Missed penalty, missed opportunities and some Newcastle players were MIA!
Posted on October 1st, 2009 | 12 Comments |
So with that in mind, we had our work cut out but rather than counter it, we seemed to give them a helping hand on a night where several players were not at the races.
Hughton started with the same back four that finished the Ipswich game except Danny Simpson returned from injury to slot into right-back as replacement for the injured Coloccini. Guthrie returned on the right side of midfield in the absence of Ryan Taylor, and so we began the game with four central midfielders playing a compact and narrow formation with Nolan pushing in behind the front two.
QPR came out with the intent that other teams have had this season and took the game to us. And having put us some early under pressure, a long ball dropped ball invitingly into the corner beind Enrique. Jose Enrique is a fabulous talent but unfortunately bears Bramblesque tendencies in overplaying in areas that can cost us. In trying to keep the ball in play, he inadvertently dropped it back into the middle and at the feet of an oncoming midfielder. That led to a deflected shot from Ben Watson which totally wrong-footed Harper and QPR were 1-0 up.
They always looked like they could create more but never really threatened too much and gradually we took control for a spell of twenty minutes, in which we really should have equalised. However, Danny Guthrie had a night he will want to forget, and spurned our best chance when he hit a horrible penalty so poorly that the keeper looked embarrassed getting the congratulations from his team-mates.
Following that great chance for an equaliser, Guthrie then also chose the wrong option after doing well to get to the byline. Instead of cutting the ball back or drilling it across goal, he appeared to want to make amends for his penalty miss but succeeded only in driving the ball straight at the keeper from an impossible angle.
We had other chances in and around this decent spell and while we had the impetus, we also saw attempts on target from Carroll, Nolan and and a glancing header from young Ranger. They were all good chances but the frustration began to set in as we failed to put the ball in the net and it looked like being one of those nights.
Much of QPR’s dominance in possession was due to Nolan, Butt and Smith having off days as none of them got with the pace of the game, the latter’s timing in his tackling was dangerously close to last-ditch, and it was inevitable that he saw yellow in the second half. The midfield was too narrow and congested and as such going forward we struggled to find options and a rythm. And defensively they threatened in wide areas as the naturally more central quartet vied for the engine room spot and neglected duties on the wing.
Half-time came and went with the score still 1-0 but the visitors were almost two up and it would have been a long way back had their centre half’s header been two or three inches closer to the goal, with Harper nowhere near it just minutes into the second half. Hughton had swapped Butt for Gutierrez at the break and despite overplaying at times, for the first time in the game, between them, he and Enrique offered the first prolonged and genuine threat from a wide area.
Upfront Carroll forged valiantly but fruitlessly, while Ranger, showing the knack of getting away with things and winning free-kicks very much in the style of someone who used to wear that no.9 shirt not so long ago, looked a threat throughout the first half. Inexplicably, Hughton decided to replace him with Harewood instead of a midfielder or Carroll (in my opinion) on the hour but his decision was vindicated when Harewood stabbed home the equaliser.
We had chances to win the game, notably Enrique coming mighty close after good build up play but QPR were more than worthy of their point and have the ability to take points off some of the bigs boys judging by this performance. We on the other hand, are looking like we may struggle against pace this season and that we have to guard against complacency. One point is better than nowt but we need to win our home games.
The town started with –
Harper, Simpson, Enrique, Butt, Khizanishvili, Steven Taylor, Nolan, Smith, Carroll, Ranger, Guthrie.
Subs – Krul, Kadar, Geremi, Donaldson, Gutierrez, Harewood, Lovenkrands
QPR first eleven –
Cerny, Borrowdale, Stewart, Gorkss, Leigertwood, Routledge, Watson, Buzsaky, Rowlands, Vine, Simpson.
Subs – Ramage, Ephraim, Heaton, Agyemang, Pellicori, Taarabt, Faurlin
Att – 39,000 approx with just over 2,000 blue and white making the journey (another admirable turnout for a midweek game)..
Told u qpr will be hard