In the jungle — Preview Friday, 18th Dec 2015 17:59 by Clive Whittingham Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink has made a positive start to life at QPR, but with six away games in nine fixtures over Christmas he's about to face a long-term scourge of Rangers teams… Bristol City (21st) v Queens Park Rangers (12th)Championship >>> Saturday December 19, 2015 >>> Kick Off 15.00 >>> Weather — Extremely wet >>> Ashton Gate, Bristol When Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink took over as Burton Albion manager he inherited a side that had won just three of its previous 12 matches and was coming off a 5-0 FA Cup defeat at Barnsley. His first game was away from home, at League Two leaders Wycombe. Burton won 3-1 and would quickly roar past Gareth Ainsworth's side to win the title themselves. At QPR he found a similar situation — four wins from 14 prior to his arrival and games approaching against high-flying Burnley, a notoriously niggly and awkward opponent, and the unbeaten league-leaders Brighton. While he didn't quite replicate the statement he made at Burton, two draws are creditable results and the 2-2 against Brighton was the width of a post away from being a memorable 3-2 win. Now he faces the hectic Christmas period, and a rush of more run-of-the-mill Championship fixtures. Bristol City, Huddersfield, Ipswich, Hull, Forest, Blackburn, Wolves, Rotherham and Forest again. A couple are really struggling, a couple are doing rather well, but it's about as Championship as a Championship fixture list could be. Hasselbaink likes a hard working team, pressing high up the field, that much is clear. He's already lengthened the training sessions, and moved the 'day off' to Thursday so they can really hammer away at the gruelling stuff in the first three days then rest and use Friday for set pieces and the like. We'll see, once new-manager syndrome wears off, how QPR's disparate collection of players, many with dodgy knees, cope with this long-term but so far it's made a positive difference. What is noticeable about our festive calendar, and is being felt keenly on the balance sheet of the die-hard supporters, is that six of the nine games we have coming up are away from home. That starts tomorrow at Bristol City and now includes two quick-fire trips to Nottingham Forest — a ground QPR haven't won on in 30 attempts. They'll surely rarely have a better chance to do so than their two swings next month, and Hasselbaink's playing style would seem to suit away fixtures — he lost just six of his 27 road games at his previous club. If that proves to be the case, it'll buck a real trend at QPR that's been deeply ingrained for years. Our former smiley wide midfielder Hogan Ephraim said in an essay for the Gazette last week that it was a real culture shock when Neil Warnock arrived and the team was suddenly competitive away from Loftus Road. Ephraim said: "It was surreal for me. Ever since I'd been at QPR we didn't really win away from home. Being a young player and you were thinking the home team has the advantage. We were going to Ipswich and looking at the scoreboard and we're 3-0 up. We'd play Sheffield United and go 3-0 up in 20 minutes. You're getting a sense of belief. We weren't playing well at times. We were battered at Derby, 2-0 down, and we came back in the 90th minute. We felt unbeatable in a way." It was surreal for all of us. If you discount that 2010/11 season and look all the way back to 2004, when Ian Holloway's QPR returned to the second tier after three years a division lower, the record is stark. QPR have won just 48 away matches in 11 years up to and including Reading last week. They've drawn 55 and lost 125 of the 228 played in league competitions, scoring just 219 goals (fewer than one a match) and conceded 373 (well on the way to two a match). That's 199 points won from a possible 684 — and a lot of bloody early starts at London train stations to cover vast distances at great expense for what turns out to be another crushing disappointment. Paddington for the 08.57 tomorrow kids, by the way. Sometimes, as during Holloway's era, there was all the character and attitude in the world but simply not enough quality to compete. Other times, such as our last Championship season in 2013/14 which ended in promotion despite a failure to win 15 of the 23 away matches, the quality was there but the testicles had been removed. And then there were the Premier League years when, apart from Neil Warnock's brief stint when we won three of our first six away games, QPR had neither the will nor the ability to compete outside Shepherd's Bush. Harry Redknapp, risibly, even admitted he felt QPR would stay up based on what they did in just 19 fixtures at Loftus Road and literally anything they could pick up elsewhere was a "bonus". He lost all 12 of his away games in the league that season, conceding for fun and scoring as often as a celibate Buddhist monk. As well as a lot of talk about doing things "together" and being a "family" — while paradoxically getting shot of long-serving Steve Gallen — Hasselbaink also continues to talk about "belief". Even this QPR team which is meant to be good enough to be going up this season has only won three away from home and lost six. Do they have the belief? Do they have the stones for it? Can Hasselbaink instil it? Bristol City would seem the perfect chance to start finding out. Not an easy game by any means, it never is for Rangers at Ashton Gate — although a fierce rivalry that grew up in the early part of this century when the pair regularly fought for Second Division promotion against each other, and Rangers rejoiced in Brian Tinnion's braindead "all over bar the shouting, Rangers running scared" interview when they eventually triumphed, has subsided somewhat. But City have found the step up to the Championship tough after failing with several audacious, big-money bids to land a striker in the summer — Dwight Gayle and Andre Gray turned down moves here. City were ravaged 4-0 at Derby during the week after which manager Steve Cotterill said: "At this moment, we are not good enough to take them on. We just did not have enough belief to take them on. We did not show enough courage to pass the ball. We could not win the ball and when we won it. I could have had 12 players out there tonight but I am not sure we could have handled them." QPR have found Derby too hot to handle themselves this season but have sacked a manager already believing this team is good enough to compete with them for a top six place. Saturday is an interesting test case, because you don't get very far winning away from home as seldom as QPR.
Matt Connolly wheels away to celebrate in front of the travelling QPR fans after his last minute header was turned into the net for an equaliser by Patrick Agyemang last time these sides met on this ground. Promotion-bound Rangers had earlier fallen behind to Jon Stead's annual worldie. SaturdayTeam News: No word yet on James Perch who picked up what looked like a nasty knee injury against Brighton on Tuesday evening. No word on his fitness with either Karl Henry or Gabrielle Angella likely to come in and replace him here. Darnell who? No mate, no Darnell here. Jamie Mackie is still looking for the exit from Dorking's third finest tattoo parlour. Letting leading scorer Jonathan Kodija, target man Aaron Wilbraham and defender Luke Ayling all stay at home during the week suggested Cotterill had given that Derby trip up before it even begun. Will the night off rest those three key players enough for them to make an impact here? They're all set to return to the starting 11. Elsewhere: The top two, Brighton and Boro, both locked on 43 points, meet in the Saturday lunchtime Sky match. Easily the game of the weekend that one and more than adequate reward for us sitting through Brum and The Red Dragons this evening. That leaves seven games at 15.00 and three on Sunday. Barings Bank could probably do without Tarquin and Rupert rocking up in their Barbour jackets given the bareness of the cupboard in those parts, while Charlton are probably on a hiding to nothing on their long trek up to Big Spending Burnley. Ipswich and the Derby Sheep looks a decent match, Trees v Franchise less so, Rotherham v Tigers Tigers Rah Rah Rah lesser still. There's Abacus at home to Huddersfield as well, you know, in case you've shit the bed and need to get out the house or something. On Sunday the Owls welcome the Wolves which I'm sure we could easily carve into some sort of anthropomorphic drama by mentioning feathers flying or teeth gnashing or some such rubbish. Champions of Europe welcome Preston, Waitrose host The Mad Chicken Farmers with Brian McDermott getting the band/referee baiting committee back together. And that's your lot until Boxing Day. The very best of the season to you all. Referee: Mark Haywood is back in charge of a QPR game for the first time since the memorable Wayne Routledge and Adel Taarabt-inspired victory against Coventry back in 2011. Sadly, he wasn't great that day, or in any of his previous QPR games. Let's hope he's improved in the meantime. Full case-file here. FormBristol City: Cotterill's side has won only four times all season, just one of the last six and two of the last ten. Two of those victories have come at Ashton Gate, against Forest and Wolves, but have lost here to Blackburn, Fulham, Reading, Burnley and Brentford conceding four goals in a game on two occasions. MK Dons, Leeds and Hull were held to draws. Overall they have won four, drawn seven and lost ten this season and sit one place and one point outside the bottom three. Only Rotherham (38) have conceded more than City's 37 goals this season. City are unbeaten in five meetings with Rangers. QPR: Rangers are currently dead even on seven wins, seven draws and seven defeats so far this season with 26 goals scored and 27 conceded. They've won two, drawn three and lost three of the last eight. Away from home early victories against Wolves and Huddersfield gave way to a run of six without a win, including five defeats, that was snapped by a 1-0 success at Reading last time out. Tuesday's 2-2 draw with Brighton snapped a worrying scoreless run which had seen just two registered in the six games prior. Three of the last four goals have been scored from Ale Faurlin corners. It was also the first time Rangers have conceded more than a single goal in a game in ten attempts, since a 2-1 loss at Birmingham. Charlie Austin has scored on both his previous visits to this ground. Nedum Onuoha leads the Championship for interceptions this season — 76 and counting. Prediction: Reigning Prediction League champion isawqpratwhitecity tells us... "Last season's League 1 champs have been finding it tough. Not that QPR have been sweeping all before them either, but I can't see Bristol getting any joy from the side that has been lifted by Hasselbaink's arrival and the welcome return of a fit and on-form Austin." Jim's Prediction: Bristol City 0-2 QPR. Scorer: Charlie Austin LFW's Prediction: Bristol City 0-1 QPR. Scorer: Charlie Austin The Twitter @loftforwords Pictures — Action Images Photo: Action Images Please report offensive, libellous or inappropriate posts by using the links provided.
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