The Hoops

Queens Park Rangers was one of those memorable teams from the 70's and early 80's that I remember watching on match of the day as a kid.  Have a soft spot for them for that reason but will happily wave them bye bye if it means we stay up!

They sit bottom of the league but are staging a come back under former West Ham player & wheeler dealer manager Harry Redknapp.  No love lost with Harry by the West Ham fans for a number of reasons too complicated to explain and Harry has gone from Our 'Arry to Bagpuss or Twitchy - Harry has a pronounced facial tick and there are choruses of "Twitch in a minute, he's gonna twitch in a minute".  Who'd be a manager hey?

I sent off a photo a few weeks ago of Ben and I for the program and thanks to a surprise killing email this morning, we know it got published in the QPR program.  We pick up a cop and wait for Ben to find it.  And wait.  And wait.  At half time we think he's sure to find it but its co cold he has gloves on and can't turn the pages that well and misses it.  And we wait.  At the pub for tea with Risky afterwards,  we wait.  I eventually say I love looking at the fans photos section and we wait while he actually reads out the names.  Carole and Risky have their cameras poised and....our meals arrive!  After tea I refocus him and finally he sees it and looks at us and then looks back at the program.  Hallelujah! After the long wait it's anti-climactic and a far cry from 2 or 3 years ago where he was going up to strangers on the tube and showing  them.  

The match itself was a thrill a minute affair but oh so frustrating!  We battered QPR like a blinking haddock but only get a point in a 1-1 draw.  A dozen corners.  21 shots.  70% possession but I swear it seemed like 80 or 90%. My mate Dave described it as a horrible match but there's obviously something lost in translation from our spot in the stands to his foxtel coverage as I reply to him on Facebook that it was an action packed cracking game.  

We deserved all 3 points but that's football for you.

There is a 50% off official merchandise sale in the club shop and despite saying I would never buy another jersey while they continued to use stick on sponsor labels and piping (because it peels off after a while) I simply can't walk past home and away strips for £22.50 or AUD$34 each.  Ben's was even cheaper £20 for jersey, shorts and socks and we had a £10 membership voucher.  We let him get Joe Cole on the back though Carole would rather he got Carlton but its his choice and Joey did score on the day he got it.  Joe Cole was also the cover picture on today's match program with Ben's photo inside and he was kind enough to sign it for us. Ben is in love with the jersey once he gets it and later on that night Ben he hangs it on his suit case and says "so Joe Cole 26 will be the first thing I see when I wake up.  Bless.

So that's the live football done and dusted for another year.  

Stats for this trip P7 W1 D3 L3 F6 A8 GD -2

WBA 0-0

READING 0-1

EVERTON 1-2

NORWICH 2-1

MAN UNITED 2-2

MANUNITED 0-1

QPR 1-1