 Friday, 3rd Sep 2010 22:44 by Clive Whittingham In a busy day at QPR the signing of Rob Hulse was finally confirmed by the league, Neil Warnock and Adel Taarabt were nominated for awards and Heidar Helguson scored for Iceland. NewsThere had been one or two nerves rattling around the QPR fan based in the last 48 hours as the delay in the signings of Rob Hulse from Derby and Tommy Smith from Portsmouth dragged on. However we are now halfway there, with the Hulse deal confirmed by the league at lunchtime today for a transfer fee of around £500k. The club still awaits news on Tommy Smith after a £1.5m deal was agreed with Portsmouth late on deadline day. After a convoluted transfer Hulse told the club’s official website that he was delighted to have finally been able to put pen to paper at Loftus Road. He said: “I'm delighted to be here. It was a whirlwind few hours, but I'm really pleased to be a QPR player now. Neil was a massive factor in my decision to move here. I believe I played the best football of my career under his management and I'm looking forward to working with him again. I'm looking forward to the challenge. I'm joining a club sitting top of the table after four games and whilst it's only early days, if we can continue in that vein it promises to be an exciting chapter in my career." The transfer of Hulse to QPR in a cut price deal has drawn sharp criticism of Derby County from their own supporters, coming just 12 months after the club repelled £3m bids for the player from Middlesbrough. Both Rams chief executive Tom Glick and manager Nigel Clough have been forced to publicly explain and defend the decision in the Derby press this week. Clough told Derby’s official website: “This is a good deal for Derby County and allowing Rob to leave is the right thing to do, Rob turns 31 in a few weeks and had just nine months to run on his current contract. It is highly unlikely that we would be able to reach an agreement with Rob to extend that deal, given the terms he was looking for. To let him walk away for nothing at the end of the season would have made no sense what so ever, therefore we have acted in what is in the best interests of the club." Glick told the Derby Telegraph: “We had an offer for Rob that came in late. We presented it to the manager and coaching staff and they made the judgement from a football stand-point that this was an offer that was right to accept. We are conscious he has been our leading scorer in the past two seasons but the things Nigel and his team would be thinking about is that Rob will be 31 in a few weeks and has got nine months to go on his contract. All this would have been taken into account in terms of whether Rob would be a player for the future of the club or whether it was right to make a change. "The decision has been made that somebody else is going to be the target man to take us to that next step and this is the right time to part ways. Of course, we expected a backlash to the sale but, ultimately, we have the same objectives as the supporters – to compete for the play-offs, for promotion, to win promotion and to stay up in the Premier League. We owe it to them to have the discipline and strength of our convictions, and the manager, the coaching staff and the scouting team are more than capable of making the right recruiting decisions.” Derby are expected to sign West Brom’s New Zealand international striker Chris Wood on loan when the window reopens next week. Fresh from the confirmation of the Hulse deal Neil Warnock then learnt he had been nominated for the division’s manager of the month award for August. Rangers sit top of the table after three wins and a draw in four matches. He will be up against Ipswich’s Roy Keane, who has an identical record, Cardiff’s Dave Jones and Millwall’s former QPR man Kenny Jackett. Adel Taarabt has been nominated for the division’s player of the month award along with Paul Robinson from Millwall, Leeds’ keeper Kasper Schmeichel and Cardiff striker Jay Bothroyd. The winners will be announced next Thursday, just before QPR host Middlesbrough in the Championship. There were mixed fortunes for the two QPR players on international duty on Friday night. Despite heroics at the heart of the Latvia defence Kaspars Gorkss could not prevent his country slipping to a 3-0 home defeat against Croatia. Meanwhile Heidar Helguson was on the score sheet for Iceland as they lost 1-2 at home to Norway. That Helguson’s sixth international goal in this his 38th appearance. Youth team defender Elliott Cox has signed for Ryman League outfit Tooting and Mitcham on a one month loan deal. Off the pitch there is movement and murmurings coming from the boardroom once again. The long rumoured deal that would see Kingfisher mogul Vijay Mallya take over the shares currently owned by Falvio Briatore and Bernie Ecclestone has finally been made public. The Fulham Chronicle reports today that Briatore is holding out for a better price than the one currently on offer from Mallya, a man who he has clashed with in the past. Mallya is said to be worth around a billion pounds, he is the chairman of United Brewaries, owns the Formula One team Force India, the Indian Premier League team Bangalore Royal Challengers, and the I-League team East Bengal FC as well as Kingfisher Airlines. He is a long term friend and business associate of the Mittals who are keen to see him take the remaining shares in the club and rid Rangers of the Ecclestone/Briatore influence for good.
Former R’sThe QPR Masters team is back in action this weekend, in the national finals at Birmingham. Rangers won the London title for the second season running during the summer launching a memorable comeback against West Ham in the final and will now join the other regional winners for the knockout finals that were won by Tranmere Rovers last season. The R’s will meet Barnsley in this first round with the winner facing the winner of Forest v Birmingham. Aston Villa, Sunderland, Man City and holders Tranmere are also involved with Rangers’ current coach Keith Curle and former striker Mike Sheron in the City squad, and big Georges Santos lining up for Rovers. The finals are this Sunday from 6.30pm at the NEC in Birmingham, also live on Sky Sports. QPR: Simon Royce, Tim Breaker, Matthew Rose, Marcus Bignot, Wayne Fereday (c), Michael Meaker, Tony Thorpe, Karl Connolly
Championship Shorts- After losing Hulse to QPR, Derby are keen to appease fans by tying Kris Commons down to a new contract. Chief executive Tom Glick said: “We are right on schedule with where we want to be. Kris a great talent and a key player for us." - West Brom full back Joe Mattock has been given a ten month suspended prison sentence after being found guilty of attacking several people in a Leicester night club who were baiting him over his move to the Baggies from Leicester City.
…and finallyA reminder that tomorrow is national Non League Day where fans of Premiership and Championship sides are being encouraged to go and watch their local team play with the leagues both suspended while internationals are played. The initiative is the idea of a QPR fan, James Doe, who also watches Harrow Borough. Harrow are away this weekend but return home on Tuesday night for a fixture against Lowestoft Town and in the spirit of the promotion are offering fans who turn up with QPR season tickets entry for a fiver with kids for a quid. The R’s fans that did go to the friendly match between the two sides reported a fine atmosphere and set up with club house that could make for a decent, and cheap, Saturday afternoon out at some proper football. Photo: Action Images Please report offensive, libellous or inappropriate posts by using the links provided.
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