RESERVES WANDER ROUND WYCOMBE
Tuesday 18th December 2007
by Simon Skinner

Rangers’ second string ran out fairly comfortable 2-0 winners in a rather dull game at a bitterly cold Loftus Road. A double from Danny Nardiello was enough to wrap up the win against a Wycombe side that looked very young and didn’t really get going. 

Rangers started the game with Jake Cole in goal behind Pat Kanyuka, Simon Walton, Gabor Gyepes (on trial) and Andrew Howell. Kieron St Aimie, Matt O’Brien, Stefan Bailey and Chris Arthur were in midfield with Angelo Balanta and Danny Nardiello up front. 

The first half was a pretty tepid affair with neither side managing to get the ball down and pass it well enough to carve out many openings. The Rangers central midfield pair of O’Brien and Bailey were particularly guilty of giving the ball away sloppily all too often.  

The only real chances of note came when Gyepes hit his own post with a clearance and Nardiello brought a good save from Reading in the Wycombe goal with a left footed drive after working himself an opening. It was almost as if the players were as cold as the fans! 

Walton was looking a little short of match fitness and he picked up a classic Simon Walton booking when he roared straight through the Wycombe left winger by the corner flag. It was needless but he probably just wanted to get one in as there hadn’t been much opportunity during the game. Alongside him Gyepes was going about his business well but he also looks short of fitness. He is a bear of a man though and is similar in size to a starter home! 

The second half started far brighter and Rangers were ahead five minutes into the half. The impressive Balanta slipped a lovely through ball into the path of Nardiello and he got the ball out in front of him before slotting it through the keeper’s legs with his left foot.

It was almost two soon after when St Aimie met Arthur’s right wing corner with a bullet header that was well saved by Reading. Gyepes then saw an equally good header cleared off the line from a Nardiello delivery. 

The second goal came when Gyepes stepped into midfield with the ball and slid a lovely pass down the side of the centre back. Nardiello latched onto it only to see his initial shot blocked away by Reading. The ball was worked out to the left wing and Arthur sent in a great ball that Nardiello met with a textbook header that he planted back across the keeper and into the far corner. 

It was game over now so Steve Brown took the chance to take Walton off with twenty minutes to go with Billy Coyne on in his place. Kanyuka moved to centre back to accommodate the change. Soon after Jake Cole made way for teenage keeper Liam O’Brien, who has been earning rave reviews for the U18’s of late. He made a brave low save after Gyepes under hit a back pass. 

With a couple of minutes left Gyepes came off himself after seeming to tweak something. Aaron Goode came on to replace him for an eventful three minutes of injury time. Wycombe won a free kick that was blocked away and as Rangers tried to clear another foul was committed. There was a bit of pulling and pushing as the players tried to get to the ball and Bailey blatantly stuck the nut on one of the Wycombe players. It seemed a certain red card as he hardly did it on the sly but the referee somehow missed it. Lucky boy. 

It wasn’t much of a game to be honest but it was good for Walton to get seventy minutes under his belt after so long out. He played at centre back for the time he was on and to be honest didn’t look all that comfortable there. Gyepes alongside him seemed solid if not a touch cumbersome.  

The best player on the pitch though was Balanta. If he performs like this in training you can see why De Canio has fast tracked him into the first team squad. He is good on the ball and some of his lay offs and flicks to his colleagues were excellent. His pass to set up Nardiello was inch perfect. Definitely one to watch. 

QPR: Cole (O’Brien L), Kanyuka, Walton (Coyne), Gyepes (Goode), Howell, St Aimie, O’Brien M, Bailey, Arthur, Balanta, Nardiello. Subs not used: Morgan-Cummings, German.