After last weeks win over Hull City the trip to Southampton was seen as a good chance to test ourselves against one of the best in the division.

George Burleys men were uneaten at home going into this game having won the last four games so were obvious favourites for this one.

John Gregory stuck with the same eleven that beat Hull last week to start the game but did make a few changes on the bench as Kevin Gallen and new loan signing Jimmy Smith were among the substitutes.

Rangers started the game poorly though and looked like they were ready to accept the expected hiding that Southampton were more than willing to hand out. At the back we looked poor and it didn't take long for the home side to take the lead.

Skachel and the impressive Bale worked an opening on the left and crossed into the middle where Rangers had left Jermaine Wright unmarked, the attacking midfield player fired in a shot which was deflected off Stewart and sent Jones the wrong way.

Southampton celebrated and it looked like being an easy afternoon for them.

The back four for us were all over the place and again we appeared to lack a leader at the back. Rehmann was losing his man time and time again whilst Rose was looking far from comfortable at left back.

We just weren't able to get out of our own half with Southampton dominating in midfield and with every attack we looked more nervous. It was just a case of trying to hang on for as long as we could and weather the storm as Southampton threw everything at us.

Skachel went close with an effort from the edge of the box and the home side won a few corners, which we managed to scramble clear. Rehmann did well to block Bradley Wright Phillips goal bound effort as the pressure increase.

The ref was giving the majority of the decisions to the home side and a debatable free kick was given on the edge of the box and it looked like Southampton would taken a two goal lead.

Highly rated Gareth Bale stood over the ball and curled an excellent effort over the wall towards the bottom corner but Jones did well to get across and palm it away for a corner.

It was a big moment in the game as a second goal would have killed us off but the save from Jones kept us in it and we began to come more into the game as the half wore on.

Rowlands had a great chance to bring us level on a rare counter attack from Rangers. Cook did well on the left to beat his man and create the chance with a nice pass and Rowlands was in acres of space at the far post but his touch let him down and he fired high over the bar.

It was a chance that you'd expect Rowlands to take normally but even though he missed the chance seemed to help build confidence through the team that we could get something from the game.

Gregory was forced into a change though when Matthew Rose hobbled off. Pat Kanyuka replace him with Rehmann going to right back and Bignot to left back. The same switch helped tighten up the defence against Hull and it worked again here with the defence suddenly looking able to defend again.

Bignot was ready to get stuck in at left back whilst Rehmann looked more comfortable on the right where he had a little more time on the ball and his marking didn't have to be water tight. Kanyuka to looked a breath of fresh air in the middle heading the ball clear and smashing clearances up the pitch.

Southampton continued to create chances but couldn't get the second goal to kill the game off.

Rasiak missed a simple headed chance from close range, which Jones saved before another dodgy free kick was given on the edge of the box. This time it was Skachel's turn to have a go but Rowlands blocked his effort to send the ball wide of the post.

The home fans were in fine voice and enjoying the day with chants about them winning the league but they didn't seem to take to kindly to our "There's only one Harry Redknapp" song. Strange as they loved him this time last year and the noisy Southampton fans were soon in a stunned silence when Rangers equalised.

Once again it was Lee Cook who provided the goal. He cut inside on the left and went past his man before looking up and placing a wonderful cross into the middle for Dexter Blackstock to stoop down and connect with a diving header into the bottom corner.

Blackstock didn't celebrate the goal against his former club but the 2,500 QPR fans in the stadium did as we began to believe we could get something out of the game.

John Gregory was spending most of the half on the edge of the technical area barking out instructions and whatever he was saying it was having a positive effect with the players rising to the challenge. Bircham and Bailey were now in control of midfield winning tackles and playing things nice simple whilst Rowlands and Cook out wide were beginning to find space and cause problems for the home side.

With half time approaching we took the lead as good old Kelvin Davis gifted us another goal. The last time we faced him was in his Ipswich days when he gifted Paul Furlong a goal in a 2-0 win and in this one he was just as obliging, this time for Ray Jones.

Bircham played a ball down the right, which was too far ahead of Jones to catch, Davis came out of his box to try and see it out for a goal kick but Jones hadn't given up and sprinted down the right to chase the lost cause.

Davis panicked and gave Jones a glimpse of the ball and the young striker got a touch on it and took it away from the keeper and from a tight angle he made it look easy by rolling the ball into the back of the net to give Rangers the lead. Jones celebrated by kissing his badge and it was great to see the talented youngster get the goal his performance had deserved.

Southampton looked stunned after dominating the first twenty minutes they were now losing and they took their frustrations out on Rehmann who was booked for a clumsy tackle and the home fans demanded a red.

The half time whistle brought a great roar from the QPR end and it was hard to believe this was virtually the same side who were so poor at Colchester a fortnight ago.

During the break those of us in the away in need of some refreshment found frustration. Despite St Mary's being a great looking modern stadium the chances of getting service at the bar was near impossible as three people tried to serve a few hundred QPR fans. It became heated as many fans were fed up of waiting and really when you pay £26 for a ticket you'd expect to be able to get some food and drink at half time with a lot less hassle than at St Mary's.

The mood among the fans was buoyant at seeing Rangers in the lead but I think most of us still would have taken a point with Southampton expected to come right at us after the break but surprisingly that didn't happen.

As the second half kicked off the home side looked nervous and Rangers were comfortable with their one goal lead. Bircham was everywhere wining tackles and keeping things simple as we kept possession well and looked dangerous on the break. Jones and Blackstock were dragging defenders wide leaving space for Rowlands and Cook to come inside and attack, which they did to great affect.

At the back we were a very different proposition with Kanyuka heading everything clear and Stewart now looked a far better player than he has so far this season. Bignot was also impressive and made one excellent interception as Southampton broke through but Bignot sprinted across and threw himself at the ball to head out for a corner, if he hadn't done that then Wright-Phillips would have almost certainly scored. Southampton were restricted to long range efforts and the best chance came to Wright-Phillips who hit an excellent volley but Jones did well to tip it over the bar.

The home fans were very quiet now as the Rangers fans made all the noise and enjoyed the day out, as with every minute that passed we looked more and more comfortable. Gregory decided to freshen things up with half an hour to play by making his last two substitutions.

The fourth official was nowhere to be seen as the players waited to come on and a long delay was caused due to the official's inability to hold up a board. Steve Lomas and Jimmy Smith were brought on as Bailey and the excellent Bircham made way.

With half an hour to go Rangers were looking very comfortable and had two great chances to finish the game off. Firstly from a Cook corner Damon Stewart came running in at the far post and met the ball with a firm header, which went wide of the post. Stewart really should have scored and looked very angry with himself.

Our best chance fell to Blackstock with around ten minutes to go. Rowlands played Jimmy Smith in and the one loan player placed a perfect cross to the far post for the unmarked Blackstock but he snatched at it and fired high over the bar when it seemed easier to score.

The chances kept coming for Rangers as the home fans began to leave. Rehmann went on a surging run forward beating three players but his shot was pretty poor.

Five minutes injury time was announced to give the home side some hope but in truth they never looked like scoring and although those few minutes were nervous for the QPR fans we stood firm and hacked everything clear and the final whistle was blown to signal a memorable victory.

The players celebrated with the fans at the end and Bircham threw his training top into the crowd and looked delighted with the win. The noise was unbelievable in the away end as the fans really began to believe in the new manager.

This was an excellent performance and a thoroughly deserved win. Gregory has really turned things round quickly just by going back to basics.

The player's look like they know what to do now and each of them has a job to do. Some of the players also seem more interested now. Lomas for one looks back to being a useful player again. Yesterday when Blackstock missed that sitter in the second half Lomas was screaming at the team to get back in position and I haven't seen him do that since Southampton at home last season. It's only a little thing but having someone on the pitch to organise and pull people into position has been severely lacking in recent weeks.

Full credit to Gregory for turning this around and it's good to see us roll our sleeves up and fight for a win whilst also playing some good football.

I thought Bircham was man of the match even though he was only on for an hour. He ran non-stop and kept things simple on the ball giving a real captains performance. It's great news that he has now been taken off the transfer list.

Blackstock, Rowlands, Ray Jones, Bignot and Kanyuka all played very well as did Cook who was a constant threat to the home side. Jones did well for his goal chasing a lost cause and although it was a great cock up by the keeper Jones forced him into the mistake and took it very well. Jones looks to be a very exciting prospect and his partnership with Blackstock is getting better and better.

All in all a cracking day out and probably the best I've seen us play away since Derby last year. A two-week break now for Rangers before we face manageress Norwich at home.

Man of the Match: Marc Bircham

Players Ratings: Jones 7, Bignot 7, Rose 6 (Kanyuka 8), Stewart 7, Rehmann 7, Rowlands 7, Bircham 8 (Smith 7), Bailey 6 (Lomas 7), Cook 7, Blackstock 8, Jones 8