Teams - QPR vs Birmingham: Tomassi's Debut...Di Carmine Remains...Ledesman Returns

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QPR vs Birmingham Teams

QPR: Cerny, Stewart, Hall, Leigertwood, Blackstock, Rowlands, Connolly, Cook, Tomassi, Ledesma, Di Carmine.
Subs: Cole, Mahon, Parejo, Buzsaky, Ephraim.

Birmingham City: Maik Taylor, Martin Taylor, Ridgewell, O'Connor, Phillips, Jerome, Nafti, Agustien, Quedrue, Parnaby, Carsley.
Subs: Doyle, McFadden, Quashie, Owusu-Abeyie, Bent.

Snippets II - Swansea's Martinez Not Interested in QPR Job...Ex-QPR St Aimie Unwanted by Barnet...Birmingham-QPR Preview...QPR's New Magazine

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BBC - Martinez 'committed' to Swansea
The Swans boss has been linked with the vacant managerial position at big-money Championship rivals QPR.
Martinez said: "I'm not interested in leaving, I've got too much work to be thinking about these things."
Swansea's impressive start to the season coupled with their attractive and attacking brand of football has raised Martinez's managerial stock.
The Swans, last year's League One champions, are seventh in their first year back in English football's second tier.
Martinez is one of the most highly-rated young managers outside the Premier League and the former Swans captain is attracting attention from other chairmen.
Martinez has been mentioned as one of the leading candidates to be Iain Dowie's possible successor at Queens Park Rangers, dubbed the world's most richest club.
And as the managerial merry-go-round kicks into overdrive, Martinez's name will be linked to many attractive jobs.
"I take the attention as a great complement," said Martinez.
"It shows we must be doing something right, it's a huge compliment to everyone at Swansea City.
"But we're all committed to Swansea City and we'll carry on working hard because we want to achieve great things." BBC


Barnet Official Site - St Amie Available
Kieron St Aimie, the 19-year-old former QPR winger who recently spent a month on loan with Grays Athletic, is to be made available for transfer or further loan.
The 6ft 1ins tall St Aimie was in the Bees' starting line-up on the opening day of this season against Chesterfield and was then used as a substitute in the next three games against Brighton and Hove Albion, Rochdale and Brentford.
He has made six appearances since joining Barnet, plus eight more as a substitute, but has not scored a goal. Dennis Signy - Barnet Official Site


Sky Sports/Richard Bailey - QPR v Birmingham Preview
Blackstock hopes to gain recall for Hoops while McLeish looks to name unchanged side
Queens Park Rangers host Birmingham City at Loftus Road on Tuesday night in Gareth Ainsworth's second match in charge of the Hoops.
The home side are without a manager after Iain Dowie left on Friday leaving player/coach Ainsworth to take charge of team affairs.
Ainsworth got off to a credible start drawing 0-0 with Reading at the Madejski Stadium on Saturday and his side sit just a point off the play-offs.
Defender Damien Delaney will definitely miss the game with a one-match suspension after picking up five yellow cards.
Striker Rowan Vine is the only injured absentee as he continues to recover from a broken leg.
Real Madrid loanee Daniel Parejo was recalled to the side against Reading while striker Samuel Di Carmine made his first appearance for the club. Both are in line to keep their places for the visit of Birmingham.
Dexter Blackstock - the club's leading goalscorer - was on the bench on Saturday but could be recalled to the starting XI after QPR failed to score against Reading.
Veteran midfielder Damiano Tommasi could start after being named on the bench for the first time this season against Reading.
Birmingham news
The League leaders have lost just once in their opening 13 Championship matches leaving them two points clear at the top.
Birmingham could be without Radhi Jaidi who has failed to recover from a thigh injury. Fellow defender David Murphy could be drafted back in after recovering from a knee injury.
Alex McLeish could be tempted to stick with the same team that beat Sheffield Wednesday 3-1 on Saturday, meaning that James McFadden, back from a groin injury would have to be happy with a place on the bench.
Loan signing Quincy Owusu-Abeyie is in contention after recovering from a thigh injury but he too may have to start on the bench.
Damien Johnson remains unavailable with a back injury while McLeish has let Souleymane Mamam leave the club after a one-month trial. Sky


QPR Official Site - COMING SOON ... QPR: THE OFFICIAL MAGAZINE
Launched on December 20th 2008, QPR: The Official Magazine, is a must-read for Rangers fans.
A Quarterly Magazine with a lifestyle feel, QPR: The Official Magazine, will include a variety of glitzy and informative features, incorporating the past, present and future of the Club.
Each 68-page issue will feature a former player, present day player and a celebrity fan, offering the reader an exclusive and equally interesting insight into their views on all things QPR.
The magazine - which costs £3.99 per issue - will also focus on the core aspects of the day to day running of the Club, including our Football In the Community department, as well as Junior Hoops, thereby offering something of interest to readers of all ages .
What's more, there will also be exclusive behind-the-scenes features, that can't be seen anywhere else - making QPR: The Official Magazine a must-read for Rangers fans, at home and abroad.

HOW DO I SUBSCRIBE?
Annual subscription is available from just £14.99 (including free postage and packaging) - and new direct debit subscribers will receive a FREE QPR binder!
Not only will subscribers make a significant saving over the course of the calendar year, but they will also be guaranteed their copy of what is expected to be a just-see publication!
To order your annual subscription now...
*Buy tonight's Hoops matchday programme and send in the subscription form that is attached to the front cover.
*Call 08444 777 007.
*Log on to www.eticketing.co.uk/qpr
*Visit the QPR Superstore / Box Office and fill in a direct debit form over the counter.
*Download a subscription form by clicking QPR: The Official Magazine
COMING SOON IN ISSUE ONE...
*At Home With Rodney Marsh - the R's legend opens his doors to QPR: The Official Magazine.
*Packing A Punch - in the ring with R's fan and GB Olympic Boxing Champion James De Gale and his cousin, R's winger Lee Cook.
*On The Streets With A-Star - a behind-the-scenes look at the A-Star phenomenon, featuring R's defender Fitz Hall. QPR

The QPR Managerial Merry-Go-Around

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QPR Report/Vital Football - Queens Park Rangers -The QPR Managerial Merry-Go-Around
- "As Rangers go in search of a new boss following the sacking of Iain Dowie, QPR Report takes a look at the managerial Merry-Go Round that surrounds the club..." Article at Vital Queens Park Rangers:- The QPR Managerial Merry-Go-Around


UPDATED November 1, 2008 - [Now putting the entire online here,]

Vital Football/QPR - Blog R - QPR Report On Managers
The QPR Managerial Merry-Go-Around - By QPR Report
As Rangers go in search of a new boss following the sacking of Iain Dowie, QPR Report takes a look at the managerial Merry-Go Round that surrounds the club.

- BEING a Queen's Park Rangers (QPR) fan means never being surprised at what may come the way of QPR. As a QPR fan you've grown accustomed to disappointing results (especially in the Cups); sensationalist tabloid stories and shock developments on and off the field
- So it was, once again, this past week when, after weeks of press gossip and messageboard rumours, Chairman Flavio Briatore axed Manager (Chief Coach) Iain Dowie. While the sacking was not exactly a shock; certainly its imminent timing hadn't been predicted or announced by either the media or by board posters ostensibly 'in the know.'
- So now, after a brief hiatus, it's back to the QPR Managerial Merry-Go-Round: Already various names are being touted in the press. In many instances, it's a case of 'Round up the usual suspects' as names cited in previous job hunts are again mentioned. Primus inter pares in this list, The perennial Terry Venables who for the last two decades, has had his name touted as the potential 'next' QPR manager.
- The announcement that Gareth Ainsworth would be the QPR Acting Manager (even though the ousted Iain Dowie had in fact been designated as First Team Coach) means that Ainsworth is QPR's 13th manager (four of them, including himself, caretaker managers) to manage the club in the 13 seasons since QPR`s relegation in 1996. 10 'permanent' managers in 12 years.
- Almost (but not every) QPR Chairman has made his own contribution to this lamentable managerial record; although clearly some Chairmen are more impatient than others (or have made poor managerial selections). QPR fans need no reminding how many permanent and acting managers have come QPR's way since Ian Holloway was placed on 'Gardening Leave' just two-and-a-half years ago.
- Since Alec Stock was (shamefully) ousted as QPR's manager almost exactly forty years ago, QPR managers have come and gone; come and gone, constituting some 25 in total. If Terry Venables were really to return - almost a quarter century after he abandoned QPR for Barcelona, QPR have seen 20 managers (including caretakers) 'guide' the club. QPR's longest-serving manager since Stock, was Ian Holloway's almost five years in charge before he was cast out. By QPR standards, with each passing day - and with each ensuing manager - Holloway's five year tenure looks more and more remarkable.
- Just their very names conjure up memories: The optimism of their appointment followed by disillusionment and ultimately, departure. Alec Stock, Bill Dodgin, Tommy Docherty, Les Allen, Gordon Jago, Dave Sexton, Frank Sibley, Steve Burtenshaw, Tommy Docherty, Terry Venables, Gordon Jago, Alan Mullery, Jim Smith, Terry Francis, Don Howe, Gerry Francis, Ray Wilkins, Stuart Houston, Ray Harford, Gerry Francis, Ian Holloway, Gary Waddock, John Gregory, Luigi De Canio, Iain Dowie. And whoever is the next manager or scapegoat. (And this list does not include the Acting Managerships of Iain Dowie, John Hollins, Mick Harford, the repeated turns of Frank Sibley, and now Gareth Ainsworth)
- All too often, QPR managerial appointments end in grief. Only rarely have QPR managers left QPR for better things or left relatively amicably: Venables went off to Barcelona. Sexton left for Manchester United (after initially having seemed aimed for Arsenal). Gerry Francis, the first time, went off to Spurs (but that was in part a result of a Chairman-Manager dispute). Jim Smith was permitted to move to Newcastle (a lateral move). And Luigi De Canio had a departure shrouded in mystery.
- On the bright side: For any QPR fans unhappy with QPR's next managerial appointment, this note: Don't fret. He probably won't be QPR manager for too long!

Many thanks to QPR Report
QPR Report operates the popular QPR Report site as well as the recently-launched QPR Report Message Board.
We want to know YOUR thoughts!
To have your say you can comment in the space provided below, or chat about it on the forum. Vital Football

Criticisms of Briatore...Briatore Holding Back QPR?...Further Peterborough Dismissal of QPR/Ferguson Option

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The Guardian/Benjie Goodhart - Briatore's influence at QPR is no longer a force for goodIain Dowie's hasty sacking is symptomatic of the malaise that has settled on QPR since Flavio Briatore's arrival at the club
- How quickly the golden hue of optimism fades into the familiar gloom of disappointment and failed expectations. How easily long-cherished dreams recede from touching distance to spots on the distant horizon. And with what indecent, impatient and juvenile haste are people judged in this age of instant gratification. Just ask Iain Dowie.
- When Dowie took over the reins at QPR in May, it must have seemed like a dream job. A team on the up, drowning in cash, with owners whose track record in business and sport showed them to be shrewd, sensible and successful. And, at the top of the pyramid, the charismatic figure of Flavio Briatore, who brought with him not only cash and know-how, but a dash of elan - and the occasional supermodel. While he swanned about in spectacles with lilac lenses, the rest of us supporters were using ones with a rosier hue.
-How bloody naive.
- On Friday, Dowie was sacked by Briatore after 15 games in charge. Fifteen games is nowhere near long enough to give someone a crack of the whip at the best of times, but the sheer, shattering, shambolic absurdity of this situation is that he'd actually done well in his time at the helm. Dowie oversaw eight wins in those 15 games. He left Rangers in ninth place in the Championship, one point off the play-off places, and in the last 16 of the Carling Cup, having beaten a close-to-full-strength Aston Villa in the previous round.
- All right, some of the football was more utilitarian than aesthetic, and style was occasionally sacrificed on the altar of expedience, but so what? A manager's job is to get results. There are suggestions that Briatore, who has stated his desire to turn QPR into a boutique brand, wanted a more stylish type of football. Which raises the question: what the hell made him appoint Dowie in the first place?
- As a QPR fan, I was disappointed with Dowie's appointment. I felt his gilt-edged record at Palace had subsequently become tarnished by failures at Charlton and Coventry. But I knew what the club would be getting from him - a team that was fit, well-organised, defensively solid, hard-working, and perhaps a little lacking in creativity - somewhat in the image of its manager. It seems, though, that Briatore thought he was getting someone who combined Kevin Keegan's attacking philosophy with Walt Disney's ability to entertain. Where he got such an idea from, heaven only knows.
- But if I was underwhelmed by Dowie's appointment, I'm left speechless at his dismissal. Not just for the absurd haste of it, but for the reasons that appear to underpin it. It is said that Briatore wanted to exert an inappropriate measure of control over Dowie's decisions. Reports indicate that he and Dowie had a number of fallings out over the former's interference in footballing affairs.
- Right from the get-go, things didn't look good. After his appointment, Dowie announced to the press that they shouldn't read too much into his title as first-team coach - he would still control transfers and pick the team. Yet while he announced his intention to pursue players such as Ben Watson, Clinton Morrison and Jermaine Beckford, Briatore was arranging for the transfers or loan signings of Daniel Parejo, Emmanuel Ledesma and Samuel Di Carmine. Regardless of the merits of the players involved, the impression that the club was signing players in spite of rather than because of their manager, was hardly healthy. Look at Dennis Wise's role at Newcastle. Well, at QPR it looks like we've got the cocky mafia, who think they've earned the right to pick the team.
- That, by the way, is not an exaggeration. It has been reported that before the game against Reading, Dowie was presented with a team sheet, drawn up by Briatore, and told it was his starting XI. Dowie, not surprisingly, took exception to this. How would Briatore like it if Dowie started telling him how to run his Renault F1 team? (Interestingly, with a masters degree in mechanical engineering, perhaps that's exactly what Dowie should do.)
- Before he was fired, Dowie announced the team to play Reading. After his sacking, insiders say, caretaker manager Gareth Ainsworth made a "couple of changes". The nature of those changes is unknown, but the game saw Parejo regain his first team spot and Di Carmine was granted a rare start, at the expense of top-scorer Dexter Blackstock. Whether these changes were handed down to Ainsworth on another team sheet dispatched from on high is not confirmed, but this is what Ainsworth had to say on the matter: "He's the chief investor and he loves taking an active part in how his investment is going." Right.
- While we're on the subject of reading between lines to find the none-too-hidden meaning, here's what experienced midfielder Gavin Mahon had to say on Dowie's tenure. "The coaching was top drawer, well organised, everyone was fit and times we let him down on the pitch with our performances. His record's decent, you can't fault it … I think the club's moved on a lot from last year."
- So what of the dream job that Dowie took back in the halcyon days of summer? Suddenly it bears all the hallmarks of something distinctly toxic and chalice-shaped. Pre-season, QPR were laughably tipped as promotion favourites - a level of expectation that probably helped seal Dowie's doom. Mahon has also recently said he thinks Briatore wants promotion this season. This heaps pressure on any incoming manager, before taking into account that QPR have actually spent very little money to match the soaring expectations. And then there is the suggestion that, as manager, you don't get to make your own signings or even pick the team. What manager of any integrity would accept those terms? Certainly not any of those ambitious names so far mooted - from Darren Ferguson to Gary Johnson, and more exotically, the two Robertos, Mancini and Donadoni.
- Whoever he appoints, Briatore has a lot of ground to make up with QPR fans. Only a year ago, he was hailed as the saviour of the club. It says much for how he has conducted his business that his stock has fallen as sharply as the FTSE 100. Even before his role in Friday's bloodletting, he'd used up his credit. It turns out that making Loftus Road into a boutique stadium meant hoiking the prices to obscene levels, at a stroke disenfranchising many of those fans who had stayed loyal during the dark years of League One football and Vauxhall Motors defeats. Paying £50-a-ticket is all well and good if you want the ground filled with moneyed Eurotrash parvenus, but it doesn't do much for the soul of a club.
- Some reports have suggested that Briatore would claw back some fans' kudos if he appointed Terry Venables as the new manager. The idea that such a move would be popular with the fans is beyond laughable. Thanks for the good times, Terry, but we've already got one permatanned playboy causing mayhem at our club, and that's one more than we need just now. The future's none too bright, but we could do without it being orange as well. The Guardian


This is London/James Olley - Hands-on Flavio Briatore may hold back Hoops' dreams
- Two managers gone, no promotion, disaffected fans and a disappointing position in the Championship: welcome to the first year of Flavio Briatore's four-year plan to drag Queens Park Rangers into the Premier League.
- Next Thursday marks the first anniversary of Briatore's formal takeover at Loftus Road and the optimism surrounding a club that last played in the top flight 12 years ago now seems all but a distant memory.
- While there were mitigating circumstances surrounding the departure of Luigi De Canio in May the Italian was homesick and had struggled to learn English the end of Iain Dowie's tenure after just 15 games is the culmination of constant rumours and unrest behind the scenes.
- It is understood Briatore had become infuriated with Dowie for not selecting the players the 58-year-old used his sizeable influence to sign.
- Most notably, Samuel Di Carmine, on loan from Fiorentina, had started just one game until being restored to the line-up under caretaker boss Gareth Ainsworth for Saturday's 0-0 draw at Reading where Dexter Blackstock, the club's leading scorer this season with six goals, was dropped to make way for Di Carmine.
- Ainsworth's admission that Briatore "loves taking an active part in how his investment is going" is an ominous indication of the influence the chairman and co-owner is looking to wield.
- Sources close to both Briatore and vice-chairman Amit Bhatia have hinted at clashes between the pair over the management of the club. When asked to explain these rumours and clarify Dowie's exit, the club, Bhatia and Briatore declined to comment.
- Their silence has left fans feeling frustrated, especially in light of the ticket price hikes that were later softened by Bhatia, presumably in a bid to win fans' support.
- Neil Jackson, spokesman for QPR 1st Supporters Trust, said: "Dowie was sacked after 15 games so if it was a performance issue, I can't make sense of it. It is clear Flavio Briatore is having a very strong input. Does Flavio have the football knowledge to pick the team? I don't know. Some of the purchases have not worked out and that is concerning."
- Of course Briatore wants Rangers to be a success and it must be remembered his £14million bailed out the club but the new branding and the celebrity 'It' crowd would appear to hint at a desire for a west London plaything.
- By contrast, Bhatia, the son-in-law of co-owner Lakshmi Mittal, is painting himself as a football man hence it was he who announced the U-turn on certain ticket prices. Bhatia is also said to have been reluctant to fire Dowie (right). The players also appear confused.
- Defender Peter Ramage said: "It's a strange situation. I have never encountered an owner who is so hands on but if we win our next eight games, people will say he is a genius.
- "It's good that he takes an interest because it shows he cares. The power struggle or whatever is going on is no concern of the players we are paid to play and that's what we'll do."
Standard Sport understands Ainsworth will not be given the job on a permanent basis and that Briatore would prefer to appoint an Italian with Roberto Mancini, Roberto Donadoni and Gianluca Vialli under consideration.
- Failing that, leading English contenders include Terry Venables and Peterborough United manager Darren Ferguson.
- Any manager will need to work within the Briatore framework, which appears to be that the co-owner will influence both transfer policy and team selection.
- A long shot who would fit that bill is Damiano Tommasi, the 34-year-old former Italy international, who signed for Rangers thanks to Briatore as a player but has struggled with injury.
- But as Tottenham fans could testify, until there is a united boardroom with a single vision and a manager in place who is given time, QPR remain very much a work in progress. And despite Briatore's business and sporting acumen there's no guarantee the second year of his four-year plan will see any more success than the first. This is London


Peterborough Evening Telegraph - ADAMANT: Darragh MacAnthony insists Darren Ferguson is going nowhere.
- POSH chairman Darragh MacAnthony insists only a Premier League club would stand any chance of prising manager Darren Ferguson away from London Road.
Ferguson has been tipped to succeed sacked Iain Dowie as manager of Championship outfit Queens Park Rangers during several days of intense media speculation, but MacAnthony has told the London club they are wasting their time if the rumours are true.
- MacAnthony believes Ferguson – who has dismissed the Rangers link – is one day bound for the big time and admits he would only consider an approach for his manager if a club from the top flight comes calling.
- MacAnthony told The Evening Telegraph: "I would not entertain an approach for Fergie and to be honest, why would he want to look at QPR anyhow? Just ask Iain Dowie what it was really like for them.
- "Anyway once we win League One I have no doubt that a Premiership club will be in for the gaffer and that will be the only way I will even consider entertaining this type of conversation.
- "I am sure that Darren will state the same on the issue."
- And MacAnthony is right. Ferguson has again shrugged off the speculation linking him with the Loftus Road hotseat and insists his sole aim this season is to lead Posh to a second successive promotion.
- Ferguson, who has guided Posh into the League One play-off places after a fine recent run, said: "There is no reason for any of my players or myself to leave this football club.
- "We have a squad that is capable of challenging for another promotion this season and no-one is going anywhere."
- Posh have the chance to boost their promotion claims when travelling to rock-bottom Crewe Alexandra in League One tonight. Peterborough Today

Tommasi to Start Debated?...Ainsworth in Charge?...Chopra and/or Sturridge?...Ex-QPR Managerial Target Gets Job...Cup Final Hero'Birthday

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UPDATED: 2:15 pm GMT

London Informer/Paul Warburton- QPR bosses debate Tommasi start
- QPR take on Champions leaders Birmingham this evening at Loftus Road with caretaker boss Gareth Ainsworth and chairman Flavio Briatore currently discussing the starting IX for the match.
- The amazing partnership’s biggest concern is whether to bring in Damiano Tommasi for his first game in a Hoops shirt at the expense of Gavin Mahon in midfield, and beef up the attack by playing both Dexter Blackstock and Samuel Di Carmine while relegating captain Martin Rowlands to the bench.
- Right-back Peter Ramage isn’t fit, so Mikele Leigertwood is set to hold the right-back slot.
- Birmingham shaded a 1-0 close encounter in the match at St Andrews on October 4.
London Informer



Mirror/James Nursey - FLAV CALLS THE SHOTS/
TONIGHT'S CHAMPIONSHIP ACTION QPR v Birmingham City, kick-off 8pm
Gareth Ainsworth is set to remain in charge of QPR - as long as he carries out Flavio Briatore's orders.
Player-coach Ainsworth, 35, took charge of Rangers in their 0-0 draw at Reading following Iain Dowie's dismissal.
But co-owner Briatore, 58, picked the team and wants to maintain a hands-on role at the club. Briatore's inference in team selection led to Dowie's sacking last Friday after just 15 games.
The Italian is happy to let Ainsworth continue in charge in the short term but he faces a tough test against leaders Birmingham.
Brum have made the best-ever start to a season with 30 points from 13 games already.
"We'd rather be there than playing catch-up," said boss Alex McLeish. "We're staying positive." Mirror


Northern Echo - QPR interested in Chopra
NOT being involved in Saturday’s derby against his hometown club has revived talk of Michael Chopra moving to QPR.
The ambitious Loftus Road outfit, who are also looking for a new manager after last week’s departure of Iain Dowie, are hoping to lure Chopra to London on loan, with a view to a permanent move in January.
Sunderland paid £5m for the 24-year-old former Newcastle striker in July 2007, and although QPR have plenty of cash to spend, they are only looking to do a deal in the region of £2.5m. The Northern Echo


Dean Sturridge Loan (Same rumours over and over again:) - BBC Gossip "QPR are planning a move to take striker Daniel Sturridge on loan from Manchester City. (Daily Mirror) - BBC Gossip


Alessandro Costacurta:
One time QPR managerial target, Alessandro Costacurta who QPR were linked to last year before QPR decided on De Canio, has just been appointed head coach of Serie B Mantova. So scratch that option (if it ever existed) See "Costacurta Finds First Coaching Job".
[For last year's Costarcuta to QPR reports, See Costacurta/QPR -

Birthday for QPR's FA Cup Final Hero, Peter Hucker

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Peter Hucker Turns 49: Born October 28, 1959
Peter Hucker was a QPR Reserve until John Burridge (who himself had been bought only a few months earlier by Terry Venables to replace Chris Woods - who went on to play for England! - decided he didn't want to play on QPR's "controversial" artificial pitch!) Hucker came into the QPR team in 1981-1982, and was very much the 'Man of the Match' in QPR's Cup Final against Spurs.
For the next 4 seasons was the QPR regular goalie and played around 150 games for QPR. Hucker also won two England U-21 caps. Then for whatever reason he was replaced at QPR, first by Paul Barron, and more long-term by David Seaman). Hucker joined Oxford in 1986-1987. He is now runs a coaching School (Peter Hucker Soccer Schools). Hucker's Playing Record See also: Hucker/Wikipedia

From Houston to Ainsworth - QPR Managerial Announcements ("Hello...Goodbye")

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QPR managerial arrival and departures have become a not-infrequent occurrence at Loftus Road. For at touch of nostalgia, a look back at a decade of QPR Official statements announcing their latest managerial appointments and departures: Gareth Ainsworth...Iain Dowie...Luigi De Canio...John Gregory...Gary Waddock...Iain Holloway...Gerry Francis...Ray Harford...Stuart Houston!.


IAIN DOWIE

Iain Dowie's Departure
QPR CLUB STATEMENT - 24 Oct 2008 - Dowie
The Board of Queens Park Rangers Football Club has given notice to terminate the contract of Manager Iain Dowie with immediate effect.
Dowie, who took over the reins at Loftus Road in the summer, oversaw 15 matches in charge in all competitions and leaves the R's in ninth place in the Coca Cola Championship.
Player / Coach Gareth Ainsworth has been appointed Caretaker Manager on a temporary basis and will take charge of First Team affairs until further notice.
The Club will be making no further comment at this stage - QPR


DOWIE APPOINTED
- May 2008 QPR Official Site - EXCLUSIVE: DOWIE APPOINTED
Queens Park Rangers Football Club is delighted to announce the appointment of Iain Dowie as First Team Coach with immediate effect.
The 43 year-old, who spent three years in W12 during a distinguished playing career, has today (Wednesday 14th May 2008) put pen to paper on a two-year contract at Loftus Road.
Speaking about the appointment, QPR Sporting Director Gianni Paladini, said: "Iain Dowie has a proven track record in the Championship and we're delighted to have him on board."
Dowie, who enjoyed a brief stint as Caretaker Manager of the R's, before working under Gerry Francis in the role of Assistant Manager, also expressed his delight, commenting: "This is a very exciting long-term project.
"I'm very privileged to have been given the opportunity under the new ownership to return to the Club where I served my managerial apprenticeship.
"I've been thoroughly impressed by the new investors and their fresh, aggressive and innovative approach to all sporting matters, as well as the marketing and commercial aspect of this Football Club.
"QPR is a fantastic Club, with a steep and successful history and I'm going to relish the challenge that lies ahead." QPR


[Note: Scroll down for Iain Dowie's previous QPR Departure]



LUIGI DE CANIO

Farewell to De Canio QPR Official Site CLUB STATEMENT 8 May 2008
Queens Park Rangers Football Club have parted company with First Team Coach Luigi De Canio by mutual consent with immediate effect.
The Club would like to place on the record its thanks to Luigi for his contribution to QPR and wish him all the best for a successful future.
Mr De Canio also wanted to express his gratitude for the opportunity to manage Queens Park Rangers and also for the fantastic experience he had during his time in England.
The Club will be making no further comment at this stage.
An announcement on a successor will be made in due course.
May 2008
QPR


October 29 - QPR Official Site - EXCLUSIVE: DE CANIO APPOINTED
Queens Park Rangers Football Club is delighted to announce the appointment of Luigi De Canio as First Team Coach.
The contract period runs until the end of the 2009/10 season.
The 50 year-old has an extensive coaching pedigree having taken charge of Udinese, Napoli, Reggina, Genoa and most recently Siena in Serie A - who he helped keep in the top-flight for two consecutive seasons before leaving.
Speaking exclusively to www.qpr.co.uk, De Canio said: "I am very excited at this fantastic opportunity to join Queens Park Rangers as their First Team Coach.
"For me, it will be an honour to work for Queens Park Rangers, a Club which is backed by Bernie Ecclestone and Flavio Briatore, two businessmen with an incredible track-record of success in sport and other fields.
"I would like to thank them and tell them I will not disappoint their expectations. I am fully committed to the project and I am looking forward to getting to work with the players in preparation for our forthcoming home fixture against Hull City on Saturday."
On behalf of the new management of QPR, Chairman Gianni Paladini expressed his delight at the capture of De Canio, commenting: "The Club is going through a phase of total restructuring and for us the appointment of Luigi De Canio is the first important step ahead in our long-term strategy.
"De Canio is a highly motivated professional, whose dynamic and aggressive approach fits perfectly with the image and philosophy of the new Management."
Paladini added: "De Canio is fully aware of the high standards and objectives that the new Management has set for the future of the Club, and he is ready and eager to take up the challenge"
Mick Harford, who has acted as Caretaker Manager since the departure of John Gregory in early October, has left the Club with immediate effect.
Paladini added: "We offered Mick a role within the new set-up and we're disappointed that he has turned this down. He has done a fantastic job since he arrived here in the summer and his contribution will never be forgotten.
"We all wish him the very best for the future."
*The Club will be making no further comment at this stage. QPR


JOHN GREGORY

October 1, 2007 - John Gregory's Departure QPR Official Site - CLUB STATEMENT
Queens Park Rangers Football Club have today terminated the employment of John Gregory as First Team Manager with immediate effect, following Sunday's 5-1 defeat at West Bromwich Albion.
First Team Coach, Mick Harford, has been appointed Caretaker Manager to take the team to Wednesday's fixture against Colchester United.
QPR Chairman, Gianni Paladini, said: "The Club would like to thank John for everything he has done during a difficult period as Manager, in particular for saving us from relegation last season.
"However, the performances and results this season have not met with our expectations. The league table does not lie.
"The Club have decided to act swiftly in time to turn things around for the remainder of the season.
"Mick will be Caretaker Manager for Wednesday's away game at Colchester and a further announcement about the post will be made after that.
"Everyone at QPR wants to wish John good luck and success in the future. In the meantime, Mick and the entire team are focused on achieving the Club's first win of the season at Colchester."
The Club will be making no further comment at this stage. QPR


SEPTEMBER 20, 2006 - OFFICIAL SITE - GREGORY APPOINTED
John Gregory has been appointed as QPR First Team Manager with immediate effect.
Gary Waddock will now work under the former Aston Villa boss in an Assistant Manager's role.
In an exclusive interview with www.qpr.co.uk, Chairman Gianni Paladini revealed his delight at the appointment: "It's a fantastic scoop for the Club.
"John is a proven manager at the highest level and is very eager to get back in to the managerial game.
"He's sat down with Gary and talked everything through and the situation is perfect as we look to climb the Championship table.
"I'd like to wish the pair of them the very best in their new roles.''
Gregory - who has been out of the game since leaving Derby County in 2003 - commented: "I'm back in the hot-seat and it's a huge challenge.
"QPR are very close to my heart and it's a fantastic opportunity for me.
"This is a job I can very much get my teeth into and I'm relishing the challenge that lies ahead.
"Winning matches is what matters most in the business and we aim to do that, starting Saturday.''
Waddock said: "It's the right decision for the club, I'm just thankful that Gianni thinks enough of me to keep me here as Assistant Manager.
"I look forward to working with John, we both played together under Terry Venables and have the same work ethic.
"I'll learn a lot from him and I'm sure that this appointment will benefit the club I love."

GREGORY EXTENDED - Announcement of Gregory's Two Year Contract
April 23, 2007 - QPR Official Site -GAFFER STAYS ON
The Club are delighted to announce that John Gregory has agreed a two year extension to his current contract.
In the wake of the R's guaranteeing their Championship status with victory against Cardiff City on Saturday, Gregory has activated a clause within his existing contract that will see him remain at Loftus Road until the end of the 2008/09 campaign.
Speaking exclusively to www.qpr.co.uk, Gregory said: "I'm delighted to accept the offer made to me by Chairman Gianni Paladini.
"I feel very honoured to have been the Manager of QPR for the last seven months and to have been given the task of keeping us in the Championship. Now that has been secured, the rebuilding has to begin.
"We need to put some concrete in the foundations to make sure the Club does not sink to the appalling depths that it has done this season. That means making changes throughout the Club, which will not always be popular ones.
"I personally have never been happier. I look forward to working alongside Gianni, as we strive to build a better future for our loyal fans. All you need is love.''
Gregory joined the R's on September 20th 2006, replacing Gary Waddock, whose ten games in charge in all competitions at the start of the season heralded just two victories.
His impact was immediate, as the R's clinched back-to-back wins in his first two games, before four wins in five outings, culminating in Saturday's 1-0 win against the Bluebirds, confirmed the R's place in the second tier of English football.
Chairman Gianni Paladini expressed his delight at the news, commenting: "John Gregory has done a fantastic job in his short time in charge here and we are all delighted that he has agreed to be part of our future.
"The impact he has made since he arrived here in September has been quite staggering. The signings he has made have been inspirational and he's proven what a top Manager he is.
"He has our one hundred per-cent backing and he is most definitely the right man to lead us to what we hope will be a very bright future.''


GARY WADDOCK

October 19, 2006 - QPR OFFICIAL STATEMENT - WADDOCK DEPARTS
Queens Park Rangers Football Club have parted company with Gary Waddock.
Waddock was named as manager on June 28 after a spell as caretaker manager following the departure of Ian Holloway.
The former Rangers midfielder moved into a coaching role when John Gregory was then appointed at the end of last month.
QPR would like to thank Gary and wish him every success in the future.


WADDOCK DEMOTED
OFFICIAL SITE - GREGORY APPOINTED
John Gregory has been appointed as QPR First Team Manager with immediate effect.
Gary Waddock will now work under the former Aston Villa boss in an Assistant Manager's role.
In an exclusive interview with www.qpr.co.uk, Chairman Gianni Paladini revealed his delight at the appointment: "It's a fantastic scoop for the Club.
"John is a proven manager at the highest level and is very eager to get back in to the managerial game.
"He's sat down with Gary and talked everything through and the situation is perfect as we look to climb the Championship table.
"I'd like to wish the pair of them the very best in their new roles.''
Gregory - who has been out of the game since leaving Derby County in 2003 - commented: "I'm back in the hot-seat and it's a huge challenge.
"QPR are very close to my heart and it's a fantastic opportunity for me.
"This is a job I can very much get my teeth into and I'm relishing the challenge that lies ahead.
"Winning matches is what matters most in the business and we aim to do that, starting Saturday.''
Waddock said: "It's the right decision for the club, I'm just thankful that Gianni thinks enough of me to keep me here as Assistant Manager.
"I look forward to working with John, we both played together under Terry Venables and have the same work ethic.
"I'll learn a lot from him and I'm sure that this appointment will benefit the club I love."


June 28, 2006 - QPR OFFICIAL SITE - WADDOCK APPOINTED
QPR have announced Gary Waddock as first team manager following the appointment of Ian Holloway at Plymouth Argyle.
The new role for the former QPR boss means that Waddock, who was named as Caretaker Manager in February, will now be able to officially take up the title of QPR manager.
Ian Holloway was in charge at Loftus Road since February 2001 and oversaw 266 games in his time at QPR, experiencing relegation and then promotion.
When he was placed on gardening leave earlier this year, Waddock stepped up from his position as first team coach to oversee the managerial side and has since instilled a 'no nonsense' work ethic at Harlington.
Waddock first recruited Alan McDonald as a first team coach before restructuring the scouting network and transfer listing and releasing 14 players in a bid to freshen up the squad and bring in his own men.
The new QPR boss said: "I'm delighted that QPR have finally been able to officially announce my position as first team manager.
"Now I'll feel a lot more confident in my role and I'm looking forward to implementing further changes behind the scenes as well as on the pitch.
"I've got a great back room staff here and we've been planning the coming season all summer.
"The work ethic and training methods will be subjected to a complete overhaul and we're looking forward to seeing the results on the pitch."You can see Gary Waddock's first interview as QPR manager on QPR World tomorrow.
http://www.qpr.premiumtv.co.uk/page/News/NewsDetail/0,,10373~853408,00.html


IAN HOLLOWAY

QPR Official Site - Feburary 2006 - HOLLOWAY ON GARDENING LEAVE
QPR OFFICIAL SITECLUB STATEMENT
QPR have announced that Ian Holloway has been placed on 'gardening leave.'Gary Waddock has been appointed as caretaker manager and will be taking first team training as of today.Waddock is currently being consulted about a potential caretaker assistant manager to join him in the next few days.The move follows speculation about Holloway joining Leicester City as their new manager.The club is keen to avoid any distraction to the playing side and to move forward with the rest of the season as speedily as possible.It has therefore put Ian Holloway and his managerial staff, Gary Penrice and Tim Breacker, on gardening leave with immediate effect.Gary Waddock started at work on Monday morning in training with the players and in preparation for next Saturday's derby game against Millwall.
Gianni Paladini said: "QPR has not sacked Ian, but we are concerned about recent performances and the effect the speculation about Ian joining Leicester City might have on the players."I hope we can sort something out with Ian as soon as possible. QPR will always be enormously grateful for the contribution he has made over the past five years, in particular gaining promotion for us in 2004."However, it is crucial the team are focussed and able to move forward, which is why we have appointed Gary as Caretaker Manager. I hope the fans will get behind Gary for the home derby against Millwall on Saturday."http://www.qpr.premiumtv.co.uk/page/News/NewsDetail/0,,10373~779128,00.html


HOLLOWAY Appointed

QPR Official Site - February 26, 2001 - 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 - February 26, 2001- 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, February 21, 2001 - DEPUTY CHAIRMAN (Nick Blackburn) 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


IAIN DOWIE II

QPR Official Site - March 7, 2001: DOWIE LEAVES QPR
THREE ON THE MOVE AS OLLY MAKES HIS MARK - Mach 7. 2001
IAIN DOWIE has left QPR after having his contract paid up in full by the club. Dowie has worked very hard during his time at QPR and the club wishes him every success in the future.
New manager Ian Holloway is looking to bring in his own backroom staff. Holloway said: "When I got the job I talked about bringing in my own backroom staff which most people do in football. I've taken this decision now in order to give him the best chance of getting another job.
"Iain has worked very hard for the club and I'm sure he will do very well in the future. We wish him all the best."
Antti Heinola is also leaving Loftus Road and returning to his native Finland. The QPR defender, whose contract has been terminated by mutual consent, is going home to begin studying for an economics degree.
Another player to be leaving Loftus Road is Leon Jeanne after completing a period of notice issued by the club.


QPR OFFICIAL SITE - 2001 - IAIN - I'D LOVE TO BE BOSS
IN THE build-up to the Gillingham game, assistant boss Iain Dowie has been putting forward his case in the interviews for the manager's job at Rangers.
Iain said: "I've had my interview and I put my point to the board. I think continuity here is very important.
"We've got 18 players out of contract and it is important that the new manager does know the players.
"I also feel I've got something fresh to give. I think I am an innovative coach and I can get a response from the lads.
"I also feel I can step into the mantle of a manager. I've got some bright ideas and things I want to implement. Hopefully I'll get the opportunity.
"I consider this to be a very good club and one that I've really enjoyed my time at. Hopefully my hard work will have earned me the opportunity to be the next manager. If I don't get the job, it won't be through lack of hard work when I've been coaching.
"It's nice that a large percentage of the fans feel that I should get the opportunity. I understand that people have been putting my name forward on the internet, which is lovely. It's nice to know that I have that support and I'd like to get Rangers back to a position where we can challenge for honours."


GERRY FRANCIS

February 2001 CLUB STATEMENT 16 February 2001 - Francis StAnds Down
We have known that Gerry Francis was considering retirement at the end of this season when his contract expires and this week he confirmed to the QPR Board that this was the case.
Following discussions with Gerry it was mutually agreed that it was important to install a new manager now in order to plan for next season, particularly with regard to existing players' contracts and any incoming players. The new manager when appointed will immediately assume responsibility for the First team and will obviously focus on doing everything possible to ensure that QPR do not get relegated this season.
Gerry has been asked to remain with QPR until his contract expires and will work with the new manager on planning for next season, including such issues as our Academy situation and our Scouting network.
The Board would like to go on record as publicly thanking Gerry for the job he has performed over the last two years in very difficult circumstances, keeping QPR up in the first year and finishing tenth last season. His commitment to the club is second to none and we feel that he has made a major contribution in trying to turn the club around. He has been offered a place on the Club Board next year should he wish to take it up.
Discussions with candidates for the manager's job have already started and the Board hopes to be in a position to make an announcement as soon as possible. In the meantime, Gerry Francis will be in charge for the match against Barnsley and we hope he leaves the job with the win the club needs.


Febaury 2001 - GERRY SAYS GOODBYE
GERRY FRANCIS was emotional about the 2-0 win over Barnsley in what was probably his last home game in charge as manager.
Gerry said: "It was a very sad day and an emotional day for me. The fans were fantastic again on Saturday.
"Some supporters look deeply at the situation. They ask why did the man come back in the first place? He didn't have to and the club was going nowhere, bottom of the league and nine points adrift.
"He knew the situation, he didn't moan and groan because he didn't have any money, he didn't moan and groan about having to cut wages, he didn't moan and groan that he had no signing on fees. He brought a couple of kids through, he went to non-League. And he found a couple of players which are the club's future, like Peter Crouch and Clarke Carlisle.
"He had tragic injury problems this year with six broken legs, Rob Steiner retiring, Danny Maddix not playing all season and two cruciate ligaments. Any manager in the country - including Alex Ferguson - would have struggled with those injuries. I've never known anything like it in my life.
"So I just feel that supporters looking at football and managers can see beyond results sometimes. Obviously I am delighted that they can.
"This has been the hardest job I've had to do in my career, with some very difficult circumstances and problems along the way. I feel I've earned a rest now.
"It was a very, very nice gesture to offer me a place on the board here. But no one knows what the situation will be here in a couple of months. The club is still up for sale. A new owner might come in and not know who I am! So you just don't know what is around the corner."


October 16 1998 FRANCIS BACK HOME
QUEENS PARK RANGERS today announced that Gerry Francis has been appointed the club's new Director of Football. Chairman Chris Wright confirmed that Francis would take up the position immediately.
Francis who sent more than 17 years at Queens Park Rangers, both as manager and player, has been appointed on a three year contract and fills the gap left recently by Ray Harford who resigned on September 28th.
Francis, who has been out of football since leaving Spurs a year ago, said of his new appointment:"I'm delighted to be back at Loftus Road. I spent many happy and successful years here and it's great to be home again. Although there is a major job ahead, I believe the club has huge potential and I look forward to the challenge."
Welcoming Francis back to Loftus Road, Chris Wright said "It is great to have Gerry back. We chose him because of his proven track record and significantly, his achievements as a manager. This talent, coupled with his strong emotional commitment to the club, is a combination we beleive is impossible to find elsewhere."
Iain Dowie, who took over as caretaker manager following Harford's departure last month, has been appointed player/coach working alongside Francis.
Francis' will attend QPR's league fixture at Huddersfield tomorrow, but Dowie, who has been preparing the team for this tough game, will remain in charge in his role as caretaker manager.


QPR Official Site - October 16, 1998 FRANCIS BACK HOME
NEW RANGERS manager Gerry Francis has spoken about his decision to come back to Rangers and is prepared for the cahallenges ahead.
Francis, the fans top choice to succeed Ray Harford, was installed on Friday afternoon at Loftus Road and is pleased to be back again at the club that nurtured his prestigious career.
"I'm pleased to be back, but I know what a challenge it is and I've committed myself to the situation and now I have to see if I can pull QPR back to where I left it."
"There is no money to spend on players, but I knew this when I came on and you can't hide behind those things, I put my reputation on the line and it's up to me to sort it out."
"I've gone into this sort of situation before, Tottenham at ten months bristol Rovers was dire I had to lend them money to buy players. It's a difficiult situation but you've got to be positive."
In 11 months I've turned down 12 opportunites flat to go back into the game, it was only my love and concern for QPR that let me to talk to Chris Wright. I was shocked when I found out the bottom line, and I had several other meetings but I in the end I decided to take it - I know Chris will say I did that with hy heart rather than my head, and he's probably right but we'll have to see how things go. We've got to get up the league and build a team that can get us promotion to the premeir league, because that's where I want to be. I want to show my commitment to the club and I'm prepared to buy in on the share side of it and try and change things around.. What I'll be working for is to try and improve that and on the field as well. Certainly we can't carry on with the current financial situation, that has to be turned around. The likes of the Gallen's, Quashie's and Dichio's that I lef there when i left have to be brought through again because they are vital to the club because we have no money to buy players.



IAIN DOWIE I
QPR OFFICIAL SITE - October 12, 1998 - DOWIE IGNORES THE HYPE
CARETAKER boss Iain Dowie has returned to training at Rangers after a successful weekend away with Northern Ireland, and is ignoring all the media hype regarding the vacant manager's position.
Iain says: " Whatever the scenario is at QPR, I’m just taking it day by day and working very hard to get the lads prepared for Saturday. I can’t affect anything that goes on off the field. I had a chat with the directors at Rangers and they will make their decision.
Whatever that is, I’ll go along with it. I just want to see QPR do well. That’s the most important thing at the moment. It’s not about personalities. It’s about everyone fighting and pulling the same way for the benefit of the club."


RAY HARFORD

QPR OFFICIAL SITE - September 28, 1998 - HARFORD RESIGNS
RAY HARFORD STEPS DOWN
- Queens Park Rangers FC announced on Monday morning the resignation of Manager Ray Harford following the team's 4-1 defeat at Oxford United on Saturday. Ray felt that at this difficult time it was in the Club's best interests he should step down.
- The Club has appointed player/coach Iain Dowie, who has also been managing the unbeaten Reserve Team, as Caretaker Manager. Dowie will be in charge of the team for tomorrow's game at Wolverhampton Wanderers, and for next Saturday's home match against Grimsby Town.
- The Board intend to advertise the position of manager and will be hoping to interview a short lisst of candidates over the next two weeks. An appointment will be made in due course.
- In the probability of the home game against Ipswich Town on 11th October being postponed due to International duties, the Board will endeavour to have a manager in place by the following game away to Huddersfield town (17th October).
- The Board gave careful consideration to appointing Player/Assistant Manager Vinnie Jones as Manager. The Board decided that it was in the best interests of the Club to formulate a short list of candidates for the position of Manager who will be interviewed in due course. Vinnie will be considered as part of this process.
- A further announcement will be made in due course.


QPR OFFICIAL SITE - December 1997 - RAY IS OUR MAN
QPR CHAIRMAN CHRIS WRIGHT tonight confirmed the widest known secret in football that Ray Harford was to be appointed the new manager at Loftus Road.
The QPR supremo revealed that negotiations for Harford's signature were almost complete and that he expected the former West Brom boss to be at the helm before the weekend.
" I can tell all Rangers fans that we have agreed the basic terms for Ray Harford to become the new manager of QPR."
" He has resigned from his position at WBA, who are refusing to accept he is out of contract. As far as we and our lawyers are concerned he is not in contract and we hope to conclude the agreement sometime tomorrow morning in time for him to take training."
The Chairman then indicated the reasons for Ray's selection and the role of John Hollins who has been acting as caretaker manager since the dismissal of Stewart Houston.
"We have asked Ray to take John Hollins as his assistant and at the moment John is considering all his options, but we very much hope the two of them will be managing the first team."
"Ray's record speaks for itself. He has managed at all levels, both in the lower divisions and in the Premier League. He was coach at Blackburn with Kenny Dalglish and then took over. He has done an excellent job at WBA, taking a team last season who were close to relegation and turning them into promotion candidates."
" He comes with more experience than virtually any manager in the country, he has an excellent record in the transfer market and is an expert at bringing players on. He lives in London and he is welcoming the chance to work at QPR believing we have the potential to get back into the Premier League."
" I believe Ray will prove to be an excellent choice to take QPR into the Premiership and stay there."
Chris Wright complimented John Hollins on the job he had done over the last few weeks and complimented him for restoring spirit at the club and with the fans.
" John has been brilliant. Spirit is excellent between the players and the fans think they have reclaimed their club."
"I'm looking forward to working with Ray and I am sure he will do an excellent job."


QPR Official Site - HARFORD FREE FOR RANGERS
RANGERS and West Brom reached an agreement over Ray Harford on Friday morning, leaving the way clear for the former Hawthornes boss to take over this afternoon at Loftus Road.
West Brom had tried to prevent Harford, who resigned from his Hawthorns post on Thursday morning, from taking up the Rangers post without them receiving any compensation and were believed to be seeking a sum in the region of £500,000 for the loss their boss.
Harford is now free to resume as manager and is expected to take over training this afternoon. A decision as to whether John Hollins will accept the appointment as assistant manager is expected in the near future.
Speaking after the agreement between the two clubs had reached its faviourable conclusion, Ray revealed his relief at the outcome.
" I'm very excited about the opportunity and can't wait to get my feet under the table."
" I think the next few games are vitally important as given the right results they could put us right in amongst the chasing pack."
Ray will not be in charge for Saturday's game against Sunderland, but will be watching from the stands. John Hollins will be in the dugout and will select the side.


STUART HOUSTON (AND BRUCE RIOCH)


QPR Official Site - November 10, 1997 - BOARD RELEASE HOUSTON AND RIOCH
BOSS Stewart Houston and Assistant Manager Bruce Rioch have parted company with Queens Park Rangers, after a board meeting at Loftus Road on Monday night.
A statement issued by the club read:
"Following a meeting of the Board of QPR, at which Stuart Houston was present, the club has reluctantly decided to release both Stuart Houston and Bruce Rioch.
A caretaker manager will be appointed in the interim period."
Chairman Chris Wright will issue a full statement following the AGM of Loftus Road plc tomorrow afternoon. The excusive interview will be available on this site from around 6pm GMT.


QPR Official Site - November 11, 1997 - THE WRIGHT WAY FORWARD
CHRIS WRIGHT revealed today that fan power had necessitated the removal of Stewart Houston and Bruce Rioch as the managerial team at Loftus Road
As John Hollins was installed as caretaker boss, the chairman insisted he would not be rushed into finding immediate replacements.
" I did feel it was important that Stewart carried the body of the fans with him, we had taken six points from 24 and the feeling was we were not moving in the right direction."
" I know that Stewart never really endeared himself to the fans, he didn't see that as part of his job and I felt Stewart was struggling to carry support with him."
" I wanted to give him until the end of the year, but I felt it was better to make a clean break."
Turning his attention to the fuure and the installation of the new man at the helm, Wright revealed.
" I don't want to lurch from one manager to another. I want to go into this feeling, this is the best man, rather than getting in someone tomorrow afternoon."
" It could be days, weeks, months or even the end of the season."
" Twelve months ago we felt we were a Premiership Club who would be promoted. We gave players contracts thinking we would be back in 12 months time. The reality is now we are a Division One club. To get out of this division is now a priority and we're looking for a manager capable of getting us well equipped to survive and then getting us out of the division."
" We want someone who knows about the Nationwide League and its players, who will bring the best ones to QPR to get us into the Premier League."
As the Rangers supremo laid out his plans, he apologised to Bruce Rioch over the way he had found out about his dismissal, on Ceefax rather than having been informed directly.
" Stewart was to inform Bruce. I don't know why Stewart took a little longer than we anticipated to contact him. I'm genuinely sorry Bruce found out the way he did."
Having aligned himself with popular opinion in making the managerial change, Chris made a personal plea to R's supporters to get back and stand full square behind John Hollins and the team saying.
" This is your club. It's up to you to get behind your team. You've been quiet at home, now show everybody how much you feel for the club. I know your opinions, we've acted on them, now get behind us again."


[JOHN HOLLINS]

QPR Official Site - November 18 - JOHN WANTS TOP JOB
CARETAKER boss John Hollins has expressed a keen interest in becoming the next manager of Queens Park Rangers.
John is in charge on a temporary basis, starting with Saturday's home game against Stoke. But he'd like the job permanently.
Hollins says:"It would be an honour and I'd be very pleased. First things first, though, and we've got one match on Saturday. Let's take each game as it comes and look for a Rangers victory."
"We have some great guys to work with. I want Rangers a happy place to play. Football is an enjoyable game and I enjoy working with the squad. I want these guys to have a smile on their faces, but with grit and determination in matches to make sure we win.

[Note: The Wilkins departure/Houston appointment announcement yet to be found!]]

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Another Pointing to Ainsworth for Permanent Appointment...Chopra?

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Telegraph/ Sandy Macaskill - Birmingham City test next for Queens Park Rangers caretaker manager Gareth Ainsworth

Despite being given the public backing of his chairman, Flavio Briatore, at the weekend, the pressure will be on Queens Park Rangers caretaker manager Gareth Ainsworth when his side come up against Championship leaders Birmingham on Tuesday night, now he has been informed that he stands every chance of being given the full-time job.
- In pole position: QPR caretaker manager Gareth Ainsworth has been told he is in the running for the job on a full-time basis Photo: JASON DAWSON
- Ainsworth was put in charge of the team last week after the club terminated Iain Dowie's contract just 15 games into his tenure. Initial suspicions were that Ainsworth's appointment would be temporary, with Terry Venables and former Inter Milan manager Roberto Mancini lined up as potential replacements, but Briatore is understood to be keen to keep the winger in his new role.
-Ainsworth will, therefore, be hoping to build on his first result with the club, an important draw with Reading at the weekend which will no doubt have brought him fresh confidence from the board.
However, the Birmingham fixture represents a far greater challenge: QPR were defeated 1-0 when the two sides met a little over three weeks ago at St Andrews.
Of particular interest for Rangers fans will be the team selection. Dowie was thought to have named the starting eleven to face Reading at training on the Friday morning before being fired, yet the Italian Samuel di Carmine was chosen over Dexter Blackstock, a move interpreted by some as a sign that Briatore has exerted some influence over team affairs.
It is not the first time that Briatore has been accused of becoming involved at dressing-room level – Dowie's relationship with the Italian is understood to have been strained by his interference, especially with regard to the transfer market.
Ainsworth will have to do without Damien Delaney, who is suspended after collecting five yellow cards this season.

Birmingham, meanwhile, are looking to consolidate their league position after wins against Crystal Palace and Sheffield Wednesday. They may have been fortunate to get a result against Palace, when Garry O'Connor scored after four minutes of added time, but their prowess in attack against Wednesday will stand them in good stead against QPR.
Manager Alex McLeish has hinted that after a series of striker rotations this season O'Connor and Kevin Phillips will feature over James McFadden, Cameron Jerome and Marcus Bent up front.
O'Connor has finally started to convert his promise on the practice pitch to performance on match days. He has long been the best goalscorer in training, according to McLeish, but now he is converting that to goals when they count.
McLeish said: "I don't think people realise that he is a decent player. He's the best finisher in the club, and now he's showing it at Birmingham after doing it at Hibs and in Moscow. Another pleasing feature is that he's now linking up well with Kevin Phillips."
David Murphy, out with a thigh injury, could return, but McLeish is unlikely to make any changes, especially after beating Wednesday 3-1. Telegraph


Snippet at the Mail re Chopra
"...Mancienne has been on loan at Queens Park Rangers, who are on the trail of Sunderland striker Michael Chopra on loan with a view to a permanent £2.5million move." Mail

More From Ainsworth...Ex-QPR Loan, Mancienne to Wolves

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BBC - Ainsworth proud to hold QPR reins
Ainsworth is happy to be in temporary charge at Loftus Road
QPR caretaker boss Gareth Ainsworth is convinced the Loftus Road club will go from strength to strength despite the sacking of Iain Dowie last week.
"QPR is very strong with the result of what happened and will stay strong, nothing is going to break us," Ainsworth told BBC London 94.9.
"Iain was a great mentor for me when he was here, he gave me the reserve job, I never thought I'd be thrust in to this.
"I'm a very proud man, I am happy to be doing the job," the 35-year-old added. BBC


QPR Official Site - AINSWORTH: LET'S GET ROCKING
- Caretaker Manager Gareth Ainsworth is calling on Rangers fans to come out in their numbers tomorrow (Tuesday) night, as the R's play host to table-topping Birmingham City at Loftus Road.
- Buoyed by Saturday's excellent point against in-form Reading at The Madejski Stadium, Ainsworth has called on the R's faithful to pack out W12 and make it another memorable evening.
- "There's nothing I'd like more than to see a packed Loftus Road for the visit of arguably one of the best teams in this division," he told www.qpr.co.uk.
- "I've said it more times than I'd care to remember, but there really is nothing like a packed Loftus Road under the floodlights.
- "The atmosphere the fans can generate at an evening kick-off at Loftus Road is immeasurable - it can arguably be the difference between success and failure.
- "If we can get a big gate and perform like we did against Reading on Saturday, there's no reason why we can't build on our recent unbeaten run."
- To purchase tickets for Tuesday night's fixture against Brum, call 08444 777 007 or log on to www.eticketing.co.uk/qpr - QPR


Championship - Wolves take Mancienne on loan
Wolverhapton Wanderers have signed Chelsea defender Michael Mancienne on loan until December 29.
The England Under-21 international stands a chance of going straight into Mick McCarthy's squad for Tuesday's Championship clash with Swansea.
McCarthy said: "We wanted some defensive cover, because we wanted to stop conceding goals at the rate we have - 14 in five games isn't good enough.
"Michael is a good defender and very quick. He is travelling up today and could be in the squad tomorrow.
"But I wouldn't want to throw him in without doing some work with him first."
Mancienne, 20, is no stranger to the Championship having spent most of the last two seasons on loan at QPR, making over 50 appearances for Rangers."Mike Hytner / Eurosport

Chopra for QPR?...Ainsworth for QPR?...Vine on Dowie Sacking

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Dave McIntyre/Ealing Gazette - Chopra is latest target

QPR are this week hoping to capture Sunderland striker Michael Chopra.
Rangers want to sign Chopra, 24, on loan until January with a view to a possible permanent move when the transfer window re-opens.
But even if Sunderland manager Roy Keane can be persuaded to let him leave on an initial loan deal, agreeing a price for the former Newcastle player could be difficult.
The Black Cats paid Cardiff £5million to sign Chopra in July last year and Rangers are looking to spend around half that amount.
Chopra has been QPR’s top target since money was made available to sign a striker following a mixed start to the season.
But Keane was reluctant to let him go and Rangers then failed with a bid to sign Hull City forward Caleb Folan.
Now the club are again trying to land Chopra but have cooled their interest in Sunderland goalkeeper Marton Fulop.
Chopra will make his debut in the home match against Birmingham on Tuesday night should a deal be agreed in time.
Otherwise, Dexter Blackstock is set to partner Samuel Di Carmine up front having been left on the bench for Saturday’s 0-0 draw against Reading.

Rangers’ performance at the Madejski Stadium increased Gareth Ainsworth’s chances of succeeding Iain Dowie as first-team coach.
Ainsworth was placed in caretaker charge on Friday afternoon after Dowie was sacked for refusing to select a team suggested by boss Flavio Briatore.
Despite being overlooked as big names were linked with the job, Ainsworth has a realistic chance.
The 35-year-old player/coach is highly regarded by board members, who were considering him as a possible alternative to Dowie before Briatore eventually wielded the axe." Ealing Gazette


Nigel Brown/Sport.co - Vine: Dowie sacking came out of the blue
- QPR striker Rowan Vine admitted the sacking of boss Iain Dowie came as a bolt from the blue when the news was delivered on Friday. Vine, who is recovering from a broken leg picked up in training in March, said none of the players expected the news and were shocked when they found out Dowie would be leaving after just 15 games in charge. "Everyone was surprised," he said. "The owners and the chairman came in and delivered the news to us at training. It was a big shock.
- "There have been various rumours about managers and players ever since I arrived at the club.
- "We don't take much notice of the papers but as far as we were concerned it came out of the blue.
- "I certainly didn't see it coming but we've just got to get on with it."
- Gareth Ainsworth has been placed in temporary charge and picked up a credible 0-0 draw away to Reading on Saturday, but speculation is mounting as to who will be next in the hot seat at Loftus Road.
- Names from former boss Terry Venebles, Millwall's Kenny Jackett and Roberto Mancini have all been linked, but there is only one man for the job as far as Vine is concerned.
- "I have heard a few rumours about Zinedine Zidane - certainly in the summer," Vine admitted. "I'd love to see him walk through the door." Sport

Next: Birmingham at Loftus Road

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Briatore/Ainsworth's QPR take on top-of-the-table, Birmingham at Loftus Road tomorrow. Birmingham, unbeaten away this season, with 3 wins and 3 losses - Championship Table -- Birmingham's squad --- Birmingham's Results --- Other Birmingham Stats for the season

Last Meeting:
In a throwback to how home and away games against the same team, used to be played,
QPR again meeting Birmingham, three weeks after the two teams played in Birmingham! It was really after that game that the "Dowie-on-Thin Ice" stories began anew
QPR: Cerny, Delaney, Stewart, Mahon (Buzsaky 68), Hall, Leigertwood, Blackstock, Agyemang, Rowlands (Ledesma 80), Ramage (Connolly 87), Cook - Subs: Camp, Parejo..
Birmingham City: Taylor, Murphy, Ridgewell, Larsson, O'Connor, Phillips (Jerome 80), Agustien, Jaidi, Owusu-Abeyie (McFadden 75), Carsley (Nafti 50).
Subs: Doyle, Taylor, Jerome.
See Match Reports: - Match reports of Birmingham 1 QPR 0 --- Match Reports and Comments II

- QPR vs Birmingham Head-to-Head Results:
Over the years, there have been quite a number of QPR losses to Birmingham - with the exception of course, of their great League Cup Semi-Final victory there back in 1967. - Head to Head Results. In League encounters: Birmingham have won 20; QPR have won 9; and 13 have been drawn. In their last 12 league encounters against each other, QPR failed to win once.

- QPR last beat Birmingham 3-1 in September 1985, with goals from Rosenoir, Bannister and that rarity: an Ian Dawes Goal. Team: Barron (QPR debut) Dawes, Fenwick, Wicks, Mcdonald, Kerslake, Waddock, Gregory, Fereday, Rosenoir, Bannister.
- Over the years....Birmingham's 3-0 victory over QPR ending QPR's 4 wins and a draw start in 1969, thanks to a Tony Hateley inspired debut (and a Bert Murray hatrick)...The battle of the teenage titans: Gerry Francis vs Trevor Francis (QPR winning!)

- QPR vs Birmingham last encounter was at Loftus Road, Boxing Day, 2006. Birmingham won 2-1.
QPR's team: Simon Royce, Marcus Bignot, Mauso Milanese, Zesh Rehman, Marc Bircham, Lee Cook, Damion Stewart, Paul Furlong, Dexter Blackstock, Jimmy Smith, Michael Mancienne. Subs: Nick Ward, Martin Rowlands, Stefan Bailey, Ray Jones, Jake Cole.

- Played for Both Clubs:
Players who've played for both teams include Mark Dennis and Trevor Francis (who managed both teams as did Jim Smith). QPR "reject" DJ Campbell, Mike Kelly. Dennis Bailey. Don Givens. And of course, Barry Bridges, David Seaman and Paul Furlong. The latest: Rowan Vine.


Birmingham Mail/Colin Tattum: Quincy fit for Birmingham City but not guaranteed a return place
- QUINCY will be fit for tomorrow's game at QPR - but not guaranteed a return.
- The winger has missed Blues last two match because of a thigh problem.
- "He was close Saturday," said manager Alex McLeish. "But I don't think he was 100 per cent sure himself.
- "The physio felt he wasn't convinced he could make it, so he missed out.
- "But, saying that, it would have been difficult to get him in the 16 anyway given what we saw the other night [against Crystal Palace]. Also, you've got to think about other players and keep their morale up too."
- "Quincy will be available Tuesday," McLeish added.
- "McFadden just made it. He wasn't quite 100 per cent because of his groins. He has had a tough couple of months with the Scotland games and everything else.
- "He is seeking that wee bit of sharpness. When he is at his sharpness he will be very difficult to leave out." Birmingham Mail

League Managers Association re Dowie...Darren Ferguson on Peterborough Official Site Denies QPR...Further Persepectives

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Hmmm!

League Managers Association - League Managers Association statement in respect of Iain Dowie
Ian Dowie has consulted the League Managers Association in respect of his removal as manager of Queens Park Rangers Football Club.
The club has issued a statement saying that it has given notice to terminate the contract of manager Iain Dowie with immediate effect. What this means is that his contract will terminate on its expiry in June 2010 and that, in the meantime, he has been placed on paid leave.
The LMA is disappointed on Iain's behalf, as under his leadership the first team has won 8 of the 15 fixtures played in all competitions, including knocking Aston Villa out of the Carling Cup at Villa Park. Further, in his transfer dealings to date, he has earned the Club a net profit of around 500,000. Iain Dowie will not be making any comment at this stage. LMA



Peterborough Official Site Ferguson Dismisses Speculation

- Peterborough United boss Darren Ferguson has dismissed newspaper speculation that he is set to take over at Championship side Queens Park Rangers. Sunday newspapers reported that Ferguson is being lined up as a replacement for Ian Dowie at Loftus Road, but Ferguson insists it is pure speculation.
- 'No-one is going anywhere. We have a plan here, the first part of the plan was completed last season when we clinched promotion and I know we have a side capable of challenging for promotion this year. There is no reason for any of my players or myself leaving.
- 'It is nonsense and I am just concentrating on Peterborough United. My players have been linked with a number of clubs in recent weeks and it is just speculation, we don't want to let any of our players leave this football club,' Ferguson said.
- Director of Football Barry Fry added: 'You won't get better backing from a chairman than you will at Peterborough United. Darren has done brilliantly and there is no reason for him to leave. We want to keep everyone together at London Road.' Peterbrough


Matthew Norman/Evening Standard - Dowie back on the slow route to the top
- On behalf of Shepherd's Bush, let me bid a fond farewell to Iain Dowie who was fired as QPR manager last week. Given the wealth and ambition of owners Bernie Ecclestone and Flavio Briatore, this always seemed an eccentric appointment, and he duly departed after 15 games in his post.
- So things are looking up. Mr Dowie survived only 12 games in his last London post at Charlton, and at this rate of improvement it won't be long — no later than 2059, certainly — before he manages one of our clubs for an entire season. So long as it's in the 38-game Premier League. If not — and in this context “not” must start long odds on — we're looking at 2065.
- Still, better to travel than to arrive, as someone smart once said, which is just as well because this one has the makings of a very long journey. This is London


Daily Mail - HATCHET MAN: Why does Flav think he can tell the boss who to sign? Would he change the engine oil on one of his F1 cars?
- Maybe Queens Park Rangers should advertise for their new manager on daytime TV - as an alternative to debt management or bankruptcy.
- You know the sort of thing: 'Credit card debts? Bills piling up? Mortgage arrears? Just take over at Loftus Road for 13 games then clear it all with one massive pay-off.'
-That’s about the only up side to the job for whoever takes over from Iain Dowie, at least while Flavio Briatore is calling the tune.
- It’s the worst job and the best. The worst if you want a promotion on your CV and the best if – like Dowie – you’re catching up from a pile of lawyer’s bills.
- Dowie seems to have got the sack for trying to follow the old fashioned idea that as manager he should choose the players and pick the team. It looks like whoever comes next will have to work with the same handicap.
- Billionaire Briatore wouldn’t get a spanner out and start trying to change the engine oil on one of his Formula One cars, so why does he seem to think he can interrupt training to tell his football manager who to sign or select?
- Rangers might have the richest board in the Championship but they never let Dowie spend serious money or gave him a wages budget to rival Birmingham or Reading.
- Briatore will give his Renault driver Fernando Alonso a genuine Formula One car to drive in Sunday’s Brazilian Grand Prix and hope to see him collect his third win in four races.
- So why would he think Dowie – or anybody else – could be in pole position in the promotion race driving the football equivalent of a battered W registered 306? Mail


- Dowie's Performance and Axing: Analysis by Clive Whittingham/LoftforWords

Briatore, Briatore, Briatore - Briatore Supposedly Wants Ainsworth as Dowie Replacement..Briatore and Team Selection

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The Times/Kaveh Solhekol
Flavio Briatore wants to give Gareth Ainsworth his chance at QPR
- Flavio Briatore is trying to convince his business partners at Queens Park Rangers that Gareth Ainsworth should become the club’s manager until the end of the season. Ainsworth became the caretaker manager when Iain Dowie left Loftus Road on Friday and the 35-year-old player-coach was in charge for QPR’s goalless draw away to Reading on Saturday.
- “We have everything,” Briatore said. “We have the players and we have the coach. There was no argument with Iain Dowie, it was just a decision of the board because we were not happy, it’s as simple as that.”
- The former Crystal Palace manager effectively resigned when he refused to allow Briatore to pick the team for the match at the Madejski Stadium. The Italian co-owns the club with Bernie Ecclestone and Lakshmi Mittal and was frustrated that Dowie would not pick players such as Samuel Di Carmine and Daniel Parejo, who are there on loan.
- Dowie, who had little say over the club’s transfer policy, lost his job when he refused to drop Dexter Blackstock, the club’s leading goalscorer, and start with Di Carmine and Parejo in attack. Both players were in Ainsworth’s starting XI on Saturday.
- “There are lots of talks and discussions about players with various people at the club and of course that includes Flavio Briatore,” Ainsworth said. “He’s the chief investor and he loves taking an active part in how his investment is going.”
- Ainsworth will be in charge for QPR’s home match against Birmingham City tomorrow while his employers decide whether to keep faith with him until the end of the season. Terry Venables, Darren Ferguson, Kenny Jackett and Italian managers such as Roberto Mancini and Roberto Donadoni have been linked with the post... . The Times


Commentary - Martin Sammuel/The Times
...You cannot be serious
It is an open secret that Flavio Briatore, the joint owner of Queens Park Rangers, intends to have a say in team selection. This makes the speculation on the identity of Iain Dowie’s successor meaningless. Roberto Mancini and Terry Venables have been mentioned, but no serious football man would take the job in those circumstances." The Times


BBC - Dowie's exit was a shock - Mahon
Queens Park Rangers midfielder Gavin Mahon has admitted he was surprised by boss Iain Dowie's sacking after a training session on Friday morning.
Mahon told BBC London 94.9: "Just after training (QPR co-owner) Flavio Briatore said he wanted a meeting with everyone and said that Iain's leaving.
"It was strange because the gaffer had been taking training.
"Twenty minutes later we were told by the chairman to go upstairs and have a meeting and that's where we found out."
Mahon added: "I was a little bit shocked, but I've had all sorts of things in my career.
"On a personal note I got on really well with Iain. The coaching was top drawer, well organised, everyone was fit and at times we let him down on the pitch with our performances.
"His record's decent, you can't fault it. We've got a decent cup game coming up (Manchester United in the Carling Cup fourth Round) and are in a decent position in the league.
"Everyone knows how hard this league is. I think this club has moved on a lot from last year." BBC


GUARDIAN/Mikey Stafford - Briatore makes his point as QPR draw solace at ReadingGuardian report Match facts Championship
- Steve Coppell welcomed Iain Dowie and his QPR team to the Madejski Stadium in his programme notes, but it was instead the caretaker manager Gareth Ainsworth he pitted his wits against.
- The veteran midfielder's managerial debut was impressive and his resolute QPR side were the first this season to leave the Madejski with a point as they held the free-scoring Reading in a hectic encounter bereft of clear goal-scoring chances.
- Speculation is rife over who will take over on a permanent basis at the Championship's wealthiest club, with Terry Venables, Roberto Mancini, Gianluca Vialli and Sam Allardyce all thought to be in the frame. On Saturday evening, with the young Italian striker Samuel Di Carmine preferred to top scorer Dexter Blackstock, it would appear that whoever does take over may have to respect the opinion of Flavio Briatore, the Renault formula one team owner and chairman of QPR. The Italian was conspicuous in the director's box during the game, and Ainsworth admitted that Briatore had also spent some time in the dressing room beforehand.
- "I would say 80% of the games he comes into the dressing room," said the former Wimbledon midfielder. "Tonight he came in for a general chat when we had just arrived at the ground."
- The 35-year-old maintained that Briatore had no input on strategy and the final team was his to name, but he did confess that the chairman "likes his input" and "says what he sees". "There are discussions about the team and discussions about players. Flavio has put a lot of money in the club and wants to know how his investments are going. Already we have made a point that we are going to be meeting regularly, not just with Flavio but with the other people who have put their money in, but I have the final input on who goes out there. He doesn't discuss the strategies but he is a winner and he loves to be involved in sport."
- Dowie may have been dismissed because of his preference for Blackstock over Di Carmine, but on Saturday it was the QPR defence that dominated proceedings. Mikele Leigertwood in particular did a fantastic job of marshalling Stephen Hunt, Reading's provider-in-chief, and despite the tireless running of Hunt's brother Noel and Kevin Doyle up front, the previously free-scoring Royals failed to create any solid chances from open play. The substitute Kalifa Cissé went closest six minutes from the end when he met Stephen Hunt's corner with a powerful header, only to see Radek Cerny dive brilliantly to his left and divert the ball away from the top corner and around the post.
- While he professed to not getting involved in the QPR "hoo-hah" before the game, as one of the most stable and autonomous managers in English football it was interesting to hear Coppell's take on Dowie's departure. "Picking a football team is not a committee decision," he said. "If I didn't pick the team what would I do?"
- Man of the match: Mikele Leigertwood - Guardian


The Sun/Paul Jiggins - Reading 0 QPR 0By PAUL JIGGINS
- IAIN DOWIE seemed to know he was a dead man walking when he took training at QPR for the final time on Friday.
- His players could tell their manager had something on his mind as he was quieter than usual. Even a bit distant maybe.
- But they had no idea of the drama that would unfold at the end of the session at the Hoops’ Harlington training ground.
- After announcing HIS team for the trip to the Madejski and giving the side their final instructions, Dowie was promptly sacked by the club’s co-owner and chairman Flavio Briatore after less than six months in the job.
- Midfielder Gavin Mahon revealed: “The first inkling I got the gaffer was going was at training on Friday when Gianni Paladini came up to me and said ‘I think he’s going’. I said ‘But he’s just taken training’.
- "Then Flavio called a meeting 20 minutes later and said ‘Yeah, the coach is no longer here. But I want everyone to stick together. I don’t want to see any down faces around the place because we’ve got an important game at Reading’.
- “I was stunned a little bit. But you could tell there was something on the gaffer’s mind or that he was feeling a bit under pressure. Once Flavio told us, we all went to see him to wish him all the best.”
- SunSport told on Saturday how Dowie was axed because he showed he could no longer stand being told what players to pick by Briatore.
- And this was seemingly backed up by Rangers’ starting XI against the Royals.
- Mahon admitted: “The gaffer had picked a side before he left and . . . er, it was sort of the same as the one that played.
- “There were a couple of changes made but I can’t mention names.
- “The lads who were told on Friday they were playing and then told before the game they were not, took it really well.”
- Briatore went into the Rangers dressing room to congratulate caretaker-boss Gareth Ainsworth and his players on becoming the first visiting side to leave the Madejski with a point this term.
- Mahon added: “I spoke to Gaz after the news was announced on Friday and he said he didn’t know whether to laugh or cry because he’s been thrown straight in at the deep end.
- “But he’s experienced. He’s gone through a lot of things in his career. I think he’ll do really well.”
- The QPR caretaker had referee Chris Foy and keeper Radek Cerny to thank for the point.
- First, Foy failed to spot Mahon’s blatant handball in the box. Then Cerny made a fabulous late save to keep out Kalifa Cisse’s header.
- Royals boss Steve Coppell said: “Ainsworth would be happy, his players played for him.
- “There was determination and steel from their back four and midfield four. They didn’t leave too much daylight.
- “They were not far from the ideal side Iain Dowie would have picked.”
SUN STAR MAN - RADEK CERNY (QPR). Keeper pulled out all the stops. The Sun


The Mirror. Alex Varney - MAHON: FLAV DID PICK THE QPR SIDE
- Gavin Mahon admits Rangers team selection was altered afterthedismissal of Iain Dowie on Friday.
- Dowie had named the starting XI before he was sacked following a row with co-owner Flavio Briatore over the line-up.
- Gareth Ainsworthwasput in temporary charge - although it certainly looked as if Briatore had the final say as fellow Italian Samuel Di Carmine was drafted in aheadofDexter Blackstock.
- "He (Dowie) had picked a sidebefore he left," revealed Mahon. "It was sort of the same as the one that played - but one or two changes were made.
- "That's football - all those ladswhoweretoldonFriday they were playing and then told before the game they were not, took it really well.
- "There were only a couple of changes made, but I can't mention names."
- Mahon was shocked to see the back of Dowie - who had guidedRangerstothe fourth roundoftheCarlingCupand left theWest London side ninthinthetable-butwants the managerial situation sorted quickly.
He said: "I was stunned a little bit. His training was very good. At times the players let him down on the pitch. But we're still in a decent league position and we'vegotManUawayinthe Carling Cup."
Despite their off field troubles Rangers became the first side to take points off Reading at the Madejski Stadium this season.
- Whether he picked the side or not caretaker boss Ainsworth seemed to have his side giving him their all.
- The hosts had plundered 27goals athome before this clashbutwerekeptquietby a defence expertly marshalled by Damion Stewart.
Reading remain third although they have slipped to six points behind leaders Birmingham.
Royals defender Liam Rosenior said: "With the formweare in it's definitely two points dropped. We created more than enough chances to score.: Mirror


- [Discuss Flavio Briatore's sacking of Iain Dowie; his supposed involvement in team selection; or a possible Ainsworth appointment as Chief Coach on the QPR Report Messageboard