Great to see the team winning again, and playing some decent football. I appreciate it was against Yeovil, but you can only beat who's in front of you on the day. My thoughts are below: Chris Ramsey: Great mixture of Experience and youth in the starting XI. We've sent out better teams in the cup that have played with less desire and lost these sort of games in the past. It was refreshing to see players pressing and not letting Yeovil take to much time on the ball. Green: A mere spectator in the first half, although if you were at the game, you probably heard the fellow in the stands praising him throughout the 45 minutes. Great concentration to make 2 important saves in the second half. One when we were really under the cosh at 2-0 and the other towards the very end of the game. Perch: Started slowly, got ran ragged slightly in the first half by the Yeovil No.10, he was probably glad the lad didn't return for the 2nd half. Improved in the 2nd half, but a lot of Yeovil's most threatening moments still came down our right. Hopefully the 90 minutes will help. Hall: Seemed really composed on the ball, (Played very safe in the opening 25 minutes) I lost count of the times he passed sideways to the Chief. He missed very little in the air (bar one mix up with the Chief.) ANd was on hand to cover on a few occasions also. Was unlucky not to score with a header from a corner that looked destined for the top corner, only for it to be agonizingly cleared off the line at the very last moment. Will be good to see how he fares against better opposition but we have cause for optimism. Chief: You know exactly what you get with the Chief. Making his 100th appearance for the R's/ Not afraid to put his head on the ball. So much so that he had a 'Terry Butcher' look going on after a clash of heads. Got himself on the score sheet. After initially getting his feet muddled he rifled it into the roof of the net, kissing the crossbar on the way. Kpekwa: Solid display, has a bit of pace about him. In the first half himself and Philips were too close together, improved in the second half when Philips pushed further on. Dougherty: A few misplaced passes early on, but grew as the game went on. Has an eye for a pass and worked well as part of a midfield 3 along with Gladwin and Gobern. Gobern: Willing runner and always quick to press. 2 semi chances one which went harmlessly over the bar, the other defected out for a corner. Was out on his feet after about 70 mins, so maybe his substitution could have come sooner. Gladwin: Strong, loves to dribble. Link up play could be slightly better, doesn't always look up to see the pass but was always on hand to offer support to Poulter. Very much of the Mackie ilk. Should get a few goals for us this season. JET: Great feet and pace for a big man. A few silky interchanges made for some exciting viewing. Got on the score sheet which should give some confidence moving forward. Also going to be our Delap for the season. The boys got a cannon for an arm! Phillips: Didn't look much like a £10 million pound man. But unlocked the key to the Yeovil defense on a few occasions. I get that he likes to cut inside from the left but his best performances for us at the back end of last season came from the right hand side and putting the ball into the box. Good set- piece delivery. Polter: (MOM) Never gave the Yeovil back line a moments rest. Showed great strength throughout. Out muscled the Yeovil defense for his first goal for the Rs and finished with aplomb. Tired towards the end when through on goal. Decided to take another touch instead of hit it first time and was eventually crowded out. Well on his way to becoming a fan favourite. If Austin stays it's a real shame that we don't have a formation that Polter and Austin could play in together. Polter is the perfect foil for Austin and I honestly believe he'd get goals in abundance playing off the shoulder. They really would compliment each other perfectly. For any fans that drove to the game, hope you all manage to navigate your way home via the diversion. It added a solid hour to our Journey home.......Totally worth it to see us finally win in the cup. Next stop, Wembley!
Fair dues for making the trip and thanks for your thoughts. Always appreciated by those not in attendance.
Thanks for that. Agree with it all. It was Polter who had the header cleared off the line, not that this detracts from Hall's performance which was very comfortable against what he faced last night. From the TV it looked like Polter had plenty of fire in his belly - do you agree having been there?
Oh was it? Thanks for the clarification. All the first half action happened at the opposite end to the away stand. Agree - 100%. He reminds me of a Hybrid between Zamora (back in the day) and Helguson. I lost count the amount of times he rolled the opposition. We all know the championship is a physical league, I think he'll thrive on that. For a 'big man' I was pleasantly surprised to see him willing to run the channels too, which is great as it means he's not just one dimensional, so we won't just be lumping balls up to him, he can actually play too. His performance would have given his confidence a massive boost.
Good write up, and fair play for making that journey along with the the other 1100 QPR fans in attendance. Great Away support. Hope Polter goes from strength to strength, and very interesting how you picked up on the Phillips point. My thoughts on him after the Charlton game were made abundantly clear. Here's hoping we're heading in to the Cardiff game with a lot more confidence.
Yeah pretty much agree with all that, Polter, who was written off by some 'followers', can't call them fans, after a 10 minute cameo against Charlton, did well, promising and hope to see him get a proper chance at some stage. Kpekwa looked exciting at times and Hall (another player written off as not good enough, before even kicking a ****ing football for us) did the required, well enough.Onwards and upwards, looking forward to the Weekend
One thing I thought I'd add is that I think you're wrong about Phillips in terms of his good performances last season. His best games were mostly when he was played centrally or was switched to the centre midway through games. He seems quite dangerous as an attaching mid or second striker. That's where Ramsey started effectively using him. He's often a bit quiet on the wing or looks better when he cuts in.
I think he is far better on the right wing than anywhere else - certainly where I remember most of his best moments from last season, and before. Whenever I have seen him play left side before he has been ineffective, and against very moderate opposition last night while I thought he played Ok on the left, he was nothing special at all. If he had of been right side I suspect he'd have done a lot more.
Thanks for the very detailed first hand match report that made for excellent reading away on annual family holiday and a bit out of touch with news.
Yeah it was a 4-3-3 come 4-5-1 come 4-2-3-1. Very flexible given the personnel that were sent out. The middle 3 were constantly rotating. All were comfortable on the ball and all willing to put in the miles.....as well as the boot.
Thanks also for your feedback SARBF Sounds like the team clicked and hopefully Chris has a better idea of how to set up against Cardiff this weekend. Also I'm hoping this so called new football philosophy that Les is trying to install at our club is having a proper go in cup games for a change. Oh well whatever happens a win is a win so happy days!
Agree with most of what OP says...............was very impressed with Polters attitude and at times a bit of skill. Went for Balls that Austin wouldnt have bothered to jump or run for. excellent
Great report thanks, I watched the stream and agree with your assessment of the players performances. I do think though that if, and it's a big if, Austin does stay it's imperative that we find a system that both he and Polter can partner each other. Austin thrives on feeding off of a Zamora type player.
Good report and respect for the trip OP. Trim it down a wee bit next time though fella, its a bit too long.
I realise that this will be slightly controversial, but if we are going to play one up front or 4-3-3, having listened to your description of Poulter, I wonder whether he would be a better option that Charlie?
