The ACN Match Review 24/25 – Queens Park Rangers

How did we play?

Not very well. Poor defending throughout, particularly in those two shambolic set pieces that put us 2-0 down, and while the various crisp packets blowing around the pitch did find some useful positions inside the six-yard box, the one time we did in the form of Crnac it was wrongly disallowed. Sainz was left frustrated in attack because of the unbalanced line-up behind him and when we concede 30 goals in 19 games we can’t afford to be that toothless. To fail to turn up against a QPR side that haven’t won at home all season is such a frustrating missed opportunity and we’ll need to approach Portsmouth very differently to avoid doing the same there.

What was the best bit about the day?

My wheelie bins stayed upright.

What was the worst bit about the day?

To my huge disappointment QPR’s famous Sombrero Man who sits on the front row to the left of the away end was not there, for the first time I can ever remember. Or maybe he was there but his sombrero had got blown away on the way to the match. In any case, hopefully he is OK and he and his sombrero are back winding up the away fans soon.

Hero of the match

The two floppy-haired QPR fans who, in the absence of Sombrero Man, took on the mantle of winding up one particular away fan near me, who offered them outside with the immortal line: “My fucking four-year-old’s cousin is less soft than you.” This had me pondering the implication that while his own four-year-old is dead hard their cousin, presumably of a similar age, is not, and I wondered if the man accompanying him to the game was in fact his brother and the father of said cousin and that this was some kind of pointed dig that they’d be arguing about on the way home. Anyway, thinking about all this distracted me for at least five minutes of the second half, which was most welcome.

How do you rate Loftus Road as an away day?

As with our numerous other visits in recent years the situation in the very narrow concourse was downright dangerous, particularly at half time, but QPR seem to show no inclination to change anything about how they manage the crowds in it so presumably they’re happy with the situation. Add in charging £32 for a view where the goal at our end isn’t actually visible and regardless of the result, I’m in no rush to go back.

Summary in Five Words

How very Along Come Norwich.