


MAIL Middlesbrough 0 QPR 3: Heidar Helguson at the double as Rangers close in on promotion

Heidar Helguson struck a double as QPR boosted their npower Championship title challenge with a comfortable victory at Middlesbrough.

The Iceland international netted either side of the interval as Rangers extended their advantage at the summit to five points.

If Helguson was impressive, it paled in comparison to Adel Taarabt, who was at his irresistible best.
On the up: Neil Warnock's side are closing in on promotion to the Premier League

On the up: Neil Warnock's side are closing in on promotion to the Premier League

The dynamic midfielder was at his brilliant best as he terrorised Boro's backline, capping his performance with a goal from the penalty spot which wrapped things up.

Clearly buoyed by last week's 3-2 victory at Millwall, Middlesbrough started the brighter of the sides and should have taken the lead in just the first minute.

Australia striker Scott McDonald found space in the area, but, after finding room to work an opening, he saw his effort saved by Paddy Kenny.

QPR, though, were quick to get back into the game with Taarabt and Wayne Routledge causing problems with their direct play.

The former, in particular, was proving particularly difficult to deal with, forcing a smart save from Jason Steele a 20-yard snap-shot.

As the game wore on, Taraabt's influence was becoming increasingly prominent with the the mercurial Moroccan hitting just wide form range before forcing another excellent save from Steele.
Adel-ight: Taarabt was also on the score sheet

He came agonisingly close to breaking the deadlock in the 35th minute when he found himself clean through courtesy of some poor Boro defending, only to hit over.

The home side, meanwhile, were playing plenty of good football but their final ball was leaving a lot to be desired.

The Hoops finally got the reward their endeavour deserved in the 41st minute through Helguson.

Predictably, Taarabt was involved, squaring a lovely ball to the striker, who made no mistake from 12 yards.

Picking up where they left off, Rangers continued to dominate after the interval with the hosts often finding themselves chasing shadows.

And the league leaders soon extended their advantage through Helguson's second.

The impressive Routledge was the architect, jinking his way down the left wing before sending in a delicious centre which Helguson nodded past Steele.

The goal seemed to take the wind out of Middlesbrough's sails as QPR continued to dominate.

They found themselves three-up in the 68th minute when, after being brought down by Merouane Zemmama, Taarabt netted from the spot.

Neil Warnock's side took there foot off the gas thereafter, but, with their defence looking impregnable, they easily saw the game out.
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-1360873/Middlesbrough-0-QPR-3-Heidar-Helguson-double-Rangers-close-promotion.html#ixzz1F65gfovT


MIDDLESBROUGH OFFICIAL SITE Middlesbrough 0 QPR 3

TWO goals from Heidar Helguson and penalty from Adel Taarabt ensured QPR's promotion push remained firmly on track as they equalled their biggest away win of the season. GORDON COX reports from the Riverside.

There was just one personnel change from the side which beat Millwall, also a change in formation as Jonathan Grounds dropped to the bench, Marvin Emnes returned and Boro adopted a 4-4-2 formation.

Boro made a very positive start and should have taken the lead in the first minute as Paddy Kenny' goal-kick went straight to Scott McDonald just up from the edge of the centre-circle.

After outpacing his closest pursuers he shot low to Kenny's right and the goalkeeper made amends.

Tony McMahon, fairly, thundered into a tackle and the crowd responded, distribution was crisp and movement gave options.

It set the game up nicely as back came Rangers, Adel Taarabt whipping in a cross from the left, one which asked many questions, ones answered by Jason Steele who right received warm applause from a punched clearance.

Continuing their increased work rate, Rangers created another chance, this time from the right as Wayne Routledge slammed over a cross which flew through the six-yard box until turned behind by McMahon.

Rangers became the side most likely to break the deadlock, squeezing Boro for room and gradually player higher up the pitch. Their three in midfield crowded Boro for room and the attacking options and moves were increasingly the property of the West London outfit.

Twice Taarabt forced decent saves with shots from outside the box, he was on the edge of it when almost capitalising on a misunderstanding between Steele and Nicky Bailey, nipping in between the pair and just landing a shot on top of the net.

Boro, resilient, attacked when they could and usually caused problems, but the opening goal came at the other end via a deflection four minutes from half time as Taarabt was picked out inside the Boro box and played a low ball to Heidar Helguson whose low shot from 12 yards looped up off Andrew Davies and over the grounded and stranded Steele.

Half-time: Middlesbrough 0 QPR 1

Boro found it difficult to get going in the early stages of the second half as Rangers passed the ball swiftly, without, though, causing too many problems.

The home side had to work hard to create even half a chance, with Bennett often the outlet ball.

Tony Mowbray needed to change something and made two substitutions just short of the hour.

But it was Rangers who increased their lead with an hour played as Routledge cross from the left and Heidar Helguson time d a run in between Davies and Seb Hines to head home from inside the six yard box in front of goal.

Not for the first time this season Boro shot themselves in the foot when conceding a needless penalty with 67 minutes played as MerouaneZemmama brought down international team mate Adel Taarabt who took the penalty himself, right-footed easily beating Steele.

Boro almost pulled a goal back with another fine free-kick from Tony McMahon. His 30-yard effort was destined for Kenny's top left-hand corner until the goalkeeper's intervention turned the effort into a corner.

It was Boro's first effort on target since McDonald in the opening minute.

McDonald went close with a well-intentioned chip from 20 yards and should have gone closer when set up by Barry Robson, but blazed over from a tight angle.

Middlesbrough: Steele; McMahon, Hines, Davies (Haas 81), Bennett, Emnes (Zemmama 59), Bailey (Capt.), Arca (Robson), Taylor, Lita, McDonald. Subs: Ripley (gk); Grounds, Smallwood, Boyd.

QPR: Kenny; Orr (Connolly 78), Hall, Shittu, Hill, Faurlin, Derry, Buzsaky (Ephraim 69), Routledge, Taarabt (Capt.), Helguson (Hulse 84). Subs: Cerny (gk); Gorkss, Miller, Vaagan Moen.

Referee: Mr K Stroud, Hampshire.

Bookings
Middlesbrough Robson, 71, taking a free-kick too quickly.

QPR Faurlin, 14, foul; Hall, 45, foul.

Attendance: 16,972 (797 visitors)

Conditions: After a damp start to the afternoon it was dry, bright and breezy come kick-off.
http://www.mfc.co.uk/articles/20110226/middlesbrough-0-qpr-3_70605_53043


QPR Official Site MIDDLESBROUGH 0, QPR 3

Sumptuous R's secure fine away day victory in the North East

QPR strengthened their grip on top spot in the npower
Championship with a stunning away day victory at the Riverside Stadium.

A goal either side of the break from Heidar Helguson, as well as Adel Taarabt's 15th strike of the season from the spot, helped Neil Warnock's men preserve their five-point gap at the summit.

The R's were in front four minutes before the break, after Helguson's deflected effort deceived the keeper before finding the bottom left-hand corner.

Buoyed by their opener, Rangers took control following the half-time interval.

QPR's second goal - and probably their finest of the afternoon - arrived in the 61st minute, after Routledge saw off his marker down the left before finding the head of Helguson, who made no mistake from six yards.

And, after Taarabt was felled in the box just eight minutes later, the magical Moroccan was coolness personified, as he dusted himself down before slotting an effort into the bottom corner of the net.

The R's made one change for the trip to Boro, with Akos Buzsaky coming in for Ishmael Miller.

Fitz Hall and Danny Shittu both retained places in the centre of defence, following impressive displays in Tuesday night's 2-0 win over Ipswich Town.

Paddy Kenny was in goal for the R's, behind a back four of Bradley Orr, Hall, Shittu and Clint Hill.

Shaun Derry and Alejandro Faurlin continued in defensive midfield, behind the attacking trio of Routledge, Taarabt and Buzsaky.

In-form Helguson led the R's line.

Rangers went into this one looking to maintain their five-point lead at the top of the division.

And they were in good form to do so, too.

Indeed, QPR's midweek win over the Tractor Boys extended Warnock and his side's unbeaten run to nine league fixtures, thanks to second-half goals from experienced duo Hill and Helguson.

Meanwhile, Boro - who were, prior to kick-off, just two places above the dreaded drop zone - have enjoyed an improved run of results in recent weeks, with three wins in their last six league matches.

On a fresh afternoon in the North East, the hosts were almost gifted the lead on two minutes.

Kenny's uncharacteristically poor clearance put Scott McDonald clean through on goal but the R's keeper atoned for his error, pulling off a smart stop from the Boro front-man's scuffed effort on 18 yards.

There was little to separate the two sides in the opening quarter of an hour, but you could sense that the R's were starting to grow in confidence as the half wore on.

Taarabt went closest yet for the R's on 32 minutes.

The Moroccan magician sidestepped his marker on the edge of the box, before his stinging low effort was superbly tipped away from the target by Jason Steele.

And Taarabt went even closer just four minutes later.

Kenny's long kick bounced over the Boro defence and, when the R's attacker nipped in to lob Steele, the ball went agonisingly over the bar to land on top of the net.

Rangers were now on top and Helguson missed a glorious chance for QPR to take the lead, firing over on the half volley from 12-yards out following Faurlin's knock-on.

But the Icelandic international wasn't to be denied at the second time of asking, with the R's taking the lead on 41 minutes.

Following a fine passage of passing, the ball eventually found its way out to Taarabt on the left wing and, having beat Tony McMahon, the Rangers skipper squared for Helguson, whose deflected effort totally deceived Steele before trickling into the bottom left-hand corner.

It was a fortuitous goal for the R's, but you had to admit it was coming, as Warnock's men finished the half in the ascendancy.

QPR started the second half on the front foot.

Lovely passing play ended in the returning Buzsaky picking up possession on 20 yards, before his curling right-footed effort went inches wide of the top right-hand corner.

Moments later, Taarabt broke free down the left, only to scuff his 25-yard drive wide.

Boro boss Tony Mowbray made a double substitution on the hour, but - just seconds later - the hosts fell two goals behind.

Tormentor-in-chief Routledge was at his devastating best, skipping to the byline before arching a pinpoint cross with the outside of his foot that Helguson simply couldn't miss.

Having got goal side of Andrew Davies, Helguson buried his header from the edge of the six-yard box, much to the delight of the travelling R's faithful.

Buoyed by doubling their advantage, QPR began to fizz the ball about with ease.

And it from one such delightful move that Rangers made it three.

Taarabt was sent tumbling to ground inside the box and, having won the penalty himself, duly dusted himself down before sending Steele the wrong way.

Having been a relative spectator for the first 70 minutes, Kenny was called into action to pull off a stunning save from Barry Robson's free-kick on 25 yards.

That save, combined with the performance of the R's back four - who were marshalled magnificently by Hall - epitomised every that was positive about QPR's display.

Team work, endeavour, spirit and application - the R's had it all, on a day when Swansea City's lunchtime victory over Leeds United really turned up the heat on Warnock's top-of-the-table charges.

Middlesbrough: Steele, Bailey, McMahon, McDonald, Hines, Arca (Robson 59), Lita, Bennett, Taylor, Emnes (Zemmama 59), Davies (Haas 82).

Subs: Ripley, Boyd, Grounds, Smallwood.

Bookings: Robson (72)

QPR: Kenny, Orr (Connolly 78), Hill, Derry, Hall, Taarabt, Helguson (Hulse 84), Buzsaky (Ephraim 69), Faurlin, Routledge, Shittu.

Subs: Cerny, Gorkss, Vaagan Moen, Miller.

Scorers: Helguson (41 & 61), Taarabt (69)

Bookings: Faurlin (14), Hall (45)

Referee: Mr K P Stroud

Attendance: 16, 972 (797)
http://www.qpr.co.uk/page/MatchReport/0,,10373~53043,00.html


NORTHERN ECHO League leaders pile more misery on Boro

RELEGATION worries refuse to go away at the Riverside Stadium after another afternoon to forget for Middlesbrough.

Despite a much-needed win at Millwall seven days earlier, Boro collapsed to their second successive home defeat with a 3-0 loss to Championship leaders Queens Park Rangers.

It might not have been as exciting as the 4-3 thriller that saw them lose to Swansea, but the outcome was very much the same ahead of Nottingham Forest's visit to the North-East on Tuesday.

This was another afternoon when a failure to pick up any points has left them hovering above the bottom three.

QPR's Heidar Helguson put QPR two goals up with a goal either side of half-time before the reliably impressive Adel Taarabt completed the win from the penalty spot 22 minutes from the end.

There might have been 28 points separating these two teams before kick-off, but it hadn't looked that way for the majority of the opening half.

And Middlesbrough had the best chance of that period inside the opening 60 seconds. Paddy Kenny's woeful goal-kick fell kindly for Scott McDonald.

Middlesbrough's Aussie striker, with just the keeper to beat, was denied when Kenny redeemed himself with a low save.

Middlesbrough's problems after that were largely down to their own lapses in concentration.

A routine long ball forward caused unnecessary confusion in the home defence. Goalkeeper Jason Steele, Seb Hines and Nicky Bailey all waited for one another to take charge, Taarabt nipped in and lobbed on to the roof of the net.

And then, after a quick counter attack, Tarrabt cleverly brought down a searching pass from Alejandro Faurlin. The skilful Moroccan was allowed to turn, play in to Helguson, who took a touch before his shot deflected off Andrew Davies to beat Steele.

Regardless of what Mowbray said at the interval, Middlesbrough simply had no response from there on in to the league leaders' higher confidence.

Even when Merouane Zemmama and Barry Robson were introduced by the Boro boss to try to change things just before the hour, seconds later QPR added their second.

Routledge, on loan from Newcastle for the rest of the season, burst beyond Tony McMahon and delivered a precise cross with the outside of his boot to tee up Helguson to head in his second.

And when Zemmama went down to tackle compatriot Tarrabt there seemed little point, even more so when referee Keith Stroud pointed to the spot.

Then Tarrabt pushed away Helguson, on a hat-trick, to take the penalty himself and he found Steele's bottom right to send hundreds of Teesside supporters away early
http://www.thenorthernecho.co.uk/sport/football/middlesbrough/reports/8878377.League_leaders_pile_more_misery_on_Boro/


- "Spot the Ball II:" - The Answer!

-

Saturday, February 26, 2011

TEAMS: Middlesbrough vs QPR - Buzsaky Returns

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Throughout the day, updates, comments and perspectives re QPR and football in general are posted and discussed on the QPR Report Messageboard...Also Follow: QPR REPORT ON TWITTER
_____________________________________________________________________________________

- Middlesbrough 0 QPR 3: Early MATCH REPORT & COMMENTS


- One Decade Ago Today: Ian Holloway Appointed Manager of Queen's Park Rangers!

- RIP: Ex-Wolves/Southampton and Spurs Defender Dean Richards (Aged 36)

- At Game time: Join in the QPR Report "Live Chat"


TEAMS: MIDDLESBROUGH vs QPR

Middlesbrough: Steele, Bailey, McMahon, McDonald, Hines, Arca, Lita, Bennett, Taylor, Emnes, Davies.
Subs: Ripley, Haas, Zemmama, Boyd, Robson, Grounds, Smallwood.

QPR: Kenny, Orr, Hill, Derry, Hall, Taarabt, Helguson, Buzsaky, Faurlin, Routledge, Shittu.
Subs: Cerny, Gorkss, Connolly, Hulse, Vaagan Moen, Ephraim, Miller.


- Next: Middlesbrough - Stats/Past Results/Past Match Reports

- QPR Report Interview: The Middlesbrough Perspective


- "Spot the Ball II:" - The Answer!

- Great Video: QPR vs Ipswich - As much for the close-up/Match Atmosphere (As posted on Twitter)

- Neil Roberts Dying Wish for More Runners (Race for Life Herne Bay: June 2011)

- Gavin Mahon Extends QPR Stay by Another Month (till mid-March)

QPR Report Saturday: Warnock's Weekly...Kenny Profiled...Decade Flashback: Ian Holloway Appointed QPR Manager

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QPR's First Season in the Football League (1920-21) Enlarged Photo
-
Throughout the day, updates, comments and perspectives re QPR and football in general are posted and discussed on the QPR Report Messageboard...Also Follow: QPR REPORT ON TWITTER
_____________________________________________________________________________________

- At Game time: Join in the QPR Report "Live Chat"

- Next: Middlesbrough - Stats/Past Results/Past Match Reports

- QPR Report Interview: The Middlesbrough Perspective

- Great Video: QPR vs Ipswich - As much for the close-up/Match Atmosphere (As posted on Twitter)


- Neil Roberts Dying Wish for More Runners (Race for Life Herne Bay: June 2011)

- Port Vale Manager Gannon Removed From Team Bus

- Change of Date for Last Match of the Season: QPR's (and all others) will Now played on Saturday May 7 (12:45 kickoff) instead of Sunday, May 8.

- Gavin Mahon Extends QPR Stay by Another Month (till mid-March)

- "Spot the Ball II:" - The Answer!


Irish Independent/Daniel McDonnell - Kenny's Indian summer plenty of food for thought - QPR 'keeper gives Trap

Saturday February 26 2011

FROM Ziggy's Spice House to the Premier League. Paddy Kenny's road to redemption is almost complete.

The in-form Irish 'keeper made his 500th appearance in English football on Tuesday and marked the occasion with his 18th clean sheet in the league for QPR this season.

Kenny can reflect on the landmark with particular pride, given that his career has twice threatened to go off the rails in recent years. In fact, when he takes the field for the Championship leaders at Middlesbrough this afternoon, he will be just 63 miles away from his hometown of Halifax, where his life seemed to be unravelling on an October night four and a half years ago.

An ill-advised night on culminated with Kenny having part of his eyebrow bitten off outside Ziggy's, a late-night Indian curry house, by a man who claimed that he was having an affair with the goalkeeper's wife Karen.

Headlines

The front page headlines didn't stop there. It turned out that Karen had left Kenny for another man, a friend who had been a guest at their wedding. "I was a baddy to my Paddy," screamed the headline in 'The Sun.'

Such public humiliation perhaps puts any football shame in comparison, but those personal issues came only a few weeks after he was the man between the sticks in Ireland's 5-2 thrashing at the hands of Cyprus. Hesitant that evening, Kenny pulled out of the following game with Czech Republic and hasn't represented the country of his parents since.

Indeed, in the turmoil that followed, he asked then boss Steve Staunton not to consider him for international squads. He changed his mind in 2008, but no subsequent call has been forthcoming.

There is a clamour for Giovanni Trapattoni to extend that invitation in the wake of Shay Given's latest setback, yet it seems that goalkeeping coach Alan Kelly -- who was part of Staunton's backroom staff -- was leaning towards other options when he spoke earlier this week.

After the Cypriot debacle, there were repeated murmurings in Irish football circles that his withdrawal from the Czech game was less to do with injury and more to do with his desire at that point.

Perhaps the stigma remains, yet Kenny has the appearance of a reformed character now, a physical shadow of his former self who looks in better shape than he did in some of his burlier days at Sheffield United.

His eight years with the Yorkshire club ended last summer in controversial fashion, when he accepted a double-your-money offer to move to London on a £20,000-a-week contract.

The outrage in Sheffield derived from the fact that the Blades had supported Kenny through his second major controversy, an incident with grave implications in 2009. He tested positive for ephedrine in a routine drugs test which followed a play-off semi-final with Preston. Tablets bought to cure a chest infection were blamed, and a nine-month ban was the punishment. Sheffield United stayed loyal, and the supporters felt it was thrown back in their face when a key player walked out for a better offer.

The other significant factor, of course, was Neil Warnock. The ever-divisive manager -- nicknamed Colin W***er by opposition fans (work out the anagram) -- gave Kenny a chance at his first senior club, Bury, and then splashed the cash to bring him to the next level with Sheffield United. When Kenny was coping with headlines about drug shame, Warnock, then with Crystal Palace, vocally spoke out on his behalf.

"It's a tragedy," he said. "He's a big softy who has got no malice in him whatsoever. But it won't stop him from getting a club because he's a good 'keeper, the best in the Championship."

In the end, Warnock waited until he moved to a club with the cash to move for the 32-year-old and secured his man. His unique style of management strikes a chord with the player. Famously, after the incident outside Ziggy's, Warnock praised his 'keeper for not having dessert. "That's the positive for me," he said. "The other guy must have been hungrier." Behind closed doors, the approach would have been different, but in a testing period, he kept the player on-side.

The bottom line is that Kenny has emerged from his travails to a new happiness in a Warnock dressing-room packed with characters, of which the goalkeeper is one of the more vocal members. Earlier this week, in a piece with the QPR programme to mark his 500th outing, Kenny suggested that he hasn't reached his peak.

"I don't think being the other side of 30 is a big issue, particularly for goalkeepers," he said. "With age comes experience and I don't actually think you really gain that decent level of experience until you are in your late 20s or early 30s. I hope my best years are still to come.

"This has got to be the best form of my career now. Team spirit is so important -- and the gaffer makes it happen.

"All the players love him, love playing for him and he knows what to do to get the best out of every individual."

Certainly, Kenny can vouch for that, as he prepares to embark on an exciting chapter in his tale, even if the suspicion lingers that the desire to revive his Irish ambitions may remain unsatisfied for a little bit longer. Either way, he's on track for an Indian summer rather than an Indian supper. - Daniel McDonnell Irish Independent


Independent
Neil Warnock: Where have I seen him before? How Razak did a runner after I had tried to help him at Palace
What I Learnt This Week
Saturday, 26 February 2011

I would like to tell you a story from my previous club, Crystal Palace.

We had a young lad there who had come over from Ghana to play in a junior tournament and clearly wanted to stay in Britain. He told us he was 15 years old, though he was very reluctant to tell us anything about who he was or where he had come from. He had no passport. What he did have was bags of ability. In fact, I've never seen such a talented 15-year-old.

Palace helped him in a way that I've never seen any club support a young player. They spent a year coaching him and giving him all the support he needed. They made sure he was living in a safe environment and had money in his pocket. When Palace played Manchester City I went out of my way to introduce him to Emmanuel Adebayor.

However, without a passport he had problems staying here. The club worked tirelessly to help him. I went to four meetings with the immigration people in Croydon to speak on his behalf.

Then one day, without even telling us, he vanished. We couldn't get hold of him at his home and never saw or heard from him again. His name was Abdul Razak.

I read the other day about an 18-year-old African player who made his debut for Manchester City earlier this month. The article said that he had come from Ivory Coast but was facing deportation because he had been given only temporary leave to live here. His name? Abdul Razak.

You can imagine how the steam came out of my ears when I read this, after all the time and help we had given him.

2. Wenger is right to keep Fabregas out of cup final

Leaving Cesc Fabregas out of Arsenal's team to play Birmingham in tomorrow's Carling Cup final will have been a tough decision for all concerned. However, given his injury I'm sure it was the right one.

Arsène Wenger and Fabregas must be desperate to win some silverware, but it's vital that their captain, who is such a key player, is fit for the challenges that lie ahead. Arsenal are still going strong in the Champions League and FA Cup and they are the only serious rivals to Manchester United in the Premier League. A fit Fabregas can lead them to great things.

As soon as I saw him walk off with a hamstring injury against Stoke City I knew there was no way he would be fully fit to play four days later, although I'm sure he would have done anything to make the team.

Over the years I can remember a number of occasions when players were desperate to play in matches when I knew deep down that they weren't really fit. At other times a player who seems to have recovered can just break down again. It happened to us at Queen's Park Rangers a fortnight ago with Tommy Smith, who had also been out with a hamstring injury. He'd had two weeks of treatment, had trained hard and had been running and tackling without any problem. He returned against Nottingham Forest and scored a cracking goal but had to come off with a recurrence of the injury. He hasn't played since and is likely to be out for another week.

What an extraordinary last 10 days it's been for Arsenal. There was the wonderful Champions League victory over Barcelona, the FA Cup draw against Leyton Orient (a result which I predicted on talkSport last weekend), the win over Stoke, who are never easy opponents, and now tomorrow's cup final against Birmingham. To come through such contrasting tests unbeaten would show that they can cope with anything and would help them enormously in their final push this season.

As for Birmingham, it's a massive achievement for Alex McLeish to have got his team to Wembley. I bet he can hardly believe he is there, given the state of play at half-time in the second leg of their semi-final against West Ham. How Avram Grant's team threw away their place in the final I'll never know.

3. Championship should ban the unfair 'multiball' system

Watford are the latest team to fall foul of the "multiball" system, whereby ballboys and ballgirls can speed up play by throwing back a different ball after the original has gone out. Watford were leading 1-0 in midweek when some nifty work by a ballboy enabled Bristol City to launch a quick attack and equalise. Malky Mackay, Watford's manager, complained that play should have been stopped because there were two balls on the pitch at the start of the move.

We don't use the system at Loftus Road
. Human nature being what it is, I think the system is always likely to be operated unfairly, to the advantage of the home side, even though it was the away team that benefited at Watford.

Reading have used the system for years. As soon as the ball goes out at the Madejski Stadium it's thrown straight back into the hands of the home players. When it's a throw-in for the away team there are occasions when the ball is rolled towards them on the floor rather than being thrown. The multiball system is banned in the Premier League and I think it's time we followed suit in the Championship.

4. I could kick myself for taking defeat out on an anvil

Reading about Ricky Ponting's dressing-room tantrum at the Cricket World Cup this week, which left a television set in disrepair, brought back painful memories of a time when I took my Burton Albion team to Macclesfield. We were winning 1-0, but the referee played seven minutes of injury time and Macclesfield scored with the last kick of the game.

In the dressing room afterwards I saw what I thought was a piece of plastic on the floor and took a huge kick at it. Next thing I knew I was feeling pain like I'd never experienced before. What I'd kicked was one of those old-fashioned metal anvils you used when hammering studs into boots. Not wanting to tell the players how much pain I was in, I went straight into the shower room and bit my fist.

The nearest I've come to lashing out like that again was when we conceded a 93rd-minute equaliser at home to Bristol City this season, but I kept my cool. It's just as well that I've mellowed over the years.

5. Dress-down match days suit me so much better

Sports scientists at the University of Portsmouth have discovered that players pay more attention to managers when they're wearing tracksuits for training and suits for match days. I tried wearing a suit on match days after my Sheffield United team got promoted. It was at the start of the season and the weather was sweltering. I've never sweated so much and after three matches I was back in my tracksuit. What was good enough for Brian Clough and still works for Martin O'Neill will do for me.

6. McCoist's time has come – but he'll never be punctu-Ally

I'm delighted Ally McCoist will be succeeding Walter Smith as manager of Rangers. Ally's a wonderful guy, very humorous and good to be around. However, I did think to myself: I wonder if he'll get to all of the games on time? Ally's the worst timekeeper I've ever met.

7. Poor reward for Green Army's loyal service

I was sad to see my old club Plymouth Argyle going into administration. I just hope Argyle can survive because they're a wonderful club with magnificent supporters who follow the team in vast numbers all over the country.

When I was Argyle's manager we played at Hartlepool, where the Green Army were out in force as usual. I remember meeting two fans, a father and son. I said to the father: "I bet you had an early start today. When did you leave – about 6am?" He said: "Oh no, we left at 2am." They lived near Land's End, so they had to drive for up to three hours just to get to Plymouth. That's what you call loyal fans. Independent


A DECADE AGO TODAY: IAN HOLLOWAY APPOINTED QPR MANAGER

February 26, 2001

QPR Official Site - HOLLOWAY CONFIRMED AS BOSS

IAN HOLLOWAY was this afternoon unveiled as the new manager of Queens Park Rangers at a press conference at Loftus Road.

The 37-year-old who managed Bristol Rovers for four and a half seasons left the Memeorial Ground earlier this season and returns to Loftus Road where he spent five years as a player. Further details and quotes from the new boss will appear here later.

QPR Official Site - HOLLOWAY - I AM MY OWN MAN

NEW RANGERS boss Ian Holloway insists his return to Loftus Road is a challenge he is cannot wait to undertake.

Holloway, who spent five years as the club in the mid '90s takes over the reins at Loftus Road less than a month after leaving his post as boss of Bristol Rovers, and follows the path of Rangers' Director of Football Gerry Francis, who also swapped the West Country for a return to West London in 1991.

Subsequently Holloway's respect for Francis, who he served under as a player for ten years, is very high, but the 37-year-old insists that he is very much his own man.

The new boss has signed a contract until the end of the season with a view to another year and he is very glad to be back at Loftus Road.

"I was lucky enough to work with Gerry for over ten years at two different clubs and when I met him I thought I knew a lot about football," he said.

"After I met him I realised I knew nothing. What he doesn't know about the game you can write on the back of a postage stamp and the affect that he had on my overall career was so strong that I think without him I wouldn't be say here right now.

"However, I am my own person, I have my own ideas and I motivate players in a different way to Gerry and I want to rub off on these players here and if I need anybody watched or any guidance then I can talk to Gerry.

"I am one of life's optimists but my policy is to be honest and open with our fans. They are the ones who pay the money to come in. Anyone who knows me will tell you I am a wholehearted, passionate person and I was brought here before to rub off on the other players.

"I am hoping I can do that here with the players at the club and I am desperately looking forward to meeting them tomorrow morning and getting down to work." "I am absolutely delighted to be taking this on this challenge and I believe that by all pulling in the right direction we can get out of the position we are in."

More comprehensive quotes and a closer look at the new Rangers boss will appear here this afternoon.

QPR Official Site - DEPUTY CHAIRMAN ON HOLLOWAY APPOINTMENT

DEPUTY-CHAIRMAN Nick Blackburn believes the Rangers board have appointed the right man in Ian Holloway to take over as manager from Gerry Francis.

"We set a certain criteria in appointing a new manager; we wanted someone the ability to motivate, coach well, had experience of management but also someone who was on their way up in the game, someone to help re-structure the club in terms of the academy and the youth system and finally a man who knows players at a lower level in the game or people from Academy league clubs," he said.
"We also knew that Ian made a lot of money in the transfer market with Bristol Rovers which is something we have failed to do in recent years and also his ability to spot and develop players which he has done with the likes of Barry Hayles, Jason Roberts and Bobby Zamora in his time there.

"I know he brings a lot of passion in the way he works and has a lot of passion for this football club and after last Saturday's performance at Wimbledon, I hope some of that passion transmits to the players.

"Ian has signed a contract until the end of this season with another year with options and he is very heavily incentivised especially if he can keep us in the First Division this year which is absolutley crucial to the future of this club.

"He is also heavily incentivised in terms of league positions so I hope he is going to be here for another few years because if he is it will be because he has been able to bring success to the football club.

QPR Official Site - HOLLOWAY READY FOR RANGERS CHALLENGE

THE appointment of Ian Holloway as the new manager of Queens Park Rangers was not a huge surprise considering the 37-year old's links with the club and speculation which had linked him with a move back to west London.

'Olly' spent five years as a player at Loftus Road in the mid '90s, being brought to the club by Gerry Francis from Bristol Rovers as one of his first signings to play the role of a combative midfielder who, along with Simon Barker and Ray Wilkins, formed an midfield engine room which more than held their own with the Premiership's finest. .

Holloway, by his own admission was not a player who was up there with the likes of Ferdinand, Wilson, Sinclair and Wilkins, in terms of ability, but his whole-hearted, determined style made him a warm favourite with the Loftus Road faithful. .

"It was a huge part of my playing career and I was so proud playing here, anyone who watched me in my time here could see what I was about; wholehearted, determined and I was delighted to work for Gerry. Without doubt this was the biggest club I ever played for and for me to be sat here today is fantastic," said Ian today after being unveiled as the new incumbent in the Loftus Road hotseat.

Holloway's family life has been well-documented with two of his children being profoundly deaf and his wife having bravely beaten Cancer during his time at Brentford over a decade ago, but Holloway's positive attitude in times of adversity made him a hugely popular figure with his team mates in his first spell in west London.

Such positivity is something he is desperate to bring back to the club and Holloway insisted today that there will be no room for negative vibes in his dressing room despite the fact that he is taking over a side which has just experienced conceding five goals or more in a game for the third time in a month.

"I fully aware and realistic of what we have to do but I am fed up with pessimists, I am an eternal optimist and I am so looking forward to this challenge.

"The players will get from me honesty and enthusiasm. I sincerely feel in my heart of hearts that I can keep this club up. We've had some cruel luck with injuries but all I am saying is that with determination, belief it is amazing what you can achieve. .

"I look for people who give me a positive when there is a negative and there are a few negatives at the moment but I know we can turn these things around."

Ian comes into the club with no fewer than 18 players out of contract in the summer and the new boss today warned that those who want to stay with the club would have to earn the right to be a Queens Park Rangers player.

"It is amazing what a new face can do there are an awful lot of players at this club out of contract and if they want to prove to me with hard work and determination that they want to be here next season by showing pride and passion for the club then they will have every chance for me to deal with them fairly.

"I won't criticise people before I start as the players don't know me I don't know them, it was a bad result on Saturday at Wimbledon but the two previous ones give me hope. As long as it is mathematically possible to remain in this division then we are in with a shout. I am a people person and I cannot wait to work with these people."

Prior to his arrival in Shepherds Bush Holloway has spent four and half seasons trying to get his home town club Bristol Rovers into Division One and he narrowly missed out in two heartbreaking occasions in 1999 and last season.

However, in his spell at the Memorial Ground he did add over £5 million into the club's coffers with the sales of Barry Hayles, Jason Roberts, Jamie Cureton and Bobby Zamora and his eye for a player is something what enhanced his reputation as a bright managerial prospect.

Last season was a heartbreaking one for everyone concerned with the Pirates as their promotion dream ended in disaster when a final day of the season defeat to Cardiff saw them drop out of the top six for the first time all season and miss out on the play-offs completely. .

"It was disastrous time for the club especially Olly who very much built that team and in the summer things went from bad to worse when Roberts and Cureton had to be sold," said Chris Swift, the Rovers Football Correspondent for the Bristol Evening Post.

"In his time here he did produce a team which liked to get the ball down and play but a combination of some of the bigger players being tapped up by agents for moves to larger clubs and injuries they missed out at the final hurdle twice.

"It was rotten luck for the whole team really last season as coming into the last eight games he lost his whole midfield with season-ending injuries and he simply didn't have the squad to cover the cracks.

"It was a horrible feeling for everyone concerned as a year earlier they missed out on a Wembley appearance after losing in the play offs to Northampton 3-0 after winning the first leg 2-0 at home and this season the team hasn't really recovered from the loss of two players who bagged 50 goals between them in a season," said Swift.

Holloway left the Memorial Ground a month ago after struggling start to the season but says his enthusiasm for the game has not been diluted one little bit.

"I am very proud of the fact that I have only been out of work for four weeks which has given me a chance to spend with my family something which you can't do too much as a manager, but once you are bitten in the neck you are a vampire and I can't wait to get back in there and start work with the lads here.

"When you go into a new job you never know what other people think of you. However, I know what some of the lads that I have taken from a lesser standard and worked with have done and I am very proud of them and I know what they think of me.

"My relationship with Jason Roberts was fantastic and it broke my heart when I had to sell him to West Brom, but I have faith in my ability and I am determined to succeed here with these players.

"If they want to work with me morning, noon and night to improve themselves then I am willing to do that. I will work with them as much as I can and I can't stress enough just how excited I am to get this opportunity and I honestly cannot wait to get started." .

Deputy chairman Nick Blackburn admitted at this afternoon's gathering that he was unsure as to how assistant manager Iain Dowie would react to the news of Holloway's appointment after he failed to get the job, and Holloway said he was unsure of Dowie's position in the new set-up.

"I am convinced that Iain Dowie will have a great career as a manager. I have not spoken to him since the appointment but it is up to the two Ians to decide what they will do for the future," he said.

Holloway did not rule out the likelihood of Dowie remaining at the club, but insisted that until he had spoken to the staff and the players at the club he wasn't prepared to comment.

"Until I have spoken to everyone here I cannot comment on what will happen but I have my own ideas which I want done my way. I know football is notorious for managers bringing their own people in, but until I have assessed the whole set-up I cannot say what will happen." .

BBC - Monday, 26 February, 2001, QPR name Holloway as boss

Queens Park Rangers have named Ian Holloway as the new manager at Loftus Road.

Former QPR midfielder Holloway - sacked as Bristol Rovers boss last month - takes over from Gerry Francis who announced he was standing down 10 days ago.

I can't wait to take it on and I feel we can kick on from this
QPR boss Ian Holloway

He said: "I'm absolutely delighted to take this challenge on and motivate some of these players.

"It was a huge part of my playing career and I felt so proud. Anybody that watched me play could see what I was - whole-hearted and determined.

"This is the biggest club I ever played for and what we achieved in those five years, I was delighted.

"I can't wait to take it on and I feel we can kick on from this."

Optimistic

Holloway has joined Rangers on a contract for the remainder of this season and the whole of next term with options for an extension.

He is optimistic that he can keep the struggling club in the First Division, but insists that it is not just down to him.

"The players have got to work hard and they'll get honesty and enthusiasm from me and hopefully that will rub off.

"We are fully realistic of where we are and what we've got to do."

The former Rovers boss takes charge of first-team affairs on Tuesday and will work alongside his former mentor Francis, who has become the club's director of football.

But Holloway's appointment - which Francis is widely reported to have supported - throws the future of Rangers' assistant manager Iain Dowie into doubt.

Dowie was desperate to take over but, having failed in his second bid to land the job, could be set to leave the club altogether especially if - as expected - Holloway brings in Gary Penrice as his assistant. BBC


MAIL/STANDARD - Football: Holloway's back as QPR manager
by DAVID BOND, Evening Standard


Former Loftus Road favourite Ian Holloway was today appointed manager of Queens Park Rangers and handed the task of steering his old club clear of relegation.
Holloway, who played 147 games for QPR, has just 13 matches left to guide them to safety. Saturday's 5-0 defeat at Wimbledon left Rangers one place above the drop zone on goal difference.
His appointment comes 10 days after Gerry Francis announced he was standing down as manager. The game on Saturday was his last in charge of the team and he is now expected to take up the club's offer of a place on the board.
But Holloway, who was sacked as manager of Bristol Rovers last month, will be in full control of the side for Saturday's home League clash against Sheffield United.
The club refused to reveal the length of his contract but confirmed it was not a stop-gap measure and that Holloway's deal was "multi-year".
Iain Dowie will remain as his assistant for the time being even though he was interviewed and turned down for the manager's position.
Chief executive David Davies said: "Ian is one of the club's most enthusiastic sons and we are delighted he has decided to join us. He will be fundamental in keeping the club in Division One this year."
With the club facing an uncertain future following chairman Chris Wright's decision to sell his majority stakeholding, finding a new manager has proved difficult. Last week Dave Basset, Wycombe's Lawrie Sanchez and former Huddersfield manager Steve Bruce all distanced themselves from the job. But Davies says Holloway was always their No 1 choice.
He added: "No one else was offered the job. Steve (Bruce), Lawrie (Sanchez) and David (Basset) were never actually offered the post in the first instance. Two of those three were seen in interviews along with Ian and we only made one offer and that was to Ian.
"We believe he is the man to take us forward. His four and a half years at Bristol Rovers typified his character and in the end he got no reward for that work. We think he was unlucky to get sacked from Bristol Rovers but we are certainly not complaining as it has been to our advantage.
"He has never courted publicity but if you examine the statistics both with wins, losses and points and also in player trading, he has done extremely well.
"He has worked with financial restraints and in our current situation that's what we need. I think one or two of the other people we saw might not have been comfortable with that.
"When Ian was a player he instilled a great deal of affection with our fans. He never gave up and that's the attitude we need to get us out of trouble now.
"We've got 13 games to go and I'm sure the first thing he will do is to work on the dynamics of the team and the players' willingness to go that extra yard. Woe betide any of them who aren't prepared to do that."
There still remains the job of finding new owners and Davies said: "We can now devote all our energies to finding a buyer."

Monday, February 26, 2001 : Soccer: Holloway named QPR boss

Ian Holloway has been named as the new manager of struggling First Division side Queens Park Rangers.Holloway was sacked as manager of Second Division Bristol Rovers last month and takes over from Gerry Francis, who recently resigned as QPR boss.Holloway made more than 200 appearances for the Loftus Road club between 1991 and 1996.He will take over another club fighting relegation - Rangers are fourth bottom of Division One and were on the wrong end of a 5-0 drubbing at Wimbledon on Saturday.Bristol Rovers almost won a play-off place under Holloway last season, but have endured a dramatic change of fortune this season.Despite beating Everton in the Worthington Cup under Holloway, they failed to win a home game prior to his departure on January 30.
http://archives.tcm.ie/breakingnews/2001/02/26/story5110.asp


- QPR Report's "Spot The Ball" - Week II

Friday, February 25, 2011

Last Day of Season Change...Middlesbrough Assessed...Hewitt, Shittu, Smith, Rowlands Updates...Run for Neil Roberts (RIP)...QPR Community Trust

Loftus Road 1972: QPR vs Middlesbrough - Enlarged Photo
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Throughout the day, updates, comments and perspectives re QPR and football in general are posted and discussed on the QPR Report Messageboard...Also Follow: QPR REPORT ON TWITTER
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- Change of Date for Last Match of the Season: QPR's (and all others) will Now played on Saturday May 7 (12:45 kickoff) instead of Sunday, May 8.

- Five Years ago Today Flashback: Gary Waddock's QPR Beats Neil Warnock's Sheffield United - Reports

- On This Day in Football: February 25 (including in the Old First Divisio: Coventry 5QPR 0)

- QPR Report's "Spot The Ball" - Week II

- Waiting for an Official Announcement re Harrow's Hewitt to QPR

- Four Years Ago: Three New QPR Board Members announced by Chairman Paladini

- Lakshmi Mittal and Amit Bhatia Get Royal Wedding Invites?!
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Update: Now Published and Reviewed: A second book about Bernie Ecclestone


Fulham Chronicle - New QPR striker tipped for top by former bossBy Jon Batham
- TROY Hewitt’s fairytale move to QPR is a real Roy of the Rovers story - but Harrow boss David Howell believes the best chapters are still to be written.
- The 21-year-old striker moved to the Championship leaders on Tuesday night, completing a comic book hero-type rise from Clapton Rovers to Loftus Road in less than two full seasons.
- Many will view the move as a real gamble by both the player and Rangers boss Neil Warnock.
- But Howell, who coached at Birmingham City under Trevor Francis and has overseen moves by Albert Adomah and Robin Shroot from Borough into league football, insists this is just the beginning for his former hotshot.
- He said: "Troy is a Roy of the Rovers story but there are loads of chapters still to go – this is just the beginning of a massive journey and I’m pleased for him.
- "I have no doubt Troy has the ability to make a name for himself in the professional game. Forget the goalscoring and his ability - Troy’s biggest asset is his temperament. Nothing fazes him.
- "Had he signed in time they could have put him on the pitch against Ipswich and it wouldn’t have bothered him, and it is not because he’s big headed, he just loves football and he’s bright, sparky and alive."
- Hewitt was not under contract at Borough and was not even one of the higher wage earners, having only arrived at Earlsmead in the summer.
- Nevertheless, Rangers paid an undisclosed compensation fee to Harrow in recognition of their part in his development, as well as promising a first-team friendly in the coming pre-season. Fulham Chronicle


- Next: Middlesbrough - Stats/Past Results/Past Match Reports



The Middlesbrough Perspective

QPR Report Q&A Interview with Middlesbrough fan Robert Nichols


Robert Nichols runs www.fansonline.net/middlesbrough fmttm.com/fly me to the moon (FMTTM) and is director of fansonline - independent fans site network

Starting simply: How long have you supported Middlesbrough? And how long have you been involved with the Website? How did you get to be the editor?

I've supported Boro since I was a young un. My dad got my brother and me season tickets with him back in 1975 when we had just been promoted to the top flight under Jack Charlton. Though would you believe my brother later defected to another team for a while. Guess who? QPR.

I took over Fly Me To The Moon fanzine in 1994 and have been doing it for every league match since then. From that people twisted my arm to start a website and we did that in 1999 with a message board a year later that has really taken off, pardon the pun. Fortunately technically minded people did all the hard work. But Boro has been my hobby and job most of my life now I guess. Well worth it.

How do you get on with the other Middlesbrough fan sites: Are there any serious inter-board conflicts (as there certainly are between certain QPR boards!)?

There aren't any other paper fanzines anymore but there are one or two other websites. For a time I was working with comeonboro when the Rivals network exploded but mostly I just do my own thing. The more sites the merrier I guess. Hopefully people know I'm at all the games, last missed one in 1999 so I'm speaking from the heart and the head. You might not agree with me but at least I saw the game it with my own eyes.

Do Middlesbrough have one (or two) special rivals? Is it an equal two-way rivalry? (I'm assuming it's Sunderland and Newcastle)? Which ranks higher?

Yes Sunderland and Newcastle are our main rivals though not according
to them. I always feel they protest too loudly about this. It depends who is in our league as to who the biggest rivals are. When I was a kid Leeds were the big rivals, we were in Yorkshire in those days and Leeds were this massive club still. Now we are down in the Championship that Boro v Leeds rivalrly has returned again.

What do you think of your current manager? What did you think of his predecessors such as Southgate. For a while you were very loyal after a fair amount of turmoil!

We couldn't have a better manager than Tony Mowbray - he was our captain colossus when we nearly went into liquidation and led us from the brink to the top flight. But he also a manager with a football philosophy, a deep thinker about the game, a local lad that cares, someone to truly believe in and Fmttm - Fly Me To The Moon is named after a statement made by late 80s Boro boss Bruce Rioch saying if he had to go the moon he wanted Mowbray by his side. Thats the way we all se it now. Mowbray has come back to guide the club through challenging times and hopefully a rebirth again someday soon.

Looking back I don't have much time for Gordon Strachan - I feel I was taken in and hoodwinked by his experience and battle plan. It seemed convincing but was so badly misguided, filling the team with expensively waged players from the SPL it has left us in a real mess. I think he has got off lightly with the fans. By contrast I think Gareth Southgate has had a far rougher ride than he ought to have had.

A rookie manager given no guidance and ordered to cut the wage bill year in year out. He was on a hiding to nothing. As a club captain that lifted our first ever silverware, as a gentleman and someone that thinks and cares deeply I greatly admire Gareth Southgate and wish him well in his career.

What do you think of the current Middlesbrough Owners? WHY are they involved? (Your Chairman Gibson, seems great - especially in comparison to some other clubs)What do you expect? Could they realistically have done more to boost your chances?

Steve Gibson is getting a rough ride by many fans at the moment but that is the reality of relegation and suddenly having to drastically down size as a club, you are not going to be thanked or praised. At the moment many are screaming at him to back the manager more or come out and make some public statement but I think he realises now is the time to let the manager and the team do the talking and then in the summer we recharge.

I think we are very lucky to still have a local chairman and manager and many local players all still in touch with the community and knowing what it is all about. There are very few football clubs like that these days. We could be unique in fact. I'm very thankful indeed.

How do you think Middlesbrough treats its fans? Appreciates them? Listens to them? Screws them?

Personally I think the treatment of the fans by the club has undergone something of a revolution in recent times. I think it is very difficult times because we are struggling on the pitch and off it and that often masks what is actually a pretty close relationship now. We have fan forums that come up with ideas and help make decisions from the food we eat to the music we listen to. Today I've just got back from VIP guided tours for the half term hols. Kids and parents can go round the ground behind the scenes and meet players and ask them questions etc. It was sold out.

But generally there is a lot of dialogue between fans and the club which has to be good. Nothing is perfect and it becomes twice as hard when the club is struggling but they generally try very hard with supporters. The chairman always describes himself as merely a custodian of the club and looking after it for the fans.

You are presumably a little - more than a little - disappointed with how Middlesbrough are doing this season. But in you heart of hearts, what were you expecting pre-season?

We were favourites for promotion if you recall. We gambled all the parachute payments on one big push and it failed spectacularly. I think with hindsight we could see the manager's plans had unravelled very early in the season and maybe the game at Loftus Road was a last chance to show if we still had it in us. But the decision to release two left backs and instead play a midfielder in Barry Robson in the role was our undoing in the game and pointed to one of Gordon Strachan's big weaknesses in his year at the club. His decision making was poor and appeared flawed by his personal hunches and grudges. He wasn't a popular man by the time he left, he almost totally failed to connect with fans or media and at a heart of the community club that was fatal.

Who are you Dangermen/Most valued/most overrated/most underrated players?

Well we have lost most of our names now but sadly not the big salaries. Nicky Bailey puts in a mega shift anchoring the midfield and has risen from scapegoat to fans favourite in half a season. Marvin Emnes promises to bring goals to his speed and skillful forward play. New signing Merouane Zemmama looks capable of having the vision to unlock the potential of the forwards. But the two outstanding prospects at the moment are England Under 21 graduates Jason Steele (keeper) and Joe Bennett left back - they could go all the way to the top. Strachan wanted to sell Bennett for £200 000!!!

Prediction for season promotion/relegation places - And how would that compare with pre-season prediction?

I was miles off I thought Pompey would go down and Hull because I thought they would both be crippled financially. Not sure whether it is luck or prudence that has stopped this. I did think Scun.thorpe would struggle and they Preston and Sheff U look likely to go down.

Going up I would have thought QPR and Cardiff are too strong not to I take Swansea to win the play offs because they play superb football and I think they now have more cutting edge. Forest and Leicester could have other ideas though. Both could end up going up.

What is your view and the general Middlesbrough view of QPR (If we even feature in your consciousness)? 25 Years ago, we had the famous come from 0-4 down to draw 5-5 at QPR under Jackie Charlton's Middlesbrough. [Sic! Uupdate: As has subsequently been pointed out, it was Charlton's Newcastle NOT Middlesbrough that was the 5-5 result!] I remember QPR getting smashed 6-2 at Middlesbrough after being 2-0 in first five minutes. I think a John Hickton hatrick.

My view on QPR is based on years gone by when you had great entertainers - Bowles, Marsh, Thomas, then Currie etc and even Ferdinand. You were great to watch and phenomenal that year you finished 2nd in the league.

Yep that is right we have had some great clashes over the years. I remember you beating us 6-0 on the plastic pitch on Match of the Day - Malcolm Allison was our manager and his total football philosophy saw him play centre forward Dave Shearer at right back and he was taken to the cleaners. Half way through the game he chased the ball into the stand and took a breather sitting on the seats.

With my brother having followed QPR at one time there was a bit ofrivalrly in our house. But we both actually went to Wembley, our first time, to stand behind the goal in the drawn FA Cup final with Spurs. Tony Currie was sublime that day anchoring the midfield.

What are your past Encounter Memories - Best Memory/Worst Memory of Past QPR- Encounters? Who is your favourite QPR Player over the years? (And your least favourite)? Ditto any view of Neil Warnock?

Sorry I answered some of this above didn't I? But favourite players would be Stan Bowles probably a superb player. I also loved watching Dave Thomas dance down the wing, he later joined Boro and it was a privilege to watch his skills.

Neil Warnock - love to hate him - but actually he is a very good manager indeed. We first came across him when he took Notts County and not us up through the play offs to the top flight many years ago. Not sure I would want to be a 4th official when he comes to town but he knows all about getting out of this league.

Are you looking forward to playing QPR?

Yep certainly am - it will be great to go up against the top in the league. It seems to bring the best out of us, we beat Cardiff not long ago and were very unlucky v Leeds and Norwich. Looking forward to a good contest.

SCORE PREDICTION for Middlesbrough-QPR?

I think it will be a good game but I take us to win 2-1 - we can draw on the belief from fighting back from behind v Millwall last week.

Where, realistically, do you think Middlesbrough will be in five years time?

I hope we are back in the Premier league and challenging for Europe again. I feel it is possible. Even in these dark times.

Do you have any advice for QPR fans, in the event that we do go up? (Spend more/spend less; keep the manager; change the manager, etc)

You should definitely keep the manager and the players - guard against alienating the promotion players by making them feel 2nd class to a new group coming in. Blackpool are doing it the correct way - sticking to their principles and slowly adding ability and strength to the squad. Patience is what it is all about first season up and slowly building. Big change can see you going down as rapidly as you come up - even if you have got masses of financial backing. Oh and the fans need to get used to expensive away trips and to matches being rearranged on a whim for tv. You probably have that already.

What one or two questions do you wish I had asked you (and how would you have responded?!)

You've done well enough I think. We are in a kind of limbo at the moment hoping we can stay up this season before massively pruning the wage bill in summer - then we can try and kick on again. Looking forward to the game and hope we can turn you over.

Many many thanks to Middlesbrough's Robert Nichols of www.fansonline.net/middlesbrough Fly me To the Moon (FMTTM) and director of fansonline - independent fans site network


Fulham Chronicle/Yann Tear - QPR move was a gamble - Shittu

DANNY Shittu says he has gambled his career on making it to the Premier League with QPR.

The 30-year-old centre back, who joined QPR during the January transfer window after being released by Milwall, finally earned a start in Tuesday night’s 2-0 win over Ipswich Town after warming the bench for five games since his move.

Boss Neil Warnock decided to rest Matt Connolly and Kaspars Gorkss, so Shittu belatedly started his second spell at QPR after establishing himself as a fans’ favourite during his first stint.

"It did cross my mind that I might not get in the side, but you’ve got to keep taking gambles," said the Nigerian.

"You’ve got to believe in yourself. I never put pressure on the gaffer. When a team’s doing well, you can’t change it. I just had to work hard in training.

"I spoke to the gaffer before coming here and knew the team had been going well, and I didn’t expect to go straight into the team. I knew I’d have to bide my time. But I told the gaffer I’m always ready."

Shittu added: "I’m going to keep working hard now. It’s not going to be easy because there are so many good players here, but I believe I’m good enough to play.

"My dream now is to get QPR promoted and after that, we’ll look again in the summer."

Shittu only signed a six-month initial contract and he is determined to repay the Loftus Road faithful’s support after their backing for him on Tuesday night.

"It would be a dream to play for QPR next season and keep it going.

"I was having a laugh with the fans and I just felt so at home. You play so much more comfortably when you feel the fans are there for you.

"It was amazing when I came off and saw everybody standing up. I’ve had it at other clubs but to get it at Loftus Road, it means so much more.

"It can’t be any better for me at the moment. I’m so glad that I chose to come here to help this team get promoted." Fulham Chronicle


Fulham Chronicle/Paul Warburton - QPR boss cautious over Smith comeback

- QPR intend to wrap Tommy Smith in cotton wool because he’s the one player who has the ‘nous’ when it comes to getting goals - according to his boss.
- Previous reports suggested the midfielder signed from Portsmouth at the beginning of the season would be back in time to face Leicester City at home next Saturday.
- But Neil Warnock is not so sure.
- The manager is desperate to avoid a third hamstring injury to the 30-year-old, aggravated after Smith scored his side’s only goal in the 1-1 draw with Nottingham Forest two weeks ago.
- He said: "Tommy’s the one player with that little bit of extra nous who can unlock doors for us right now.
- "After Leicester and Millwall on the following Tuesday, we’ve got 10 games left, and I think we’re going to need him for all of those.
- "We’ve got to be extra cautious with his hamstring. The last thing we need is for that to go again if he comes back too early." Fulham Chronicle


South London Press - Rowlands to sign for Lions at last
Thursday, 24 February 2011 By Alex Aldridge and Toby Porter
- QPR midfielder Martin Rowlands looks set to sign for Millwall tomorrow in time for the home game with Nottingham Forest on Saturday.
- The Irishman has struggled to hold down a place with Neil Warnock at the helm at Loftus Road this season, playing just four times.
- And after it was revealed Nadjim Abdou had an injury which will keep him out for at least a month, Jackett swooped to sign the experienced 32-year-old on loan.
- Rowlands has scored 67 goals in a career of almost 400 games at just three clubs - Farnborough, Brentford and QPR. South London Today


re Neil Roberts (RIP) This is Kent/Jan Thom -Dad's dying wish for more runners
- Inspirational: Neil Roberts with his wife Becky and son Charlie

- THE grieving widow of brave dad Neil Roberts, who ran to raise money for Cancer Research despite his own terminal diagnosis, has called for massive local support for this year's event.
- Neil, 53, died peacefully at his home in Peartree Road, Broomfield, Herne Bay, on Saturday following his gruelling illness.
- His wife Becky and daughters Hayley, 23, and Claire, 20, from his first marriage, were at his bedside.
- Now Becky, 29, is hoping Neil's death will act as a spur to local men to back this year's Man On The Run Race For Life at Hampton, Herne Bay, on June 26.
-Neil was bitterly disappointed that so few men took part last year.
- He said at the time: "I crossed the finish line in tears. I've done the race four times before and when I found out I was ill it made me more determined to take part. But what struck me was how few people made the effort and gave up an hour of their time. There were only about 300 runners which is less than one per cent of the population of Herne Bay."
- Becky said: "Neil was so determined to make people more aware of the race and wanted the number of people taking part to at least double this year.
- "He had wanted to take part again but when he realised he couldn't he just wanted to do everything he could promote it.
- "It will be the biggest tribute to him if it is better supported this June."
- Neil was a lifelong Queens Park Rangers fan and founder of the club's supporters group.
- Becky and Neil were VIP guests at Loftus Road in January when Neil met his idol Stan Bowles.
- Neil, who married Becky three years ago, was diagnosed with Cancer of the oesophagus in May. Becky said medics had initially dismissed his symptoms as stress.
- He endured a round of chemotherapy but a second course made him too ill to continue.
- Becky said: "It just knocked him out, it wasn't worth it."
- Neil and Becky's son Charlie is now 15 months old.
- The funeral service will be at Barham Crematorium at 12.40pm on Monday, March 7. Family flowers only but donations to Demelza through A Welch and Sons, 94 Station Road, Herne Bay, or call 01227 374995.
- Applications for the Man on the Run event – which promotes awareness of male Cancers – on Sunday June 26 can be made through the Cancer Research UK website at www.manontherun.org
This is Kenthttp://i.thisis.co.uk/275568/article/images/3253254/1975836.jpg

- RIP Neil Roberts: QPR Supporter - and of course, much much more...Messageboard Memories of Neil Roberts


PFA's Give Me Football - Coaching for Hope: QPR help great initiative

The PFA and FIFPro launch international partnership work with Coaching for Hope
By Dave Smith February 24, 2011

John HudsonThe PFA are delighted to continue the fantastic work and partnership with Coaching for Hope

Queens Park Rangers Community Trust this week helped launch the international partnership work between the PFA, FIFPro and Coaching for Hope at the Arc Academy near to Wembley Stadium.

First team players along with teenagers from the college were put through their paces by experienced QPR and Coaching for Hope coach, Dave Robinson, to raise awareness of the partnership work being undertaken both in the UK and in West and Southern Africa.

Coaching For Hope is an innovative programme which uses football to create better futures for the young people in Africa. They tap into the universal passion for football and organise coaching courses where professional coaches from the UK train local youth workers to recognised FA standards.

At the same time, the local coaches learn how to deliver HIV/Aids awareness sessions to young people in their communities. Once the UK coaches leave, the programme staff provides ongoing support to the graduates. This means they can deliver Coaching for Hope sessions and develop training initiatives of their own.

The international partnership work with Coaching for Hope, which the PFA have been involved with since 2009 has now been embraced by the World Players Union, FIFPro, who are looking to expand and develop their own Corporate Social Responsibilities programme.

John Hudson, the PFA’s Director of Community, said: “The PFA are delighted to continue the fantastic work and partnership with Coaching for Hope. Our work in South Africa has been fully embraced by the union as we continue to expand our International good causes’ programmes.

FIFPro will only enhance this work on the International stage by using players and unions from South Africa and beyond to help change the lives of those less fortunate.”

FIFPro Representative Tony Higgins said: “FIFPro see the partnership with Coaching for Hope as an ideal platform to develop and expand our work in C.S.R. Having witnessed the work done by the charity in Southern Africa we are confident we can develop the relationship between our member unions in Africa and Coaching for Hope using Football to effect change.”

Jane Carter, director of Coaching for Hope, added: “Coaching for Hope is delighted to be making our partnership with The PFA and FIFPro official.

"Since its inception Coaching for Hope have been striving to find the best partners possible to make our work as effective and as beneficial as possible for the people we work with. I’m certain that this superb balance of sports organisations working for one goal will be one of real quality, Let the work begin!.” Give Me Football


- On This Day in Football: February 24...Decade Ago today, Gerry Francis' Last Game in Charge as QPR Crash 5-0 at Wimbledon
- Marc Bircham Suing over His Career-Ending Injury

- QPR's Championship Points Totals Since Premiership Relegation
- "How the NBA Became English Soccer"

- A few more days (unless already paid)? February 28 Deadline to Pay Antonio Caliendo 2 Million Pounds?


Enlarged Photo - Name the Players: The answers!

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