Hoop Dreams - QPR FC

After two disappointing recent results at home, QPR demonstrated they are a vastly improved side on the road this season with their fourth away victory so far. In comparison, that's one more than in the whole of last season. It's also set them up for the international break in fourth position in the league with a small amount of breathing space now to nurse some players back to fitness.

As with most weeks, Adel Taaarabt continues to be the most talked about player in the QPR side, both positively and negatively. Once more, he showed both sides to his game in this encounter, threading an absolutely exquisite pass to Jay Simpson to open the scoring but also carelessly losing possession in midfield to play in Jermaine Johnson for the equaliser. The positive outweighs the negative for me at the moment though and he has become the most important attacking player for QPR over the last month.

Cometh the hour, cometh Kaspars Gorkss to give Rangers a vital three points. In an end-to-end game in which both sides hit the woodwork, it was unclear as the match progressed if either side had enough in reserve to actually win the game. With eight minutes to go, centre-back Gorkss was quickest to a whipped corner from Alejandro Faurlin and his bullet-header nestled in the net. It was his first goal for the club which may say something about the usual standard of dead-ball delivery but he couldn't have picked a better time to open his account. And why is it that when Gorkss gets the winner, everyone talks about QPR winning 'ugly'? Very unfair.

Jim Magilton was very pleased with his side's performance and though words like 'character' get banded about very easily in football, this game did demonstrate that his current team can grind out a result when called upon and also that they will strive until the end of the game for three points. Recent incarnations of the Rangers side may well have been content with a draw in this match.

HIGHS: Winning ugly, whatever that really means; Adel Taarabt's genius pass to Simpson for the opener; a deserved first goal for Gorkss.

LOWS: Very few - a silly mistake from Taarabt and moments of defensive shakiness apart.

Sheff Wed - Grant, Spurr, Buxton, Hinds, Simek (Wood 72), Miller (McAllister 72), Potter, O'Connor, Johnson (Clarke 76), Tudgay, Varney.

Subs not used - O'Donnell, Beevers, Esajas,Sodje.

Scorers - Johnson (13).

QPR - Cerny, Ramage, Hall (Connolly 27), Leigertwood, Gorkss, Mahon, Routledge, Buzsaky (Faurlin 68), Watson, Simpson, Taarabt (Vine 88).

Subs not used - Heaton, Alberti, Ephraim, Agyemang.

Scorers - Simpson (10), Gorkss (82).

Attendance - 19,491

Referee - Mr N Miller