Ahh the first day of the football season, The sun always shines everyone is full of hope and no matter how good or bad you were last season you start all over again with just as much chance of success as the next team. But this new season is going to be very different. Many of us were not even born the last time we were in the second (that's old third division for lazy journalists who don't remember the pre premiership days of football) so this would be a new experience. Its obviously been a hard summer for us but being back at Loftus Road means so much and the excitement for the new season was unbelievable yesterday. On arriving at the ground I was so excited about this new season and the atmosphere before the game was phenomenal with Rangers fans signing our hearts out and the large away Stoke following were also making themselves heard. The teams were read out and I have to say I was a bit surprised. No Griffiths up front after all the hype about this young striker I expected him to start but instead Stuart Wardley was up front. The team lined up with Chris Day making his debut in goal and a back four of Bruce, Forbes, Palmer and Ben-Askar and in midfield Perry, Bignot, Bonnot and Connolly. Wardley and Thomson were up front and it was Rangers who kicked off. The first ten minutes were made up of both sides looking nervous and most QPR fans trying to work out who was who but all the new boys were doing well and making a quick impression on us. It was good to watch and at last we looked like a football team, the old Queens Park Rangers. We were organised at the back and instead of looking for a hoof forward we tried to pass it and just kept he ball. It was all sensible stuff and it was working very well. The movement of Andy Thomson was causing Stoke loads of problems but neither side had to many chances early on. Stoke almost grabbed a goal but Chris Day pulled off an excellent save, which lead the loft to respond with a standing ovation for the keeper. It took us 23 minutes to register the first goal of the season and what a good one it was. An excellent move involving Perry, Bonnot and Wardley who played an excellent through ball to Thomson who powered his shot past the keeper. The Loft erupted with noise as the confidence among fans began to build that this is a decent Rangers side. Stoke then came back at us and should have levelled the scores when Peter Thorne held off two defenders and shot past Day for what looked like a good goal. The referee disallowed it though for handball I think but I didn't see much wrong with it. Half time was greeted with a standing ovation for the team, we looked comfortable and well capable of extending our lead after the break. Second half followed a similar pattern with us enjoying a fair amount of possession but not to many chances and Stoke looked dangerous on the break. Steve Palmer and Thomson both had chances to extend our lead but the best chance seemed to fall to Wardley whose shot hit the bar but he was given offside anyway. Wardley was beginning to improve but was substituted for Leroy Griffiths who got a tremendous ovation as he entered the field. Chants of Leroy Leroy greeted him as if he was a £10million superhero rather than a £40,000 buy from Richmond but his goal against Chelsea the other week has made him an instant hero. Leroy was even crowned with the magic hat as the famous Kevin Gallen song was finally passed on to someone else and it seemed to pump Leroy up. Unfortunately it pumped him up a bit to much as within five minutes a reckless tackle saw him stretched off with a badly cut knee. I am sure we will see more of him in the future though. Sammy Koejoe then came on and did pretty well for the last 20 minutes and linked up well with Andy Thomson. Thomson was having an excellent match and found himself the target for a late tackle off the ball and responded with a left hook to the big Stoke defender. A brawl soon started up as the referee got as far away as he could but it all calmed down quickly and the referee chose to book the players involved rather than show red cards. Rangers were playing some neat stuff but began to panic as the clock ran down and Stoke almost got an equaliser. We were grateful to Terrell Forbes for a last ditch challenge on Peter Thorne as the Stoke City forward prepared to shoot and with three minutes of injury time played, Thorne then saw his well hit strike drift agonizingly over and the ball was then hacked off the line as Rangers nervously held on to their lead. But at the full time whistle the Rangers fans celebrated a first win of the season and the beginning of a brand new era at QPR. Man of the Match:
Andy Thomson Players Ratings 1. Chris Day: A good debut, made a few good saves but didn't have much to do 7/10 17 Terrell Forbes: Another good debut, looked a bit nervous at times and made a few mistakes but has loads of potential and could be an excellent signing. 7/10 3.Paul Bruce: Played as a left back but did OK, not the best defender but did his job well. 7/10 4. Steve Palmer: Played a real captains role organising everyone at the back and defending well. 7/10 28. Ben-Askar: Excellent performance lived up to the hype about his with a solid display and running to the Loft to kiss the badge at the end. 8/10 2. Mark Perry: Excellent game from Perry, looked sharp and his passing was excellent. 7/10 10. Karl Connolly: Neat and tidy on the left and caused Stoke a few problems with his intelligent play. 7/10 11.Marcus Bignot: Superb in midfield, winning tackles and showing some great skill at times. He was unlucky not to get a goal in the second half. 8/10 26. Alex Bonnot: Was very busy in midfield and showed some good flair at times and will improve the more he plays. 7/10 7. Stuart Wardley: Ran his heart out as ever but a strange choice up front. You know what you are getting from Wardley though, he always gives his best and produced a great pass for the goal. 7/10 27. Andy Thomson: Outstanding up front. His movement caused problems all afternoon and on another day he could have got a hat trick. 9/10 |