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Saturday 25th April 2009
Loftus Road Stadium
Attendance: 14779
Referee: N S Miller
Queens Park Rangers 0-0 Plymouth Argyle
By thegodfather

Queens Park Rangers starting line-up: Cerny, Stewart, Mahon, Leigertwood, Routledge, Agyemang, Gorkss, Connolly, Cook, Miller, Helguson.

Plymouth Argyle starting line-up: Larrieu, Duguid, Gallagher, Barker, Sawyer, Seip, Judge, Barnes, Mackie, Fletcher, Gray.

In a game of very few clear-cut chances, Queens Park Rangers held Plymouth Argyle to a 0-0 draw in the Rs’ last home game of the season. Both sides lacked quality in the final third of the pitch. Rangers had the lion’s share of possession but the best opportunities fell to Argyle, who perhaps should have taken all three points in the 85th minute when Mackie, through on goal, scuffed his shot straight at Cerny. All in all, this was an utterly forgettable affair and surely has to go down as one of the most boring matches of the 2008/09 campaign.

After some rather bizarre pre-match entertainment, which revolved around four drummers marching enthusiastically around the pitch, the teams were announced. To my surprise, Taraabt, Lopez and Vine were all left out of the squad. In a 4-4-2 formation, Mikele Leigertwood occupied the right-back position, whilst Connolly, Gorkss and Stewart all retained their places. Liam Miller played alongside Gavin Mahon in central midfield with Cook and Routledge on the flanks. Patrick Agyemang returned from injury to partner the off-form Helguson up front. After hearing Ainsworth’s selection I became concerned that the Rs would lack pace and skill going forward.

Plymouth were the better side for much of the first-half, passing the ball around nicely, searching for a breakthrough. They almost got it within 40 seconds of the kick-off when a mistake from Connolly allowed Gallagher the chance to shoot. Fortunately, he drove his effort straight at Radek Cerny.

The game continued to be scrappy and disjointed, with Queens Park Rangers unable to carve out a chance of their own. It was Argyle again who forced the next opportunity in the 17th minute, when Jamie Mackie whipped in a ball across the penalty box. With the goal at his mercy, Karl Duguid somehow sliced his effort off target.

Argyle managed to miss another ‘sitter’ in the 27th minute. Radek Cerny inexcusably punched a weak cross out to Fletcher, who somehow fired over the bar.

QPR finally managed to create an opportunity just before half-time, when Patrick Agyemang found Routledge on the right wing. The former Crystal Palace man picked out Heidar Helguson with a decent cross but he could only direct his header at Larrieu in the Plymouth goal.

Half-time score: QPR 0-0 Plymouth Argyle

Queens Park Rangers started the second-half with some passing movements which looked impressive but achieved very little. In the 56th minute, Gareth Ainsworth replaced Lee Cook with young Columbian forward, Angelo Balanta. Balanta, out-of-position on the left-hand side, looked really lively and caused Argyle some problems during the last 30 minutes of the match.

Ainsworth was forced to make his second substitution of the match in the 65th minute when Liam Miller, who had looked ineffective once again in the heart of midfield, limped off the pitch with an injury. Peter Ramage replaced the loanee. Agyemang also made way for youngster, Antonio German. German looked hungry for the ball but with a lack of service from the midfield, he wasn’t able to make an impact on proceedings.

After Helguson and Connolly had both sent long-range efforts flying wide of Larrieu’s goal, Plymouth had a glorious chance to take the lead in the 85th minute. A terrible mistake by Damion Stewart gifted the ball to Jamie Mackie on the edge of the area. In front of the Plymouth fans, Mackie inexplicably fired his shot straight at Cerny. Ashley Barnes rushed in to try to tap in the rebound but Kaspars Gorkss came in with a tremendous last-ditch tackle to clear the ball out for a corner.

At the other end, Matthew Connolly beat two Argyle defenders in the 88th minute but as he moved into the penalty area, he selfishly smacked the ball towards the far post and out of play for a goal-kick.

As the Fourth Official announced that there would be four minutes of added time, it seemed that Queens Park Rangers were happy to settle for a point. Paul Gallagher went close in the 91st minute, curling a 25-yard shot just over Cerny’s goal, but the game finished all square.

Full-time score: QPR 0-0 Plymouth Argyle.

What the managers said…..

QPR Caretaker Manager, Gareth Ainsworth: “Defensively we have been rock solid but it would have been nice to score more goals this season. It's something we maybe need to look at for next season, although not simply in terms of personnel. The players we have here are capable of better. The real positive for us was Patrick Agyemang returning. It was a good workout and I think he did well."

Plymouth Argyle Manager on Norwich V Reading game (if Norwich fail to win Argyle will be safe): " I won't watch the game. I'll be cutting the grass or playing on the golf course - anything to keep away from the radio or a way of hearing the score. I'd love to have charged over the line. It looks like we'll whimper over it, but it's in our own hands."

Conclusion

I didn’t think that Plymouth looked like a side threatened by relegation. They played some decent football at times but like QPR, lacked a cutting edge up front. I think that they will survive the drop. However, I am sure that if the likes of Taraabt, Lopez and Vine had been available, the Rs would have taken the three points.

I think that for many QPR fans, this season has been a disappointment – ironic given that the Rs could achieve their highest league finish since 1999. This was shown in the number of supporters who stayed behind to applaud the players on their ‘lap of honour’. Hopefully at the end of the next campaign they will have something to cheer about.

Man of the match: Mikele Leigertwood. He did a very good job out-of-position at right-back. Showed a lot of effort and looked hungry for the ball. Angelo Balanta was also a contender for this award – he did very well in the second-half and clearly could have a bright future ahead of him.