Hoop Dreams - QPR FC

Two entirely unexpected events happened at QPR this weekend.

Firstly, with little in the way of prompting barring some angry chants at the previous two home games, Flavio Briatore (pictured above) stepped down as chairman of the club. Briatore was increasingly seen as the root of all QPR's problems - the chopping and changing of managers, the embarrassing PR gaffes and the lack of real investment on the pitch. Whether that is true will now be tested as he takes a back-seat with a reduced shareholding and little in the way of any real power at the club.

The second unexpected event was that Rangers won a game, their first since Boxing Day and at just the right time, as before the visit of Doncaster they had slipped down to within one point of the drop zone. They now have a healthier four point cushion from the relegation places, though considering their upcoming fixtures (including Middlesbrough, WBA, Sheffield United and Swansea City within the next month), they can't turn their eye from the scrap at the bottom just yet.

How then did QPR manage to break their losing run and does it herald a new dawn of victories to come?

1 - First off, QPR's performance was far from fantastic. The first half in particular was pretty dire and the lead which Rangers took into the break came against the run of play, full debutant Antonio German, just 18 years old, reacting quickest to a saved shot to bundle the ball over the line. Prior to that, Doncaster were tentatively setting about QPR though with just one man up front, they lacked the bite to cause any real damage.

The Hoops' confidence only grew after the goal and in the second half, tell-tale nerves at being in the lead surfaced again. James Hayter's equaliser was like a knife through butter, with Rovers afforded far too much time and space to work the ball to him in the area for a simple tap-in.

Even when QPR worked one of their best moves of the game to retake the lead, Akos Buzsaky showing his superior ability by chipping a through ball to Jay Simpson to score, they still failed to kill the game off (Simpson being uncharacteristically wasteful of a clear run on goal to shoot well-wide late on) and sat off Rovers who pressed ahead deep into injury time. If Donny's passing hadn't been so sloppy, Mick Harford could have been lamenting another missed opportunity.

But the performance did demonstrate an upward progression under Harford, though the most cynical would suggest it couldn't fail to after how poorly QPR performed against Forest (0-5) and bottom-side Peterborough (0-1) for example. They took their chances when they presented themselves, they had enough shape and organisation to repel Doncaster for much of the game and up front, they put faith in the right players.

2 - Experience isn't always the answer. In bringing in Marcus Bent and Nigel Quashie on loan, Harford was quick to point out that they could be the wise heads to settle QPR's nerves and start grafting some wins.

While both could still influence the course of QPR's season, it was two players at the other end of the spectrum who finally got the club back to winning ways. Jay Simpson's potential isn't news now, but he kept up his admirable scoring record with his deft control and precision finish to win the game.

The real difference could have been his 18-year old strike partner Antonio German though. He's been pushing for a starting place since raising the team's tempo as a sub in recent games, but it was still surprising to see how assured he was and seemingly lacking in nerves. There are still a lot of rough edges to his game and both players were caught off-side more than they should have been, but their work-rate, enthusiasm and energy showed that sometimes, the younger alternative is better.

3 - The biggest question for Rangers now is whether to keep their faith in Mick Harford. It would be typical of the idiosyncratic way that QPR do business that they would choose to replace Harford just after he finally leads the team to a victory. After the changes at the top of the club though, the temptation to start with a fresh slate could be strong and the Neil Warnock rumour is gathering momentum. On top of that, Harford himself admits that the club needs someone long-term and that he will accept the club's decision on who that should be. I believe he is absolutely genuine when he says he wants what is best for QPR and he now seems to accept that a new manager could be the solution.

4 - Relegation Watch. Until QPR have amassed at least another 13 points, it would be foolish to ignore results around the bottom of the table and as mentioned, they have tough fixtures to come.

This weekend, everything was going right for QPR's fans though. First Briatore steps down, then they win and then a look at the Championship results puts them four points off trouble. Ipswich won at Sheffield Wednesday, which puts the latter club in real peril, Scunthorpe and Plymouth could only draw, Reading lost as expected at Blackpool but the real boon for QPR was Coventry's late win at Crystal Palace. That means that whatever your feelings on the rightness of Palace being deducted ten points, they are well and truly in danger of the drop themselves.

QPR - Ikeme, Ramage (Taarabt 77), Stewart, Gorkss, Connolly (Borrowdale 85), Hill, Buzsaky, Cook, Faurlin, Simpson, German (Vine 90+3) 

Subs not used - Cerny, Oastler, Quashie, Balanta

Goals - German (25), Simpson (76)

Doncaster Rovers - Sullivan, O'Connor, Chambers, Hird, Ward, Stock (Mutch 86), Wilson (Roberts 83), Oster, Coppinger (Shiels 83), Sharp, Hayter

Subs not used - Smith, Spicer, Dumbuya, Guy

Goals - Hayter (51)

Referee - D Whitestone

Attendance - 10,960