Still talking about that Bircham goal - History
Friday, 10th Jan 2020 08:17 by Clive Whittingham

QPR's dire recent record at Griffin Park means we're left to reminisce about Marc Bircham's spectacular last minute winner there in 2003 ahead of Saturday's visit once more.

Memorable Match

Brentford 1 QPR 2, Saturday April 19, 2003, Second Division

Ian Holloway will be part of the Sky Sports team covering Friday’s match, and he could certainly tell Chris Ramsey a thing or two about coming into a Brentford QPR game under pressure.

Holloway is remembered fondly in W12 for his playing days, but more so his time as manager when he picked a club up off its knees, built one of the most fondly remembered teams in the club’s recent histories, and promoted it back into the second tier with a fine 3-1 win at Sheffield Wednesday in May 2004. But would he have been allowed to get there, or even to the play-off final defeat to Cardiff the year before, by present day QPR?

After all, when Rangers faced Brentford at Loftus Road just before Christmas in 2001 they’d gone 11 matches without a win. This was no ordinary run either — it included two cracks at Vauxhall Motors in the FA Cup culminating in a penalty shoot-out defeat in the replay, a 4-0 loss at home to Cardiff, a 3-0 shellacking at Notts County, a 0-0 draw against a Luton side that had one man sent off after 30 minutes and another just after half time leaving them to play the whole second half with nine men and survive as Brett Angell lumbered about the place…

The QPR board at the time kept faith with their man. Chief scout Mel Johnson got his little black book out again and produced a young Lee Cook on loan from Watford. The 1-1 draw at home to the Bees stretched the winless run to a dirty dozen, but Marc Bircham had opened the scoring and it felt like Holloway was making progress once more.

The club’s reward for that faith shown in its manager came after Christmas, with a winning run almost as remarkable as the catastrophe that had gone before it. Gino Padula, largely ignored to this point, came into the side because of injuries and cemented his place and cult hero status with swashbuckling displays from left back. Paul Furlong, a boo-boy target to this point for his Chelsea past, started to score and couldn’t stop.

The wins were scrappy at first — successive 1-0’s at home to Stockport and Barnsley in instantly forgettable encounters, an antirational 2-0 at Peterborough, a last-gasp Richard Pacquette goal for a 1-0 at Plymouth. But they were wins all the same, consecutive wins, and confidence was building. Rangers really hit their stride in a howling gale at Chesterfield, scoring four times to warm the cockles of the exposed faithful on the terrace behind the Saltergate goal. A week later they ran four through Port Vale at Loftus Road.

The team was really starting to motor. Furlong was sublime in a 3-0 win at Huddersfield, Cook likewise in a 4-1 at home to Cheltenham and although he then had to return to Watford at the end of his three months, Johnson came up trumps again with Everton’s Kevin McLeod and the run continued. Richard Langley scored a memorable hat trick in a win at Blackpool, and then a last-second winner that went down well at the old Ninian Park ground a week later.

Holloway’s Rangers were now in the hunt for the final play-off spot but were hamstrung by the autumn results. Ordinarily their form would have been good enough for automatic promotion but they found themselves in a remarkable two-way battle with Tranmere for the final spot. Rovers had already taken six points from Rangers and didn’t lose any of their final 15 games of the season. Everytime QPR won, Tranmere won as well.

On April 19, QPR had the added complication of a London derby to contend with. Brentford have enough beef with QPR as it is but the fires had been stoked by two tightly fought fixtures the season before. The chairman at Griffin Park at the time, Ron Noades, had also complained to the Football League about Rangers being able to sign Danny Shittu from Charlton for a fee while still in administration — the generous Winton family footing the cost of the deal. Brentford thought they had Shittu in the bag themselves and were disappointed to miss out. The complaint subsequently led to a change in the rules forbidding clubs in admin from signing players for fees, and further stoked tensions as the Rangers fans massed behind the goal on the then-open Ealing Road terrace.

Things looked good when Shittu rubbed salt into the wounds by climbing high to head home in typically emphatic fashion from an eighth minute corner, and then running the length of the field with his shirt off to celebrate. But Brentford, managed by QPR fan Wally Downes, stuck to their task and forced a scrappy equaliser nine minutes from time through Mark Peters. As news filtered through that the full time whistle had gone at Notts County and Tranmere had won 1-0 — a twelfth match without defeat — it felt like a decisive blow had been struck.

In fact, that was still to come.

Deep into stoppage time, in front of the QPR fans, Padula swung over a final corner. It was flicked half clear at the near post and ordinarily such balls drift away to nothing. On this occasion though, for reasons known only to himself, born and bred QPR fan Marc Bircham had peeled away and loitered in the far corner of the penalty box. Not noted for his attacking ability or goalscoring, few would have expected what came next. Bircham drew back his foot, lowered his head over the ball and executed a technically perfect half volley back through the crowded area and plum into the postage stamp top corner.

Standing directly behind the goal, halfway up the terrace, I remember a split second of silence as we took in what had happened. Then absolute pandemonium. Fans spilled out onto the pitch almost as quickly and euphorically as the players were trying to climb in with the fans. The whole scene was complete carnage. QPR had won.

They kept winning as well, and in fact were so pre-occupied with the Tranmere race for sixth didn’t realise quite how close they were getting to second. But for a 0-0 draw in the final home match against Crewe, when referee Andy Hall produced his annual hatchet job on the Rangers team and dismissed two players — Clarke Carlisle for the heinous crime of failing to retreat at a free kick and then challenging the goalkeeper for a cross — the final day 2-1 win at Colchester would have sealed automatic promotion.

Defeat in the play-off final at Cardiff followed but Holloway added Gareth Ainsworth to one side of his team that summer and, just to sooth the waters a little, Martin Rowlands from Brentford to the other and won automatic promotion with a much stronger team and squad a year later.

Brentford: P Smith, M Dobson, I Sonko, S Marshall, M Somner, K O'Connor, J Tabb, J Fullarton, S Hunt, M Antoine-Curier (S Evans, 68), M Peters

Subs not used: M Williams, L Fieldwick, A Julian, A Frampton

Goals: Peters 81

Bookings: Tabb

QPR: C Day, S Kelly, C Carlisle, D Shittu, G Padula, R Langley, S Palmer, M Bircham, K McLeod, P Furlong, K Gallen

Subs not used: A Thomson, T Williams, N Culkin, R Pacquette, M Rose

Goals: Shittu 8, Bircham 90

Bookings: Bircham, Shittu, Kelly

Atttendance: 9,168

Referee: Howard Webb

Recent Meetings

QPR 1 Brentford 3, Monday October 28, 2019, Championship

QPR did lots of what they usually do against Brentford when they met at Loftus Road in October. There was the obligatory soft early goal conceded from a cross — Ollie Watkins the beneficiary. A Grant Hall headed goal from a corner at the start of the second half returned the demon hope, only for the latest nonsense decision against the R’s from persistent foe Andy Woolmer to hand the Bees a penalty despite an obvious dive from Bryan Mbuemo. Benrahma scored that but in truth there was little controversy about a final result of 3-1, secured in stoppage time by another Watkins goal on the break — Brentford by far the better team, QPR distinctly second best.

QPR: Kelly 6; Rangel 6, Leistner 5, Hall 6, Manning 6; Cameron 5 (Mlakar 72, 5), Scowen 5, Osayi-Samuel 6, Eze 6, Chair 6; Wells 5

Subs not used: Lumley, Kane, Wallace, Pugh, Amos, Ball

Goals: Hall 48 (assisted Eze)

Brentford: Raya 6; Dalsgaard 6, Jansson 6, Jeanvier 6, Henry 6; Mokotjo 7, Norgaard 7, DaSilva 8 (Jensen 81, -); Mbeumo 7 (Castillo 75, 6), Watkins 8, Benrahma 7

Subs not used: Thompson, Pinnock, Daniels, Zamburek, Rasmussen

Goals: Watkins 23 (assisted Mbeumo), 90+4 (assisted Jensen), Benrahma 60 (penalty, won Mbeumo)

Bookings: Norgaard 46 (foul), Henry 57 (foul), Watkins 90+4 (excessive celebration)

Brentford 3 QPR 0, Saturday March 2, 2019 , Championship

More of everything we’ve come to expect from recent QPR trips to Griffin Park when these sides met in Hounslow in March. That Rangers held it to nil nil at half time was mainly thanks to Joe Lumley, but Keith Stroud intervened early in the second half with a generous penalty award which Neal Maupay converted but the keeper should have saved. Lumley made a string of saves thereafter but eventually erred by charging out of his goal to try and stop his team getting overwhelmed by a counter attack and the ball was squared for Benrahma to stick in the empty net. Canos finished it off with a third into the top corner in the fifth minute of injury time.

Brentford: Bentley 6; Barbet 7, Konsa 7, Jeanvier 7; Dalsgaard 8, Mokotojo 8, Sawyers 8, Odubajo 7; Watkins 7 (Marcondes 81, -), Maupay 8, Benrahma 8 (Canos 82, -)

Subs not used: McEachran, Gunnarsson, Da Silva, Ogbene

Goals: Maupay 50 (penalty, won Watkins), Benrahma 71 (assisted Maupay), Canos 90+5 (assisted Mokotjo)

Bookings: Dalsgaard 67 (foul), Sawyers 77 (kicking ball away)

QPR: Lumley 7; Furlong 5, Hall 5, Leistner 5, Bidwell 5; Luongo 6, Cousins 5; Freeman 5, Eze 5 (Osayi-Samuel 63, 5), Wszolek 6 (Smith 77, 5); Wells 5 (Hemed 73, 4)

Subs not used: Ingram, Scowen, Manning, Lynch

Bookings: Hall 49 (foul), Osayi-Samuel 64 (foul)

QPR 3 Brentford 2, Saturday November 10, 2018, Championship

QPR recovered from one goal down at half time to win 3-2 in a thrilling second half at Loftus Road in November that season. Brentford’s top scorer Neal Maupay made the most of an error from Joe Lumley to nod in the opener midway through the half but was stretchered out of the game before half time. But Rangers blitzed their visitors out of the game at the start of the second half as Mass Luongo and Joel Lynch scored from close range and then Nahki Wells swept in a third as Pawel Wszolek got going down the right hand side. A late goal from Dalsgaard ensured a nervy finish but QPR ran out deserved winners.

QPR: Lumley 6; Rangel 7, Leistner 7, Lynch 7, Bidwell 7; Cameron 6, Luongo 6; Wszolek 8, Eze 6, Freeman 7; Wells 7 (Cousins 86, -)

Subs not used: Ingram, Furlong, Hall, Scowen, Smith, Osayi-Samuel

Goals: Luongo 50 (assisted Freeman), Lynch 58 (assisted Freeman/Leistner), Wells 60 (assisted Wszolek)

Bookings: Freeman 18 (foul), Wells 65 (yellow)

Brentford: Bentley 5; Dalsgaard 6, Mepham 6, Konsa 6, Odubajo 5; McEachran 6 (Da Silva 76, 7), Yennaris 6; Canos 6, Sawyers 6, Benrahama 8 (Clarke 84, -); Maupay 7 (Judge 45+6, 7)

Subs not used: Marcondes, Daniels, Barbet, Oksanen

Goals: Maupay 22 (assisted Benrahma), Dalsgaard 81 (assisted Sawyers)

Bookings: Sawyers 59 (dissent)

Brentford 2 QPR 1, Saturday April 21, 2018, Championship

QPR lost at Griffin Park yet again when these sides met in April 2018 as Brentford attempted to mount a play-off charge and Rangers’ season began to peter out. It all felt very familiar as Canos smacked in from close range after a corner was headed into his path on 15 minutes and then Matt Ingram conceded a penalty for a second before half time. Despiute suffering concussion in the incident, Ingram saved Watkins’ spot kick and Rangers then equalised immediately through Idrissa Sylla. A fine finish into the top corner from Jozefzoon, who’s since left for Derby, finished the game in the Bees’ favour.

Brentford: Bentley 7; Dalsgaard 6, Egan 7, Mepham 8, Barbet 6; Woods 8, Sawyers 7; Jozefzoon 7, Macleod 6 (Mokotjo 65, 6), Canos 7 (yennaris 81, -); Watkins 8 (Maupay 45, 7)

Subs not used: Bjelland, Mceachran, Clarke, Daniels

Goals: Canos 15 (assisted Barbet), Jozefzoon 69 (assisted Mokotjo)

Bookings: Woods 26 (foul), Watkins 33 (foul)

QPR: Ingram 7 (Smithies 45+5, 7); Kakay 7, Furlong 7, Baptiste 5, Bidwell 6 (Manning 74, 6); Scowen 5; Smyth 6 (Smith 72, 6), Wszolek 5, Luongo 6, Freeman 5; Sylla 6

Subs not used: Cousins, Perch, Eze, Osayi-Samuel

Goals: Sylla 45+2 (assisted Luongo)

Bookings: Ingram 42 (foul), Bidwell 50 (foul), Scowen 52 (foul)

QPR 2 Brentford 2, Monday November 27, 2017, Championship

QPR staged a remarkable late comeback when these sides met at Loftus Road in a live Sky game on a Monday night at the end of November 2017. A poor performance looked like ending in another defeat when Lasse Vibe made it 2-0 to the visitors with nine minutes to go. The majority of the home crowd left while Brentford fan sites started Tweeting “thanks to the Brentford family for making this such a wonderful night”. Manager Dean Smith continued throwing attacking players on, rather than shutting up shop, such was their dominance. But the Bees collapsed deep into stoppage time, conceding first from Matt Smith and then, quickly, a close range strike from Luke Freeman. Ian Holloway exploded in a typical mad rant on the TV afterwards, telling fans who’d left early not to bother coming back. Which was helpful.

QPR: Smithies 8; Cousins 5 (Wszolek 74, 5), Baptiste 5, Robinson 7, Bidwell 6; Freeman 6, Luongo 6, Scowen 6, Mackie 5 (LuaLua 74, 4); Washington 5, Sylla 6 (Smith 58, 8)

Subs not used: Chair, Lumley, Wheeler, Goss

Goals: Smith 90+2 (assisted Freeman/Bidwell), Freeman 90+4 (assisted Smith)

Bookings: Freeman 15 (foul), Mackie 27 (foul)

Brentford: Bentley 5; Clarke 6, Egan 5, Bjelland 5, Barbet 7; Mokotjo 7, Woods 7; Yennaris 7, Jozefzoon 6 (Watkins 29, 6), Canos 8 (Sawyers 73, 5); Vibe 8 (Maupay 82, 4)

Subs not used: MacLeod, McEachran, Daniels, Mepham

Goals: Vibe 52 (assisted Yennaris), 81 (assisted Sawyers)

Bookings: Vibe 63 (foul), Maupay 90+6 (foul/dissent)

Queens Park Rangers 1 Brentford 4, Tuesday August 22, 2017, Championship

QPR put out their usual nonsense starting 11, and suffered the standard humiliation as a result, as their catalogue of cup failures garnered another entry with a 4-1 thrashing by Brentford back in August. Steven Caulker, fresh from the pub, put in a wild tackle that allowed Romanie Sawyer to advance and force an own goal from Ariel Borysiuk in the tenth minute. Further goals from Egan and Maupay made it 3-0 before half time and although Darnell Furlong scored late in the first half and Rangers rallied after the break a fourth from Clarke added gloss to the scoreline late on.

QPR: Ingram 7; Furlong 7, Caulker 4 (Smith 75,6), Baptise 4, Robinson 5; Wszolek 5 (Mackie 69,6), Chair 6, Borysiuk 5, Manning 6 (Freeman 51, 6); Sylla 6, Ngbakoto 6

Subs not used: Lumley, Onuoha, Petrasso, Washington,

Goals: Furlong 43 (assisted Ngbakoto)

Brentford: Daniels, Clarke, Colin, Egan, Bjelland, Jozefzoon, Yennaris, Mokotjo (Woods 69), Sawyers, Chatzitheodoridis (Dalsgaard 77), Maupay (Shaibu 69).

Subs not used: Bentley, Watkins, Archibald, Mepham.

Goals: Borysiuk 10 (OG), Egan 19 (assisted Bjelland), Maupay 32 (assisted Sawyers), Clarke 83 (assisted Shaibu).

Brentford 3 Queens Park Rangers 1, Saturday April 28, 2017, Championship

QPR’s second run of six successive defeats last season was completed at Brentford at the end of April, with the hosts tearing Rangers apart from the off. Although Conor Washington volleyed wide early doors, the hosts deserved the lead handed them by Barbet’s header from a corner on the half hour. With Jota running riot against Jake Bidwell and Joel Lynch in atrocious form, it only got worse from there as the Spanish winger won a penalty from Lynch and converted it himself before humiliating Bidwell and scoring a third in open play. Lynch, somehow, got himself on the scoresheet, heading in from Freeman’s free kick, but the scoreline flattered the visitors and their bizarre team selection.

Brentford: Bentley 7; Colin 6 (Clarke 71, 6), Dean 7, Barbet 6, Henry 7; Woods 8, Yennaris 6; Jota 9, Sawyers 8, Canos 8 (Jozefzoon 71, 6); Vibe 8 (Shaibu 87, -)

Subs not used: Bonham, Hofmann, Egan, Kerschbaumer

Goals: Barbet 31 (assisted Jota), Jota 60 (penalty won Colin), 64 (assisted Yennaris)

Bookings: Jota 62 (over celebrating)

QPR: Smithies 6; Perch 4, Onuoha 5, Lynch 2, Bidwell 3; Mackie 5 (Sylla 67, 6), Goss 6 (Lua Lua 46, 6), Luongo 6, Freeman 6; Washington 6 (Ngbakoto 68, 5), Smith 6

Subs not used: Ingram, Wszolek, Manning, Furlong

Goals: Lynch 62 (assisted Freeman)

Bookings: Freeman 42 (foul), Perch 47 (foul), Lynch 60 (foul)

Queens Park Rangers 2 Brentford 0, Friday October 28, 2016, Championship

Brentford beat QPR with something to spare in the first meeting between the clubs this season. Alex Smithies had already saved from Sawyer and Hogan had curled a good chance wide when Josh Clarke opened the scoring before half time and although there was a suggestion of handball from Clarke in the build up to the second goal Sawyer’s finish was emphatic and the lead richly deserved. A late header from Idrissa Sylla, cleared off the line after dipping over keeper Bentley, was all QPR had to show for their meek efforts.

QPR: Smithies 6; Perch 5, Onuoha 5, Caulker 5, Robinson 5 (Wszolek 61, 6); Cousins 5, Borysiuk 5 (Gladwin 81, -), Luongo 5; Washington 5 (Polter 69, 4), Chery 4, Sylla 4

Subs not used: Hamalainen, Ingram, Hall, Henry

Bookings: Borysiuk 16 (foul), Chery 67 (dissent)

Brentford: Bentley 6; Colin 7, Dean 8, Egan 8, Bjellend 7; Woods 8; Yennaris 7, Clarke 8 (Kerschbaumerat 90+1), -, McEachran 7 (MacLeod 71, - (Kaikai 87, -)), Sawyers 7; Hogan 7

Subs not used: Hofmann, Bonham, Barbet, Onariase

Goals: Clarke 42 (assisted McEachran), Sawyers 74 (assisted Colin)

Bookings: Dean 6 (foul)

Queens Park Rangers 3 Brentford 0, Saturday March 12, 2016, Championship

QPR snapped a 16-match run of London derbies without a victory, and avenged a defeat at Brentford earlier in the season, by comprehensively beating the Bees 3-0 at Loftus Road in March last year. Junior Hoilett got things underway with the club's Goal of the Season from 25 yards and although the visitors threatened from range before half time, nerves were settled after the break when Chery played in Polter for a simple second. Chery iced the cake himself, taking the ball on the run from Ale Faurlin and finishing into the far corner 20 minutes from time.

QPR: Smithies 6; Onuoha 7, Angella 6, Hill 7, Perch 7; Faurlin 6, Henry 8 (El Khayati 82, -); Phillips 6, Chery 8 (Luongo 74, 6), Hoilett 8; Polter 8 (Mackie 85, -)

Subs not used: Washington, Tozser, Ingram, Kpekawa

Goals: Hoilett 38 (unassisted), Polter 66 (assisted Chery), Chery 71 (assisted Faurlin)

Bookings: Polter 45 (repetitive fouling), Henry 48 (foul), Hoilett 49 (foul), Luongo 90+1 (foul)

Brentford: Button 5; Yennaris 5, Dean 5, Barbet 5, Bidwell 5; McCormack 4; Canos 6 (Vibe 64, 5) McEachran 5 (Kerschbaumer 76, 5), Woods 7, Swift 5 (Saunders 76, 5), Judge 6

Subs not used: Djuricin, Bonham, O’Connell, Clarke

Bookings: Canos 32 (foul), Woods 48 (retaliation)

Brentford 1 Queens Park Rangers 0, Friday October 30, 2015, Championship

Brentford beat QPR in a competitive fixture for the first time in 50 years when these sides met at Griffin Park towards the end of Chris Ramsey's unhappy spell as Rangers boss. Massimo Luongo led a one-man mission to prevent the loss in the first half, heading against the bar with one effort and then curling another against the inside of the far post. But the game was won when Alan Judge raced in behind Nedum Onuoha and crossed for Djuricin to slam in from close range.

Brentford: Button 6; Yennaris 6, Dean 7, Tarkowski 6, Bidwell 6; McCormack 6 (Vibe 82, -), Diagouraga 7; Woods 6, Swift 6, Judge 7 (Kerschbaumer 77, 6); Djuricin 7 (Hoffman 90, -)

Subs not used: Bonham, O’Connell, Gogia, Canos

Goals: Djuricin 56 (assisted Judge)

Bookings: McCormack 20 (ungentlemanly), Djuricin 86 (time wasting)

QPR: Green 6; Onuoha 5, Hall 7, Hill 6 (Perch 76, 6), Konchesky 5; Henry 6, Tozser 5; Phillips 5, Luongo 6 (Hoilett 67, 5), Chery 5 (Austin 63, 5), Emmanuel Thomas 4

Subs not used: Doughty, Faurlin, Smithies, Polter

Booked: Hill 20 (ungentlemanly), Tozser 24 (foul), Phillips 80 (foul)

Scores and Scorers

Head to Head >>> Brentford wins 28 >>> Draws 25 >>> QPR wins 23

2019/20 QPR 1 Brentford 3 (Hall)

2018/19 Brentford 3 QPR 0

2018/19 QPR 3 Brentford 2 (Luongo, Lynch, Wells)

2017/18 Brentford 2 QPR 1 (Sylla)

2017/18 QPR 2 Brentford 2 (Smith, Freeman)

2017/18 QPR 1 Brentford 4** (Furlong)

2016/17 Brentford 3 QPR 1 (Lynch)

2016/17 QPR 0 Brentford 2

2015/16 QPR 3 Brentford 0 (Hoilett, Chery, Polter)

2015/16 Brentford 1 QPR 0

2003/04 Brentford 1 QPR 1 (Furlong)

2003/04 QPR 1 Brentford 0 (Thorpe)

2002/03 Brentford 1 QPR 2 (Shittu, Bircham)

2002/03 QPR 1 Brentford 1 (Bircham)

2001/02 Brentford 0 QPR 0

2001/02 QPR 0 Brentford 0

1965/66 QPR 1 Brentford 0 (R Morgan)

1965/66 Brentford 6 QPR 1 (R Morgan)

1964/65 Brentford 5 QPR 2 (I Morgan, Keen)

1964/65 QPR 1 Brentford 3 (Keen)

1963/64 QPR 2 Brentford 2 (Bedford 2)

1963/64 Brentford 2 QPR 2 (Bedford 2)

1961/62 Brentford 1 QPR 4 (Bedford 2, McCelland, Reeves og)

1961/62 QPR 3 Brentford 0 (Towers, Bedford, Evans)

1960/61 Brentford 2 QPR 0

1960/61 QPR 0 Brentford 0

1959/60 Brentford 1 QPR 1 (Golding)

1959/60 QPR 2 Brentford 4 (Bedford 2)

1958/59 Brentford 1 QPR 0

1958/59 QPR 1 Brentford 2 (Kerrins)

1957/58 Brentford 1 QPR 1 (Cameron)

1957/58 QPR 1 Brentford 0 (Petchey)

1956/57 QPR 2 Brentford 2 (Longbottom, Bargie og)

1956/57 Brentford 2 QPR 0

1955/56 Brentford 2 QPR 0

1955/56 QPR 1 Brentford 1 (Cameron)

1954/55 Brentford 1 QPR 1 (Clark)

1954/55 QPR 1 Brentford 1 (Clark)

1951/52 Brentford 0 QPR 0

1951/52 Brentford 3 QPR 1* (Shepherd)

1951/52 QPR 3 Brentford 1 (Gilberg, Shepherd, Smith)

1950/51 QPR 1 Brentford 1 (Davies)

1950/51 Brentford 2 QPR 1 (Addinall)

1949/50 Brentford 0 QPR 2 (Hatton, Wardle)

1949/50 QPR 3 Brentford 3 (Pattison 2, Pointon)

1948/49 Brentford 0 QPR 3 (Hudson, Pointon, Duggan)

1948/49 QPR 2 Brentford 0 (Hartburn, Hudson)

1945/46 Brentford 0 QPR 0*

1945/46 QPR 1 Brentford 3* (Pattison)

1932/33 Brentford 2 QPR 0

1932/33 QPR 2 Brentford 3 (Goddard, Brown)

1931/32 QPR 1 Brentford 2 (Cribb)

1931/32 Brentford 1 QPR 0

1930/31 QPR 3 Brentford 1 (Goddard 2, Howe)

1930/31 Brentford 5 QPR 3 (Coward, Wiles, Nixon)

1929/30 Brentford 3 QPR 0

1929/30 QPR 2 Brentford 1 (Rounce, Goddard)

1928/29 QPR 2 Brentford 2 (Coward, Herod)

1928/29 Brentford 1 QPR 1 (Smith)

1927/28 Brentford 0 QPR 3 (Goddard 2, Burns)

1927/28 QPR 2 Brentford 3 (Lofthouse 2)

1926/27 QPR 1 Brentford 1 (Hawley)

1926/27 Brentford 4 QPR 2 (Patterson, Goddard)

1925/26 QPR 1 Brentford 1 (Burgess)

1925/26 Brentford 1 QPR 2 (Johnson, Birch)

1924/25 QPR 1 Brentford 1 (Brown)

1924/25 Brentford 0 QPR 1 (Brown)

1923/24 Brentford 0 QPR 1 (Birch)

1923/24 QPR 1 Brentford 0 (Parker)

1922/23 QPR 1 Brentford 1 (Marsden)

1922/23 Brentford 1 QPR 3 (Parker 2, Birch)

1921/22 QPR 1 Brentford 1 (Smith)

1921/22 Brentford 5 QPR 1 (Birch)

1920/21 QPR 1 Brentford 0 (Birch)

1920/21 Brentford 0 QPR 2 (Smith 2)

* - FA Cup
** - League Cup

Connections

Mark Lazarus >>> QPR 1960/61, 1962-64, 1966/67 >>> Brentford 1964-66

Born in Stepney in 1938, Lazarus was in the same Saturday side as Jimmy Greaves as a boy before he started playing non-league football with Barking where he was picked up by Leyton Orient, then managed by Alec Stock, in 1957. Lazarus, part of a large Jewish family, chose football over boxing despite some success in amateur bouts. One of his brothers, Lew, fought for the British title at welterweight and middleweight.

Stock left Brisbane Road for a brief stint in charge of Roma (imagine that) but when he returned to England with QPR he immediately signed Lazarus for the first time in September 1960. A year later he was off to Wolves for a club record fee of £27,500 in September 1961 only to return to Loftus Road in February 1962 after just nine games following a row with Molineux boss Stan Cullis.

In a recent interview with the Jewish Telegraph, Lazarus said: “I never, in my whole career, asked for a transfer and would have preferred to have stayed in London. Cullis was a sergeant major type who was never happy, even when we won. Nothing was good enough for him and we had a personality clash. Alec felt he had a responsibility to look after QPR financially too so I was seen as a saleable object."

He left for Brentford in April 1964 for £8,000 plus George McLeod but was back for a third, and most successful, stint in November 1965. He left for a third and final time, League Cup winner’s medal in pocket, to join Crystal Palace for £10,000 in November 1967 and just to really crown himself as the king of the comeback he finished up back at Orient again in 1969.

Lazarus was a fast, aggressive winger who scored 84 goals for the club in 235 appearances. The most important of those was the third Rangers goal at Wembley, crowning a comeback for the Third Division R’s from 2-0 down to defeat First Division West Brom 3-2. QPR were the first team from the third tier ever to compete for a major trophy at Wembley and any thought they may be overawed by going 2-0 down at half time were dispelled by goals from Roger Morgan, Rodney Marsh and finally Lazarus.

He said: "It was only a tap-in, it was not as though I beat three men and smashed the ball into the back of the net from the edge of the area. The lead-up to the final was tremendous, though. We had a great season. That final was the first game my mum and dad saw me play in. My dad had never been to a game in his life and he never went to any more after the final. My mum loved it though, and after that, she always came to see me play."

It was just rewards for the wide man, having scored three times in the earlier rounds of the competition that year including a 5-0 First Round win against Colchester where Marsh got the other four, the memorable Fourth Round home upset against top flight Leicester Citty when he got one in a 4-2 win with Les Allen and Roger Morgan bagging the other two, and finally one in a 4-1 home win against Birmingham in the first leg of the semi-final at Loftus Road. He also set up both goals in the 2-1 Fifth Round win against Carlisle.

Oddly, he’s probably equally well remembered for running down the wing at Loftus Road in just his y-fronts, shorts in hand, when the ball arrived at his feet at an inopportune moment during a kit change.

In retirement he worked in road haulage, and as a ‘minder’ for snooker players including Steve Davis.

By winning promotion from Division Three to Division Two with Orient in his final year as a professional it meant he’d finished his senior career with promotions in his last four seasons — two with QPR in 1967 and 1968, one from Second to the First with Palace in 1969 and then Orient in 1970 before he went back into the non-league game with Folkestone and later Wingate and Finchley.

Others >>> Mark Warburton, QPR (manager) 2019-present, Brentford (manager) 2013-2015 >>> Yoann Barbet, QPR 2019-present, Brentford 2015-2019 >>> Jake Bidwell QPR 2016-2019, Brentford 2011-2016 >>> DJ Campbell, QPR 2011-2013, Brentford 2005-2006 >>> Rowan Vine, Brentford (loan) 2010, (loan) 2002-2003, QPR 2007-2012 >>> Tommy Smith, Brentford 2014-2015, QPR 2010-2012 >>> Gavin Mahon, QPR 2008-2011, Brentford 1998-2002 >>> Martin Rowlands, QPR 2003-2012, Brentford 1998-2003 >>> Ian Holloway, QPR (manager) 2017-present, 2001-2006, 1991-1996, Brentford 1986-1987 >>> Ademola Bankole, Brentford 2005-2006, QPR 1998-2000 >>> Marcus Bean, Brentford 2008-2012, QPR 2002-2006 >>> Les Ferdinand, QPR 1987-1995, Brentford (loan) 1988 >>> Andy Sinton, QPR 1989-1993, Brentford 1985-1989 >>> Stan Bowles, QPR 1972-1979, Brentford 1981-1984 >>> Andy McCulloch Brentford 1976-1979, QPR 1970-1972 >>> George Goddard, Brentford 1933, QPR 1926-1933