Records are made to be broken and QPR's record of losing just one home league game in twelve months was about as impressive as you can get but it came under severe threat against Brighton yesterday at Loftus Road.

Brighton came into the game desperate for the win having fallen way behind us in the battle for automatic promotion. Defeat for them and they would be looking for a miracle to catch us despite a lot of football left in the season. Ian Holloway had tried to play down the importance of the fixture saying nothing would be decided but the 17,500 fans inside Loftus Road knew this was a must win game for both sides.

Rangers made one enforced change. Kevin McLeod was out injured so Matthew Rose stepped in to play alongside Bean in midfield with Bircham out on the right. It wasn't the ideal starting eleven but Holloway opted for experience rather than going with the attacking threat of Dennis Oli on the right.

Rangers started the game in front of a noisy crowd with both sets of fans getting right behind their teams. It was scrappy stuff early on with the Rangers midfield unsurprisingly lacking creativity going forward but we were pretty solid defensively. Brighton's Leon Knight was getting plenty of stick early on after his diving antics in the LDV game and some of comments made about Rangers before that LDV game in December have made him as popular as Rob Styles in Shepherds Bush. Still the boy is a fantastic talent and his movement and pace was causing us a few worries early on in the game.

Brighton began to have the better of things and could have had a penalty after just six minutes. Trevor Benjamin miss hit his shot and it fell to Gary hart whose effort seemed to be going in but Carlisle blocked it with what looked like his arm. The referee seemed ready to give the penalty but then quickly blew for a corner instead saying it hit his shoulder. I've seen them given before but thankfully luck was with us in this early spell.

Knight then broke the QPR offside trap and sped through to bear down on Chris Day. Knight though dragged his shot well wide and it went out for a throw in, much to the amusement of the QPR fans. It was looking like a tough game though and a series of injuries slowed the game down.

Bean went down after a 50/50 tackle which saw him penalised for the foul. Bean seemed in a lot of pain and spent quite a while on the sideline getting treatment and after coming back on he broke down again and was off again getting treatment. During all this Carlisle landed heavily on his shoulder and looked in agony as the stretcher was brought on. Steve Palmer stripped off ready to come but Carlisle jumped up like and shook off the pain to carry on playing. Palmer sat down but was soon brought on as Bean couldn't last any longer.

During all this we had our first chance as Furlong charged down a weak back pass and blocked the keepers clearance only to see it spin away from him as he bore down on an open goal. Gino went into the book for a sliding tackle which was a foul but the booking was rather harsh. Still the ref was making sure we all noticed him blowing for some ridiculous fouls against both teams and he made sure the game was never allowed to flow.

With the game heading for a real scrap Rangers showed a moment of skill and quality which deserved to win any game. Rowlands picked up the ball on the halfway line with his back to goal before stepping over the ball and dummying the defender who looked bamboozled as Rowlands ran past him and cut inside. He ran 20 yards before cutting onto his right foot at the edge of the area and curling a wonderful shot into the bottom corner.

It was a fantastic goal and a contender for goal of the season which worryingly will have impressed any watching scouts.
Rowlands was the architect of everything good in Rangers play as he showed great skill to beat men and get crosses in but his good work was being undone by the lack of support from the rest of the midfield who were playing far too deep.

We continued to have chances though with Padula smashing a shot from 30 yards out just wide when I thought he should have put Gallen in who was totally unmarked on the edge of the box. Brighton were trying to hang on until half time when we grabbed a second goal.

A clearance by Brighton keeper Roberts was headed back by Carlisle and flicked on by Furlong for Kevin Gallen to race through and find the bottom corner for his twelfth goal of the season.

This looked like game over as the QPR fans celebrated and began to poke fun at the opposition but Ian Holloway has been talking a lot about not becoming complacent and sadly that fell on deaf ears during the three minutes of injury time.

A nothing long ball was shielded out by Carlisle until he was beaten to the ball and had to give away a corner. Rangers fell asleep from the corner as the cross came in and Danny Cullip was unmarked to head towards Day and the Rangers keeper uncharacteristically flapped at the header and ended up pushing it into his own net. Brighton celebrated, we were stunned and Knight had a ruck with Padula as they tried to get back for the kick off.

Half time came and despite being 2-1 up there was a feeling of pessimism among the Rangers fans that seemed a million miles away just two minutes earlier. That goal provided a kick up the arse for the team though and they came out for the second half going all out for a third goal.

Rose was switched to the right wing with Bircham added some more drive in the middle and good work by Rowlands saw a cross come in for Furlong to extend the lead but he miscued the header and Roberts had an easy save to make.

A good move involving Gallen and Furlong saw Brighton cut apart with Rowlands running through but he was blocked before he could get his shot in.

The last few games between the two sides have been pretty controversial with some bad blood beginning to grow between the two sides. In August Terrell Forbes was sent off for a head butt after having been on the receiving end of an awful tackle by Kerry mayo. Mayo later admitted he made the most out of the had butt to make sure Forbes was sent off. In a reserve game in December Furlong and Pacquette were both sent off after a bad tackle on a Rangers player and both forwards were involved in a 20 man brawl. Then in the LDV game Leon Knight accuses Clarke Carlisle of pushing him and his diving antics earlier in the game made him unpopular among QPR players. So it was only was a matter of time before this game exploded and the big moment came after 55 minutes.

Shittu came forward for a free kick and suddenly collapsed on the floor in agony. In truth I didn't see what happened but apparently a Brighton defender used an elbow to hold Shittu off and caught the big defender in the face. Whether it was meant or not is up for debate but the referee was watching the incident from two yards away and managed to do nothing as Shittu went mad at the ref and needed to be calmed down by Gallen and Carlisle.

Shittu was now a like a man possessed and was becoming a liability for five minutes as he gave away some free kicks and seemed intent on having a fight with someone and was eventually booked for a foul by the corner flag. Shittu eventually calmed down as Brighton threw everything they had at us. Our attacking game was virtually over now as we tried to hang on to the lead and defended for our lives.

Leon Knight was a threat but Terrell Forbes was defending superbly and when the small striker got past Shittu or Carlisle the right back was always on hand to save the day. Brighton weren't creating any real chances but several crosses and balls into the box were causing worries as we scrambled the ball away and looked increasingly nervous at the back.

Dean Marney then came on for his debut replacing the tiring Matthew Rose as we tried to add some pace out wide. Marney hardly got a touch though as the game turned into a real battle with hardly any football being played but plenty of excitement as both teams gave it their all to win the game.

Brighton made three changes sticking five men up front near the end as they looked for an equaliser. Rowlands almost had the last word with a mazy run. He cut in from the left beating three players before shooting towards the bottom corner but Ben Roberts was able to keep it out.

Brighton then had a glorious chance to win it as Danny Cullip was again unmarked from close range but fired his shot over the bar when a goal seemed certain. Leon Knight then had the chance to steal the headlines with a good piece of skill to get in into space and his shot appeared to be going in before Chris Day pulled off another excellent save to keep him out.

The referee added four minutes of injury time which was bizarre as I thought their was more stoppages in the first half when he only awarded three. Still this bloke had no idea what he was doing with neither side happy with his performance.

Rangers hung on during a tense periods of injury time with the fans knowing just how vital this was. One last corner saw hearts in mouth as the Brighton keeper ran forward. The corner was wasted though and the whistle went to send the QPR fans home in jubilant mood.

Rangers now move 15 points clear of Brighton who were many peoples (including mine) tips for promotion. It wasn't pretty and for the fourth game in a row Rangers were well below their best but again for the fourth game in a row we have got the three points and move a big step closer to automatic promotion but with still a lot to do as Bristol City continue to match us in the same way Tranmere did last season.

Man of the Match: Martin Rowlands

Players Ratings:

1. Chris Day: Made an error for the first goal which is unlike him but when we needed him in the second half he saved us again. 7/10

2. Terrell Forbes: An excellent defensive performance as he helped his fellow defenders out and kept Brighton quiet on the left hand side. 8/10

3. Gino Padula: A solid performance from Gino which lacked his usual style going forward but he did a good job for the team. 7/10

5. Clarke Carlisle: Another excellent and dominating performance from Clarke Carlisle. 8/10

6. Danny Shittu: As someone said in the pub after the game he does exactly what it says on the tin. No nonsense just get the ball as far away from our goal as possible. 7/10

8. Marc Bircham: Worked hard on the right then in the middle. Not at his best but did nothing wrong. 7/10

17. Marcus Bean: Only on for 20 minutes but won some good tackles in the middle. 7/10

14. Martin Rowlands: Whether he plays at right back, left wing, central midfield or on the right wing this bloke has proven to be a difference class this season and once again he was the difference between three points and a draw. 9/10

7. Matthew Rose: Worked hard and showed glimpses of skill on the ball but still not 100% fit after all the injures. 7/10

10. Kevin Gallen: Didn't get much service but worked hard and got another vital goal. 7/10

29. Paul Furlong: Like Gallen he had very little service but a good performance as he gets back to full fitness. 7/10

Subs:

4. Steve Palmer: Drew plenty of groans when he came on but did a solid and professional job. 7/10

27. Dean Marney: Touched the ball twice and not the best debut I've ever seen but he hasn't even trained with the team yet so understandable really. 6/10