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Sunday, November 19, 2006

Five Years Ago: "Gutless" QPR's FA Cup Humiliation (Swansea 4 QPR 0)

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Five years ago, yesterday, QPR were knocked out of the FA Cup First Round game (shown on TV!) and Holloway blasted the team as "gutless. We were out-battled and out-fought. Not many of my players were worth their wages. Perhaps some of them have been at the club too long and if they don't want to play for the club they can leave>" Swansea
Of the 16 players on the field or the bench, that day, only Bignot remains at Loftus Road. Digby, Forbes, Warren, Palmer, Plummer, Perry, Connolly, Bignot, Bonnot, Griffiths, Dodou. Subs: Bruce, Wardley, Bull, Paquette, Burgess.

BBC - Sunday, 18 November, 2001, Swansea 4-0
Division Three side Swansea progressed to the second round of the FA Cup after a comprehensive victory over second division QPR.
The home side took the lead from a counter-attack in the sixth minute.
Nick Cusack got clear on the left and crossed, Mamady Sidibe took the ball round goalkeeper Fraser Digby.
And instead of shooting, he selflessly laid it off to John Williams who converted an easy chance.
Six minutes before the break, the Welsh side extended their advantage when Williams turned provider for Cusack to score.
QPR kept themselves in the match when Karl Connolly cleared Jason Smith's header off the line.
In the second half, Swansea were content to sit back and try to hit Rangers on the break as Ian Holloway's side chased the game without any real conviction.
Their plan worked to great effect as 10 minutes from time Sidibe ran on to a hopeful punt upfield, nipped in front of Digby and gleefully walked the ball home.
Substitute Steve Watkin, who helped Wrexham to one of the FA Cup's biggest shocks when they beat Arsenal in 1992, completed the rout with a close-range strike to round off a famous victory.
Swansea: Freestone, Terry Evans, Bound, Smith, Steve Evans, O'Leary, Cusack, Coates, Lacey, Sidibe, Williams. Subs: Jones, Watkin, Mazzina, Todd, Phillips.
QPR: Digby, Forbes, Warren, Palmer, Plummer, Perry, Connolly, Bignot, Bonnot, Griffiths, Dodou. Subs: Bruce, Wardley, Bull, Paquette, Burgess.
Referee: A Hall


Hollo Blasts His 'gutless' Players
Swansea 4 QPR 0 (Nov 18)

Rs fans trudging home after the long journey to Wales, having seen their side go out in the FA Cup First Round for the first time since 1966, will have agreed with every word of boss Ian Holloway's post-match analysis.
"They were gutless. We were out-battled and out-fought. Not many of my players were worth their wages. Perhaps some of them have been at the club too long and if they don't want to play for the club they can leave," he raged.
Swansea opened the scoring after five minutes when John Williams tapped home from six yards.
The Swans extended their lead in the 39th minute when Nick Cusack volleyed past Fraser Digby into the corner of the Rangers net.
On 79 minutes, Sidibe ran through from the half way line, beating Rs keeper Fraser Digby and walked the ball into the Rangers net for the third goal.
In the final minute, Sidibe fed the ball wide to the right and Watkin side-footed home for 4-0.
Rangers had it all to do in the second half, a fact reflected in Holloway's double substitution early in the second half. Rangers switched to a 3-4-3 formation with Burgess and Bruce replacing Christer Warren and Mark Perry.
Rangers began to enjoy some good periods of possession but failed to create significant chances and their luck was typified by an injury to Chris Plummer in the 77th minute. Rangers had already used all three substitutions when Richard Pacquette came on for Leroy Griffiths, so Plummer was forced to continue.
When a Rangers move broke down in the 79th minute, the vulnerability of the defence was apparent. On 79 minutes, a simple ball released Sidibe who ran through from the half way line and gathered the ball ahead of Rs keeper Fraser Digby and walked the ball into the Rangers net.
In the final minute, Sidibe broke through the middle again. This time Paul Bruce got back to challenge and injured himself in the process. As he lay prone, Sidibe fed the ball wide to the right and Watkin side-footed home.
QPR: Digby, Forbes, Warren (Bruce), Palmer, Plummer, Perry (Burgess), Connolly, Bignot, Bonnot, Griffiths (Paquette), Dodou
Swansea