RAMPANT RANGERS REPELLED BY WYCOMBE'S WOODWORK

Rangers played out one of the most one sided 0-0 draws ever against Wycombe at Loftus Road. To say that from start to finish we absolutely battered them would be an understatement and had it not been for Frank Talia and about as much luck as any team deserves, victory would have been comfortable.

More changes yet again as the already threadbare squad was once again stretched to its limit. Day lined up in goal with Rowlands, Shittu and Gnohere in front of him. Padula was fit again and replaced Williams who has now returned to Birmingham. Marcus Bean came into midfield for his first start of the season to team up with Ainsworth, Palmer and McLeod. Kevin Gallen returned to the attack in place of Thorpe to partner Furlong.

Rangers flew at Wycombe from the off and it was clear to see what the tactics for the day would be. The ball was being shifted from back to front as quickly as possible, whether this was on the deck or by our more familiar aerial route. Chances were being carved out from the opening minutes as both Furlong and Gallen headed over the bar in the early exchanges.

Day had to be alert to deny Darren Currie with an early effort but from there the chances seemed to dry up for Wycombe for long periods and Rangers dominated the possession. Ainsworth and Furlong combined well to create an opening for Gallen only to see the striker repelled. Palmer tried to follow up but took too long on the ball and the chance had gone. Wasted chances from the pairing of Palmer and Bean would be a theme for the day and you have to wonder what might have happened if those chances had fallen to somebody like Rowlands.

Kevin McLeod was running The Chairboys ragged and he went close with a right-footed shot that swerved the wrong side of the post. Furlong had a chance blocked, Ainsworth sent one wide from thirty yards after spotting Talia out of position and the Swindon keeper then pulled out a fine save to tip an effort from Bean away for a corner.

McLeod also cracked another effort over the bar and at the break the Rangers players and fans were all scratching their heads wondering just how they were not at least two goals to the good. Wycombe seemingly had no answers to the attacking play of Rangers and Gallen and Furlong were giving their centre backs a real chasing. The half time instructions will have been for more of the same and straight away the R's picked up the baton again.

Kevin McLeod once more found acres of space down the left and centred a ball that Furlong proceeded to hammer into the empty seats of the upper School End. Moments later Rangers came within a coat of paint of taking the lead via the cultured right foot of Martin Rowlands.

A Freekick was awarded thirty-five yards from goal and Rowlands sent the kick goalward. The swerving strike had Talia beaten only for the ball to cannon back off the post and away. I hadn't been overly impressed with Rowlands' efforts with freekicks to date but this was a supreme effort and deserved to go in.

The game had been played in surprisingly good spirits but one of the most cynical challenges seen for a long time changed things. Yet another quick break had seen Rangers carve their way through the flimsy Wycombe defence, Furlong had options left and right and as he went past Roger Johnson he looked to pick out Gallen. As he was about to release the ball Johnson took him out in a style that Claudio Gentile would have been proud of. The seemingly emaciated Johnson was only cautioned for the challenge. I know it was not a direct goal scoring chance but the fact that he had no intention of playing the ball should surely mean that a red card must be considered. The fact that later in the game the same player would hack a shot from Furlong off the line only compounded matters.

Undeterred Rangers still piled forward and created chance after chance after chance. Furlong had a shot deflected wide and from the resulting corner found himself in the book for the fourth time this season. He seemed to get a smack round the head as the players jostled and somehow that was enough to see his name taken. Mind you, this was the same ref that had earlier booked Gino for winning a ball with an immaculate challenge so I guess we shouldn't be surprised.

Rangers were also denied a stonewall penalty by referee Jones when Gallen was bundled over. The ref pointed for a freekick a yard outside the box, which would suggest that Gallen had been fouled with such force it had sent him five yards inside it. As we all know Kev is a big old unit and I have to doubt his ability to fly six yards through the air unaided. From the resulting freekick Furlong once again saw his shot cleared off of the line by Johnson.

Day was called on to make his second save of the game shortly after as Wycombe sub Gavin Holligan was released by Currie. He bore down on goal and Day was off his line, all be it a little ponderously, to block the effort with his legs. Day's judgement when coming off his line at attackers seems a little out at the minute and I would suggest that the leg break is still at the back of his mind. He has yet to take a really fierce challenge since then and until that happens he probably wont have 100% confidence in it.

Gareth Ainsworth saw a header from a corner tipped onto a post by Talia as Rangers threw everything at Wycombe. As the game was entering its dying stages Wycombe had a golden chance to steal one of the streakiest victories ever. Poor defending allowed Holligan in and despite having time and space he rushed his shot and ended up pulling it five yards wide from the penalty spot. A real let off and another soft chance coughed up this season by Rangers.

As the whistle sounded some of the more shortsighted fans predictably booed the team off despite the fact that we had just seen an incredibly one sided game. On another day we could have won by five or six and we probably wont create more chances in a game than this for the rest of the season. I also don't think we will come up against such a spawny team as Wycombe either so all things being equal, I don't expect this sort of thing to happen again.

Man of the Match for me was Kevin Gallen who brought others into play, held up the ball and caused problems for Wycombe all day. He links so well with Furlong and the pair instinctively know what one another are doing. He doesn't score enough goals though and that will mean that he is under constant threat from Tony Thorpe.

Other good performances came from Rowlands, McLeod, Furlong and Padula. Gnohere and Shittu seemed a bit shaky at times but this is a partnership still in its infancy and it will only improve.

My biggest grumble was the lack of creativity in the middle of the park. Palmer is a steadying influence and Bean is a tenacious tackler but neither of them are the type of player to put their foot on the ball and pick a pass or follow up the attacks to feed on what may drop outside the box. Bean had a couple of chances yesterday and shot wildly on two or three occasions. He is a great young prospect and in time he will come into his own but for now I think we need a creative player in there. The man for the job is Rowlands and hopefully the return of Forbes from injury and suspension will see him pushed forward.

If we can create half the number of chances at Wrexham that we did today them I think a first away win is on the cards. Wrexham are tight at the back and hardly scintillating in attack but the boys in defence will need to be a little sharper than they were today.

simon@qprnet.com