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Having returned from W12 at 8 this morning, the game (and events surrounding it) is pretty fresh in mind.
For anyone interested, here is my take on yesterday’s fiery encounter with Millwall.
I’ve thought about whether to bother going into details about the many things witnessed by QPR fans last night, but seeing the coverage both on radio/local papers I don’t think its really worth echoing exactly what they are all saying anyway. I do have a BIG problem with some of the policing and stewarding, but I’ll come back to that later in the report.
Having left the island earlier in the day, we headed up to London before eventually making it to Loftus Road at around 18:30. With the roads being barred off, we were forced to drive through Shepherds Bush which is when we started to appreciate the scale of both policing and trouble taking place. I personally haven’t ever seen so many floods of police vans and horses, with them literally ushering the Millwall fans around the area. We eventually made it through the hoards of fans/officers and got into the ground at about 7:45.
Onto the football, and Warnock decided to stick with the same squad that he chose for the Doncaster game.
Kenny continued in goal. Walker was at right back, with Connolly and Gorkss in the middle and Hill on the left hand side.
Buzsaky again partnered Derry in the centre of midfield, with Hogan & Mackie on either flank and Taarabt supporting Helguson upfront.
Looking around the ground just before kickoff and it looked pretty packed (especially the C-club?). Millwall had taken both top and bottom tiers and the atmosphere in the ground was certainly cranked up a notch or two than what it was against Doncaster.
There couldn’t have been any more than around 2 minutes on the clock and we had our first chance of the game. Walker had bombed down the right hand side, and after bursting past the Millwall left back he drove a quite stunning cross into the mouth of the goal… such was the pace of the cross that the Millwall defence likely didn’t even see it – let alone get anything on it... but it sat up perfectly for Helguson who unfortunately could only manage to skim his header wide of the left hand post. As of last season, this was just the kind of opportunity that I would tear into him for missing (and call for him to be shipped back to Watford!) but his form this season has been exceptional and I think he is due the odd miss here and there. No two ways about it though, he should at very least have tested the keeper or given us a 1-0 lead. Superb work by Walker in the build up though.
With QPR firmly on the front foot, Buzsaky was the first player to really test Forde in the Millwall goal. After neat interplay between himself and Walker on the right hand side, Buzsaky cut in and with the defence backing off of him, he took one touch to compose himself before lashing a fierce shot goalwards from about 25 yards… Forde seemed to mis-judge the flight of the ball and ended up beating it away with his feet of all places! The ball then span up into the air before a melee of players all through themselves to win back possession in the box… after a brief scrap the ball was eventually booted up field and clear of danger.
Shortly after we had a penalty appeal waved away. Mackie had managed to beat his man in the box and was sent tumbling by the beefy defender at the back… Being brutally honest, I didn’t think it was a penalty and I wasn’t surprised he didn’t award it. Looking over to South Africa Road, Warnock was more than making his feelings known to the 4th official and linesmen who was just within ear-shot of him. The fans located in that part of the ground also chipped in with complaints towards the referee/linesmen. It was certainly a hostile reception.
But for all the trouble being caused outside both prior and after the game, there really is nothing quite like the added spice of a London derby and it was one that the QPR fans were relishing with chant after chant hammering out from the home end. At one stage my brother pointed me in the direction of the upper Loft, with a fair number of supporters on their feet and the large majority all singing along passionately… it was quite a sight.
Ephraim was the next player to have an effort on goal shortly after. Millwall had been awarded a corner and with the crowd booing/jeering as he came to take it in front of us, he looked up with a smile in our direction before sending the cross into the box. Gorkss was the first one to meet his head with it and as the ball sat up in the air it appeared to be falling to a Millwall player on the edge of the box… as he looked to set himself to control the ball, Gorkss came crashing over him and prodded the ball further up field into the feet of Buzsaky… With both Taarabt and Helguson in support, he instead slid a sublime pass in behind the backline and after checking his line, Ephraim raced goalwards… The defender managed to keep track on him, but as they advanced into the box Ephraim took a touch to put the ball onto his right foot, but could only manage to drive his shot into the side netting.
We were then awarded a freekick around 25 yards from goal after Taarabt had been sent crashing to the ground. Buzsaky stepped up, but could only manage to curl the ball wide of the left hand post with Forde having it covered in either case.
Mackie had been fairly quiet during these early stages of the game, but was right in the thick of battle with around 15 minutes left of the half. Firstly he picked up possession from Derry on the right hand side, he managed to bustle his way past 2 Millwall defenders and with Helguson waiting to pounce in the centre of the pitch he looked up and tried shooting from an acute angle which he could only manage to spurn over the bar and into the Millwall fans. They decided not to give the ball back, and after a couple of minutes jostling between themselves – a new ball was thrown onto the pitch by the 4th official.
Next up was probably the stand out chance of the game. Walker had looked a revelation on the right hand side and had been causing the left back all sorts of problems throughout the half. After picking up possession again at right back, he managed to turn his marker and dart goalwards. With one going to ground to get a foot in, he ripped past him and onto the edge of the box… With two defenders on each side sandwiching him… he prodded the ball past both of them and exploded past them into the open space before sliding the ball central to Mackie who could have been no further than 6 yards from goal… With the defence now desperately scrambling back to cover, Mackie could only manage a weak connection on his shot and the ball was weld held by Forde in the Millwall goal. It was a breathtaking run by Walker though, and he got a tremendous applause from the fans located on his side of the ground.
With the clock now rapidly ticking down towards half time, there was another moment of controversy just before the break. Mackie had again picked up possession from midfield and after playing a neat one two with Taarabt found himself on the edge of the box. He poked the ball past the defender, but was caught short by what looked like a boot to the stomach (!). Remarkably, the referee signalled to play on with Mackie still in a heap on the floor. The first penalty shout we had earlier in the half was 50/50 in my opinion – but this was either a free kick right on the edge of the box OR a stonewall penalty. But the referee absolutely bottled it, quite how he didn’t see it worthy of being a penalty I don’t know. Again looking over to Warnock and he had completely… well lost it! With his arms waving frantically and a whole host of players surrounding the referee gob-smacked at his decision. Looking up at the stands, it appeared almost every fan was on their feet hurling abuse at the referee. You get the half-hearted appeals for penalties occasionally, but by the reaction alone of the fans told a story of its own. It was a penalty.
As the referee blew time on the first half, personally I was satisfied with our performance even if a little disappointed we weren’t at least a goal to the good. I thought our performance had warranted us being ahead at this stage. Millwall hadn’t really troubled us and their game plan was pretty clear – hit the ball long to Morrison upfront and see what happens! To be fair, this report probably doesn’t quite do justice to the actual game. We didn’t by any means dominate, but we were the only ones creating chances and looked like the only team that would get a goal.
Onto the second half, and it started in pretty much the same fashion that the first one ended.
Again Walker was coming right up the pitch; he was almost playing as a winger. After beating his marker, the ball was eventually sent out for a corner kick. Taarabt came over to take the corner in front of us, applauding the fans as “Come on you R’s” boomed out from the whole ground. He bent a sumptuous cross right into the path of Gorkss who was unmarked, but frustratingly could only manage to angle his header over the crossbar. Like Helguson’s effort at the beginning of the game, he should have scored here.
With QPR now attacking the Loft end, the noise again just continued to increase and increase… you couldn’t help but feel it was a matter of when not if we would score. Taarabt had been overall fairly isolated in the first half, but he was now starting to have an impact on the game. After cheekily nut-megging the defender, the ball was scrapped clear by the outstretched leg of a defender for another corner. Taarabt’s delivery was again first class and was met by Clint Hill who could only manage to put it over the bar! It was yet another great great chance to give us the lead but we just couldn’t find that killer touch…
We tried something different shortly after. We had been awarded a free-kick around 40 yards or so from goal. With Buzsaky stood over the ball, Gorkss made his way up from the back alongside a whole host of our “bigger” players. With the Millwall defence sorting who would mark who, Buzsaky simply played the ball directly through to Taarabt who was located on the edge of the box… His instant trap of the ball dead and subsequent turn left him with a free goal to aim for… His snap shot was just pushed around the post by Forde in the Millwall goal and we were awarded a corner kick.
The linesman on the near side had made some odd decisions throughout the half and none more so than when Helguson ran in behind a defender on the left hand side. With Mackie & Taarabt unmarked in support, bizarrely he flagged for offside! Again it felt as if the whole ground had turned on him in complete fury. I looked over at Warnock and he was left with head in his hands at this decision which I think said a lot considering his attitude towards the officials throughout the game.
Our next chance came again from a corner kick. After Taarabt had again crossed the ball into the box, it was scuffed clear by Forde in the Millwall goal… It fell between Gorkss and a Millwall defender who both frantically swung their legs at the loose ball.. It feel perfectly for Helguson who instinctively lashed the ball goalwards… but a defender who had threw himself at the ball managed to get something on it and it deflected out for another corner kick – again so so close! The following delivery was fairly poor and was easily held by Forde.
We had literally flooded their box until around half way through the second period, with a number of crosses flashing across the box just needing to be directed goalwards.
Millwall had posed virtually no threat throughout the game, but were just starting to creep into it with around 20 minutes left on the clock. A deep cross found Morrison at the back post which Kenny managed to tip over the bar, which served as a reminder that while we had/were dominating – Millwall had it in them to hurt us.
Next up, yet another controversial moment and another piece of abysmal refereeing. We had been awarded a corner kick and as Helguson went to grab the ball and kick it out to the side, Forde in the Millwall goal tried to slow things down and raised his hands to Helguson and appeared to grab him by the face… Again both QPR & Millwall players all ran to the scene, and as the referee rushed over into the middle of it all and eventually gave NO red... or even yellow card to the Millwall keeper. Bizarrely, he didn’t even consult his linesmen… I would assume (hope) the referee didn’t see it himself, otherwise he would have sent the goalkeeper off without question… Either way though, the linesmen SHOULD have been consulted. But following his display, it wasn’t a surprise that he went for the easy option.
Taarabt then showed another trademark sign of genius on the left hand side. He was located near to the corner flag in front of the South Africa Road stand… With the defender hesitant to commit, he confidently pulled of a Ronaldinho like flip-flap leaving the defender baffled… Then with his left foot he dragged the ball backwards before flicking it through the legs of the defender with his right foot… As he approached goalwards he was hauled down to the floor for a freekick along the by-line. His cross was low and hard, but as was the case throughout the game.. Millwall managed to have someone in the right place at the right time and it was booted clear.
Around the 85th minute, and Millwall could have grabbed an underserved winner. Again it was Morrison who was the danger man, and after a scrap along the goal-line the ball fell to him on the back post… I think the whole ground held their breathe as his diving header was just fisted clear of danger by Kenny and out for a corner kick.
Taarabt was again causing havoc on the left hand side, and after a crazy amount of stepovers and feints – he again managed to beat his marker and blasted the ball across the face of goal… It could have gone anywhere but it just evaded Helguson at the back post and went out for a throw in on the near side.
As the 4th official indicated 2 minutes injury time, we gave Millwall one last scare. Agyemang had earlier been introduced and after being played through, the ball just seemed to get caught under his feet and it eventually fell to Walker who glided the ball into the box before Mackie headed over the crossbar from little more than 4 yards out.
With that, the referee blew time on the game and it ended 0-0.
Player Ratings –
Kenny – Didn’t have an awful lot to do in fairness. Made two very good stops and bossed the back four well.
Walker – Without doubt his best performance in a QPR shirt. Throughout the game he was just a pleasure to watch. Millwall just couldn’t handle his blistering pace and skill when coming forward and overall spotless at the back as well. Desperately hoping that we can get this deal extended. People talk of him being a future England player and while that may be a little premature at this stage, he really does have all the potential in the world. Man of the match without question for me.
Gorkss – Solid alongside Connolly. Perhaps should have scored with his header from the Taarabt corner, but dealt well with the threat posed by Morrison upfront. Didn’t really put a foot wrong.
Connolly – Warnock is going to have a big decision problem on his hands when Hall is back in contention, because I personally don’t feel that you can drop either Connolly or Gorkss. As touched on above, they compliment each other exceptionally well. On more than one occasion Connolly was happy to play the ball out of defence and more often than not picked out one the more creative players with pin-point passing. Great performance from him.
Hill – Typical Hill really. Won pretty much every header he went for and did plenty of the ugly things that made it tough for Millwall. Defensively he wasn’t really troubled, although he should have done better with his chance.
Mackie – One of his more quiet games last night. As ever, full of running and endeavour but never really got at the Millwall back-line. Should definitely have done better with the 3 good chances he was provided with and had it been for a different referee he would have won us a penalty as well. Won back possession for us on more than one occasion.
Derry – Thought he was exceptional again last night, probably second only to Walker in terms of performance. I did fear for how we would do defensively without Faurlin in the side, but Derry just seems to win that battle in the middle of the pitch every game. He bossed it last night, won back possession countless times and even sprayed the odd 30 yard or so pass across the pitch. Could ask no more from him and real captain’s performance... even if technically he doesn’t have the armband on.
Buzsaky – I actually thought he improved a lot on his display against Doncaster. Seemed to have more time on the ball and did have an effect on the game. Hit a stunning shot earlier on in the match and worked ever so hard for the team. Will never make this position his own when Faurlin is fit, but I think he will have impressed Warnock last night.
Ephraim – Pretty anonymous throughout the game. Did a nice run in the first half but with the exception of that I didn’t really notice that he was playing. Possibly worth giving Smith a run out in the next game?
Taarabt – Seemed to improve as the game went on, but was very tightly marked by the Millwall defender. Couldn’t seem to get him onto the ball in the first half, but he looked dangerous out on the left hand side when picking up possession. Should have passed on 3 separate occasions instead of trying to beat his man (Derry let him know that!), but I did feel if there was someone who was going to either create/score a goal it would be Adel. Can take a lot of heart from his display overall. Also seemed to track back and shadow players when not in possession.
Helguson – Should have scored with his chance early in the game, but again I thought he was impressive. Won a fair amount of headers at the back and always on hand in and around the box. Forging a good relationship with the other players and full of running and movement.
Substitutions –
Leigertwood – Couple of sloppy passes, but did win back possession a fair amount of times.
Agyemang – No time to make any impact.
In summary of the game as a whole, I felt disappointed we didn’t come out with a healthy victory. The referee had an absolute stinker along with the other officials and on another day we would have got all 3 points. It was an encouraging display though and another clean sheet in a game that I felt would be a really tough one. Hopefully we can end on a win before the 2 week break, if we play like that the 3 points on Saturday will be ours.
Just a point on the policing/stewarding last night: Why weren’t Millwall kept in their seats until Loftus Road had cleared a bit? I thought it was a stupid/suicidal decision to let us all out at the same time and it was no surprise that trouble ensued.
Hope you all got home safely though, thanks for reading.
SAY WE ARE TOP THE LEAGUE!
For anyone interested, here is my take on yesterday’s fiery encounter with Millwall.
I’ve thought about whether to bother going into details about the many things witnessed by QPR fans last night, but seeing the coverage both on radio/local papers I don’t think its really worth echoing exactly what they are all saying anyway. I do have a BIG problem with some of the policing and stewarding, but I’ll come back to that later in the report.
Having left the island earlier in the day, we headed up to London before eventually making it to Loftus Road at around 18:30. With the roads being barred off, we were forced to drive through Shepherds Bush which is when we started to appreciate the scale of both policing and trouble taking place. I personally haven’t ever seen so many floods of police vans and horses, with them literally ushering the Millwall fans around the area. We eventually made it through the hoards of fans/officers and got into the ground at about 7:45.
Onto the football, and Warnock decided to stick with the same squad that he chose for the Doncaster game.
Kenny continued in goal. Walker was at right back, with Connolly and Gorkss in the middle and Hill on the left hand side.
Buzsaky again partnered Derry in the centre of midfield, with Hogan & Mackie on either flank and Taarabt supporting Helguson upfront.
Looking around the ground just before kickoff and it looked pretty packed (especially the C-club?). Millwall had taken both top and bottom tiers and the atmosphere in the ground was certainly cranked up a notch or two than what it was against Doncaster.
There couldn’t have been any more than around 2 minutes on the clock and we had our first chance of the game. Walker had bombed down the right hand side, and after bursting past the Millwall left back he drove a quite stunning cross into the mouth of the goal… such was the pace of the cross that the Millwall defence likely didn’t even see it – let alone get anything on it... but it sat up perfectly for Helguson who unfortunately could only manage to skim his header wide of the left hand post. As of last season, this was just the kind of opportunity that I would tear into him for missing (and call for him to be shipped back to Watford!) but his form this season has been exceptional and I think he is due the odd miss here and there. No two ways about it though, he should at very least have tested the keeper or given us a 1-0 lead. Superb work by Walker in the build up though.
With QPR firmly on the front foot, Buzsaky was the first player to really test Forde in the Millwall goal. After neat interplay between himself and Walker on the right hand side, Buzsaky cut in and with the defence backing off of him, he took one touch to compose himself before lashing a fierce shot goalwards from about 25 yards… Forde seemed to mis-judge the flight of the ball and ended up beating it away with his feet of all places! The ball then span up into the air before a melee of players all through themselves to win back possession in the box… after a brief scrap the ball was eventually booted up field and clear of danger.
Shortly after we had a penalty appeal waved away. Mackie had managed to beat his man in the box and was sent tumbling by the beefy defender at the back… Being brutally honest, I didn’t think it was a penalty and I wasn’t surprised he didn’t award it. Looking over to South Africa Road, Warnock was more than making his feelings known to the 4th official and linesmen who was just within ear-shot of him. The fans located in that part of the ground also chipped in with complaints towards the referee/linesmen. It was certainly a hostile reception.
But for all the trouble being caused outside both prior and after the game, there really is nothing quite like the added spice of a London derby and it was one that the QPR fans were relishing with chant after chant hammering out from the home end. At one stage my brother pointed me in the direction of the upper Loft, with a fair number of supporters on their feet and the large majority all singing along passionately… it was quite a sight.
Ephraim was the next player to have an effort on goal shortly after. Millwall had been awarded a corner and with the crowd booing/jeering as he came to take it in front of us, he looked up with a smile in our direction before sending the cross into the box. Gorkss was the first one to meet his head with it and as the ball sat up in the air it appeared to be falling to a Millwall player on the edge of the box… as he looked to set himself to control the ball, Gorkss came crashing over him and prodded the ball further up field into the feet of Buzsaky… With both Taarabt and Helguson in support, he instead slid a sublime pass in behind the backline and after checking his line, Ephraim raced goalwards… The defender managed to keep track on him, but as they advanced into the box Ephraim took a touch to put the ball onto his right foot, but could only manage to drive his shot into the side netting.
We were then awarded a freekick around 25 yards from goal after Taarabt had been sent crashing to the ground. Buzsaky stepped up, but could only manage to curl the ball wide of the left hand post with Forde having it covered in either case.
Mackie had been fairly quiet during these early stages of the game, but was right in the thick of battle with around 15 minutes left of the half. Firstly he picked up possession from Derry on the right hand side, he managed to bustle his way past 2 Millwall defenders and with Helguson waiting to pounce in the centre of the pitch he looked up and tried shooting from an acute angle which he could only manage to spurn over the bar and into the Millwall fans. They decided not to give the ball back, and after a couple of minutes jostling between themselves – a new ball was thrown onto the pitch by the 4th official.
Next up was probably the stand out chance of the game. Walker had looked a revelation on the right hand side and had been causing the left back all sorts of problems throughout the half. After picking up possession again at right back, he managed to turn his marker and dart goalwards. With one going to ground to get a foot in, he ripped past him and onto the edge of the box… With two defenders on each side sandwiching him… he prodded the ball past both of them and exploded past them into the open space before sliding the ball central to Mackie who could have been no further than 6 yards from goal… With the defence now desperately scrambling back to cover, Mackie could only manage a weak connection on his shot and the ball was weld held by Forde in the Millwall goal. It was a breathtaking run by Walker though, and he got a tremendous applause from the fans located on his side of the ground.
With the clock now rapidly ticking down towards half time, there was another moment of controversy just before the break. Mackie had again picked up possession from midfield and after playing a neat one two with Taarabt found himself on the edge of the box. He poked the ball past the defender, but was caught short by what looked like a boot to the stomach (!). Remarkably, the referee signalled to play on with Mackie still in a heap on the floor. The first penalty shout we had earlier in the half was 50/50 in my opinion – but this was either a free kick right on the edge of the box OR a stonewall penalty. But the referee absolutely bottled it, quite how he didn’t see it worthy of being a penalty I don’t know. Again looking over to Warnock and he had completely… well lost it! With his arms waving frantically and a whole host of players surrounding the referee gob-smacked at his decision. Looking up at the stands, it appeared almost every fan was on their feet hurling abuse at the referee. You get the half-hearted appeals for penalties occasionally, but by the reaction alone of the fans told a story of its own. It was a penalty.
As the referee blew time on the first half, personally I was satisfied with our performance even if a little disappointed we weren’t at least a goal to the good. I thought our performance had warranted us being ahead at this stage. Millwall hadn’t really troubled us and their game plan was pretty clear – hit the ball long to Morrison upfront and see what happens! To be fair, this report probably doesn’t quite do justice to the actual game. We didn’t by any means dominate, but we were the only ones creating chances and looked like the only team that would get a goal.
Onto the second half, and it started in pretty much the same fashion that the first one ended.
Again Walker was coming right up the pitch; he was almost playing as a winger. After beating his marker, the ball was eventually sent out for a corner kick. Taarabt came over to take the corner in front of us, applauding the fans as “Come on you R’s” boomed out from the whole ground. He bent a sumptuous cross right into the path of Gorkss who was unmarked, but frustratingly could only manage to angle his header over the crossbar. Like Helguson’s effort at the beginning of the game, he should have scored here.
With QPR now attacking the Loft end, the noise again just continued to increase and increase… you couldn’t help but feel it was a matter of when not if we would score. Taarabt had been overall fairly isolated in the first half, but he was now starting to have an impact on the game. After cheekily nut-megging the defender, the ball was scrapped clear by the outstretched leg of a defender for another corner. Taarabt’s delivery was again first class and was met by Clint Hill who could only manage to put it over the bar! It was yet another great great chance to give us the lead but we just couldn’t find that killer touch…
We tried something different shortly after. We had been awarded a free-kick around 40 yards or so from goal. With Buzsaky stood over the ball, Gorkss made his way up from the back alongside a whole host of our “bigger” players. With the Millwall defence sorting who would mark who, Buzsaky simply played the ball directly through to Taarabt who was located on the edge of the box… His instant trap of the ball dead and subsequent turn left him with a free goal to aim for… His snap shot was just pushed around the post by Forde in the Millwall goal and we were awarded a corner kick.
The linesman on the near side had made some odd decisions throughout the half and none more so than when Helguson ran in behind a defender on the left hand side. With Mackie & Taarabt unmarked in support, bizarrely he flagged for offside! Again it felt as if the whole ground had turned on him in complete fury. I looked over at Warnock and he was left with head in his hands at this decision which I think said a lot considering his attitude towards the officials throughout the game.
Our next chance came again from a corner kick. After Taarabt had again crossed the ball into the box, it was scuffed clear by Forde in the Millwall goal… It fell between Gorkss and a Millwall defender who both frantically swung their legs at the loose ball.. It feel perfectly for Helguson who instinctively lashed the ball goalwards… but a defender who had threw himself at the ball managed to get something on it and it deflected out for another corner kick – again so so close! The following delivery was fairly poor and was easily held by Forde.
We had literally flooded their box until around half way through the second period, with a number of crosses flashing across the box just needing to be directed goalwards.
Millwall had posed virtually no threat throughout the game, but were just starting to creep into it with around 20 minutes left on the clock. A deep cross found Morrison at the back post which Kenny managed to tip over the bar, which served as a reminder that while we had/were dominating – Millwall had it in them to hurt us.
Next up, yet another controversial moment and another piece of abysmal refereeing. We had been awarded a corner kick and as Helguson went to grab the ball and kick it out to the side, Forde in the Millwall goal tried to slow things down and raised his hands to Helguson and appeared to grab him by the face… Again both QPR & Millwall players all ran to the scene, and as the referee rushed over into the middle of it all and eventually gave NO red... or even yellow card to the Millwall keeper. Bizarrely, he didn’t even consult his linesmen… I would assume (hope) the referee didn’t see it himself, otherwise he would have sent the goalkeeper off without question… Either way though, the linesmen SHOULD have been consulted. But following his display, it wasn’t a surprise that he went for the easy option.
Taarabt then showed another trademark sign of genius on the left hand side. He was located near to the corner flag in front of the South Africa Road stand… With the defender hesitant to commit, he confidently pulled of a Ronaldinho like flip-flap leaving the defender baffled… Then with his left foot he dragged the ball backwards before flicking it through the legs of the defender with his right foot… As he approached goalwards he was hauled down to the floor for a freekick along the by-line. His cross was low and hard, but as was the case throughout the game.. Millwall managed to have someone in the right place at the right time and it was booted clear.
Around the 85th minute, and Millwall could have grabbed an underserved winner. Again it was Morrison who was the danger man, and after a scrap along the goal-line the ball fell to him on the back post… I think the whole ground held their breathe as his diving header was just fisted clear of danger by Kenny and out for a corner kick.
Taarabt was again causing havoc on the left hand side, and after a crazy amount of stepovers and feints – he again managed to beat his marker and blasted the ball across the face of goal… It could have gone anywhere but it just evaded Helguson at the back post and went out for a throw in on the near side.
As the 4th official indicated 2 minutes injury time, we gave Millwall one last scare. Agyemang had earlier been introduced and after being played through, the ball just seemed to get caught under his feet and it eventually fell to Walker who glided the ball into the box before Mackie headed over the crossbar from little more than 4 yards out.
With that, the referee blew time on the game and it ended 0-0.
Player Ratings –
Kenny – Didn’t have an awful lot to do in fairness. Made two very good stops and bossed the back four well.
Walker – Without doubt his best performance in a QPR shirt. Throughout the game he was just a pleasure to watch. Millwall just couldn’t handle his blistering pace and skill when coming forward and overall spotless at the back as well. Desperately hoping that we can get this deal extended. People talk of him being a future England player and while that may be a little premature at this stage, he really does have all the potential in the world. Man of the match without question for me.
Gorkss – Solid alongside Connolly. Perhaps should have scored with his header from the Taarabt corner, but dealt well with the threat posed by Morrison upfront. Didn’t really put a foot wrong.
Connolly – Warnock is going to have a big decision problem on his hands when Hall is back in contention, because I personally don’t feel that you can drop either Connolly or Gorkss. As touched on above, they compliment each other exceptionally well. On more than one occasion Connolly was happy to play the ball out of defence and more often than not picked out one the more creative players with pin-point passing. Great performance from him.
Hill – Typical Hill really. Won pretty much every header he went for and did plenty of the ugly things that made it tough for Millwall. Defensively he wasn’t really troubled, although he should have done better with his chance.
Mackie – One of his more quiet games last night. As ever, full of running and endeavour but never really got at the Millwall back-line. Should definitely have done better with the 3 good chances he was provided with and had it been for a different referee he would have won us a penalty as well. Won back possession for us on more than one occasion.
Derry – Thought he was exceptional again last night, probably second only to Walker in terms of performance. I did fear for how we would do defensively without Faurlin in the side, but Derry just seems to win that battle in the middle of the pitch every game. He bossed it last night, won back possession countless times and even sprayed the odd 30 yard or so pass across the pitch. Could ask no more from him and real captain’s performance... even if technically he doesn’t have the armband on.
Buzsaky – I actually thought he improved a lot on his display against Doncaster. Seemed to have more time on the ball and did have an effect on the game. Hit a stunning shot earlier on in the match and worked ever so hard for the team. Will never make this position his own when Faurlin is fit, but I think he will have impressed Warnock last night.
Ephraim – Pretty anonymous throughout the game. Did a nice run in the first half but with the exception of that I didn’t really notice that he was playing. Possibly worth giving Smith a run out in the next game?
Taarabt – Seemed to improve as the game went on, but was very tightly marked by the Millwall defender. Couldn’t seem to get him onto the ball in the first half, but he looked dangerous out on the left hand side when picking up possession. Should have passed on 3 separate occasions instead of trying to beat his man (Derry let him know that!), but I did feel if there was someone who was going to either create/score a goal it would be Adel. Can take a lot of heart from his display overall. Also seemed to track back and shadow players when not in possession.
Helguson – Should have scored with his chance early in the game, but again I thought he was impressive. Won a fair amount of headers at the back and always on hand in and around the box. Forging a good relationship with the other players and full of running and movement.
Substitutions –
Leigertwood – Couple of sloppy passes, but did win back possession a fair amount of times.
Agyemang – No time to make any impact.
In summary of the game as a whole, I felt disappointed we didn’t come out with a healthy victory. The referee had an absolute stinker along with the other officials and on another day we would have got all 3 points. It was an encouraging display though and another clean sheet in a game that I felt would be a really tough one. Hopefully we can end on a win before the 2 week break, if we play like that the 3 points on Saturday will be ours.
Just a point on the policing/stewarding last night: Why weren’t Millwall kept in their seats until Loftus Road had cleared a bit? I thought it was a stupid/suicidal decision to let us all out at the same time and it was no surprise that trouble ensued.
Hope you all got home safely though, thanks for reading.
SAY WE ARE TOP THE LEAGUE!
Always QPR!
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