Ipswich rediscovered their goal scoring form and beat QPR 2-1 at Portman Road on Saturday. Luckily everybody else at the bottom end of the league lost as well but that doesn`t hide the fact that QPR could and should have got something from – in the end poor defending and team selection cost them that opportunity.
Despite Ipswich`s wretched form and QPR`s increasingly desperate situation John Gregory selected just one recognised striker again. Ray Jones was the unlucky man in Blackstock`s absence – he was partnered in attack by Martin Rowlands, Lee Cook thankfully moved back out to the left wing.
Ipswich hadn`t scored for the thick end of ten hours and although they signed Francis Jeffers the day before the game they left him on the bench and started with Alan Lee and Jon Walters up front.
QPR started the game very well, forcing three corners immediately after the kick off. Gareth Ainsworth claimed for a penalty after Wright appeared to handle one of them, Ray Jones glanced a header wide with another and the other went straight out of play. Lee Cook tried to whip a free kick into the near post with keeper Price expecting a cross but the keeper managed to scramble it wide for another corner.
Despite the early pressure and hard work from Jones QPR offered him little support and started to come under pressure when Peters realised he had the beating of Timoska.
Gary Roberts heaved a very presentable chance over the bar and Lee Camp made a great full length save from Alex Bruce but QPR didn`t head that warning and within sixty seconds Alan Lee sent a diving header into the bottom corner after being left unmarked by the defence.
Camp made another save before half time, and Stewart deflected Lee`s goal bound effort over the bar with what looked like a hand. At the other end Rowlands sent a low shot wide of the post and was then denied by Price at the near post after being played in by Jones. A mad passage of play where the referee and Rowlands engaged in an argument over the placing of a corner kick saw us through to half time.
After the break QPR really weren`t at the races. Walters forced Camp into a strong save from twenty five yards and Camp then flicked a low shot from Lee round the post when a goal seemed certain. But ten minutes after the break terrible errors by Timoska and Cullip gave Walters a clear site of the goal and he rolled the ball under Camp and into the net.
The QPR fans turned their frustrations on the chairman and manager at this point, demanding the introduction of a second striker. Gregory responded by replacing Ainsworth with Furlong and within minutes Furs had hammered in a rebound after Rowlands` cross hit the base of the post.
That go QPR back into the game and Camp kept them there with another fine save after Garvan tried his luck from distance. Rowlands hammered a near post effort over the bar and Furlong dragged an effort wide but the best chance to equalise came when Furlong went through on goal in injury time and appeared to be hauled back by De Vos. Furs stayed on his feet and hammered the ball over the bar, the referee didn`t pull the play back for a penalty and in truth Rangers wouldn`t have deserved the draw even if he had. But for Camp this one could have been a lot worse.
Player Ratings
Lee Camp 9
Star man.
Michael Mancienne 6
Had trouble with Roberts for most of the day, definitely not a right back. When Bignot is back hopefully he’ll go to centre half instead of Stewart or Cullip.
Danny Cullip 5
Good battle with Lee for most of the match but had a hand in both Ipswich goals.
Damion Stewart 5
Certainly not his best game for the club, probably his worst game since the turn of the year in fact.
Sam Timoska 4
Run ragged by Peters, named as the man to watch in our pre-match preview of course.
Gareth Ainsworth 5
Really struggling for form at the moment, probably should be left out next week with Rowlands taking his place.
Steve Lomas 4
Tried to pass a five yard ball to Ainsworth, missed him completely and then blamed Ainsworth for not reaching it, just about summed his performance up. Terrible.
Adam Bolder 6
Doing the work of two men with Lomas playing so badly, probably his worst game for the club as well.
Lee Cook 6
Started well but faded in the second half.
Martin Rowlands 7
Worked really hard, unlucky with a couple of efforts on goal, definitely not a striker but credit to him for giving it a go.
Ray Jones 7
Worked really hard and got little for it. Good to see his work ethic back after a few lethargic outings.
Paul Furlong 8
Came on for Ainsworth, made an immediate impact and almost bagged an equaliser at the end.
Jimmy Smith –
Came on for Lomas towards the end but had little time to make an impact.
Manager Rating
John Gregory 3 – ‘We’ll never win, with one up front’ the chant from the fans said it all.
Opponent Rating
Jim Magilton 6 – Won the game but that was more down to QPR’s awful performance than his team’s ability.