| GALLEN GOBBLES GOAL TO STAVE
OFF STUFFING
This is a message
to the players at QPR. The season of goodwill is over! Please stop
gifting points to poor teams as I would like a bit of glory come
May. Some may say a good side will grab points when they play
poorly, I would rather we didn't play poorly and batter teams like
County out of sight.
Coming off the back of the poor defeat
at Oldham on Saturday nobody was really sure what sort of team
Holloway would be able to pick. Flu had spread like wildfire through
the squad and it was a nice surprise to see as strong a squad as we
had available on show.
Day started in goal behind a back four
of Forbes, the returning Carlisle, Shittu and Padula. Martin
Rowlands and Marc Bircham returned to the midfield to team up with
Palmer and McLeod with Thorpe and Gallen in attack. This strong
looking Rangers line up could not have started the game any better
with the first goal coming with barely three minutes on the clock.
Martin Rowlands picked up the ball on
the right flank and teased and tormented his man before looking up
to spot Palmer lurking on the edge of the box. He rolled the ball
into his path and the skipper made no mistake, hammering the ball
past Mildenhall and into the top corner for his fourth of the season
and third in five games. It was a stunning finish and a stunning
start to the game. It was a real shame that the chaps at the other
end could not keep County out for more than three minutes.
A lack of communication at the back
saw the giant Clive Platt break free of Shittu's attentions. He
fired in a shot that Day managed to Parry only to find Paul
Heffernan following up to tuck away his first of the afternoon.
Twice in two games Day has saved only for an attacked to be the
first to follow the rebound in. I would suggest that some serious
work needs to be done on this, as Day cannot be expected to hang
onto everything that is aimed at him.
It only took another five minutes for
Rangers to wrestle the initiative back from Notts County and it was
another unlikely source in Clarke Carlisle that instigated things. A
corner from Padula was cleared as far as Bircham and he managed to
pick out Carlisle with his back to goal on the left edge of the box.
Getting the ball to feet Carlisle treated the crowd to a round the
world before surging past his man to the by-line and knocking in a
decent cross. Thorpe attacked the ball at the near post but Ian
Richardson beat him to it and could only knock it past the helpless
Mildenhall.
Having managed to get 2-1 up away from
home against on the division's poorer teams now should have been the
time for Rangers to knock this one on the head. Gallen had two great
chances to do just that after breezing past a static Richardson but
both times he managed to shoot straight at Mildenhall, on one
occasion with Thorpe totally free at the far post. Rangers were made
to pay soon after as Shittu gifted Heffernan his second.
A nothing ball was lumped forward and
it should have been a simple clearance for Big Dan to execute but he
dallied on the ball, fell on his arse Darren Peacock style and
Heffernan was in. He calmly drew Day from his line before tucking it
past him for County's second equaliser. Only minutes before Shittu
had seemed to injure his knee clearing a ball and he was certainly
not at his most mobile when this ricket occurred. He needs to
recognise when he needs treatment and when he isn't fit enough to
continue. The last time he did this was during the Sheffield United
game and he missed out on nigh on three months worth of football.
The chances still came for Rangers, as
they did for County. Kevin McLeod, who was having something of a
stinker, managed to break free of the right back before drilling a
cross/shot inches away from the onrushing Thorpe. Going the other
way the defence were trying to shoot themselves in the foot at every
opportunity and it was only the lightening pace of Forbes that
dragged them out of trouble on more than one occasion. One sliding
tackle on Heffernan after he had broken clear was Paul
Parker-esque.
The first half had been poor and
having gifted two goals you sensed that there would be one hell of a
team talk taking in place in the Rangers changing room. But then for
the second time this week Rangers simply failed to get going after
the break and I had to wonder how much effect the flu bug that was
going round the squad was having.
Rangers offered little in attack and
even less in defence. Before today Notts County had only managed
twelve goals at home and we were making them look like Los
Gallacticos. Chances were thin on the ground and referee Friend and
his idiotic companions certainly weren't helping the game. A series
of bizarre offside and throw in decisions angered players and fans
of both sides and only seemed a matter of time before one would
result in a game changing incident.
A more assured pass from Kevin McLeod
would have allowed Marc Bircham to put Rangers back in front midway
through the half. Birch had surged through the middle and laid the
ball into Macca's path before heading for the far post for the
return. He was in acres of space and a simple rolled pass would have
sufficed but instead we got a delicate chipped ball that gave
Bircham no chance at all. It wasn't long until Ainsworth, or
Aerosmith as the whistling PA man dubbed him, replaced him.
Forbes had to be sharp to clear a
Platt header off the line after Day had rushed too far from his
goal. Former Rangers stalwart Ian Baraclough forced Day into a
diving save from a freekick from just outside the box before Notts
County hit the front for the first time.
Paul Heffernan once again managed to
find acres of space and galloped toward a through ball into the box.
Just as he met it Carlisle turned up and absolute clattered him. It
looked like a stonewall penalty to me although others around me felt
that Clarke may have got something on the ball. I know I would have
been annoyed if Rangers had not got one under similar circumstances.
Heffernan picked his spot to Day's left, which was not difficult
considering he was already on his backside when Heffernan got to the
ball. He took home the match ball and surely thought that all three
points were safe.
Things were getting desperate now and
this was illustrated by the introduction of Eric Sabin. He does
little more for the team than increase the bill for the washing
powder and as usual he had no impact on the game apart form a
spectacular air shot when a calmer head may have concentrated on the
ball rather than the glory.
Rangers' fifth away defeat of the
season was looming large on the horizon as the game went into three
minutes of injury time. Then the R's managed to force a throw just
three or four yards from the corner flag and Carlisle came up from
the back to send it long. His throw found the head of Gallen at the
near post and his flick on sailed past Mildenhall to nestle just
inside the far post. A share of the spoils was guaranteed even if
not really deserved. Mildenhall was distraught at the late goal and
as all Rangers fans will doubtless testify, when it ain't going for
ya, it ain't going for ya.
A much improved performance will be
needed to overcome Colchester at Loftus Road this coming Sunday.
They are a decent side and will be far better equipped to punish us
than the two teams we have gifted four points to this week. With
Plymouth winning again we simply have to put together a run of four
or five wins on the bounce on they will pull away into an
unassailable position at the top.
simon@qprnet.com |
