Peter Bankes, in only his second full season on the league list, takes QPR for the second time in four months as the R's face Leeds on Saturday.
Referee >>> Peter Bankes (Merseyside), second QPR appointment of the season following August's win at Wolves.
Assistants >>> Adam Crysell (Essex) and Barry Holderness (Essex)
Fourth Official >>> Brendan Malone (Wiltshire)
Wolves 2 Queens Park Rangers 3, Wednesday August 19, 2015, Championship
It took a quarter of an hour for the first goal to arrive. Matt Phillips thought he should have had a free kick down the QPR left but referee Peter Bankes, rightly, said no and the home team broke away down their right. James Henry's cross was deflected by Paul Konchesky and the ball fell to Afobe on the six yard line who took one touch and then dispatched it into the bottom corner.
The travelling faithful in the side stand feared Ramsey's Cardiff experience had made him timid with his substitutions. Faurlin seemed to be blowing hard. Bankes booked Nedum Onuoha for the tackle of the match on the hour and Green, having stood so far off to his right he was closer to the corner flag than his left hand post, was nowhere close to getting back across to Afobe's free kick as it flew over the wall and, mercifully, into the side netting. Henry was also booked on his return to the club he supports — a sensible, cynical, tactical foul as Wolves threatened another counter.
Bankes added five extra minutes, seemingly because he was enjoying the game so much rather than because there had been a load of substitutions or injuries in the second half (there hadn't) but there was to be no last-second heartbreak for Rangers this time and the players celebrated on the pitch with their manager at full time.
Wolves: Martinez 3; Iorfa 6, Stearman 6, Hause 5, Golbourne 6; Henry 7 (Van La Parra 63, 6), Coady 6, McDonald 7, Edwards 7; Afobe 8, Dicko 7 (Le Fondre 46, 5)
Subs not used: Ikeme, Price, Doherty, Ojo, Ebanks-Landell
Goals: Afobe 17 (assisted Henry/Edwards), McDonald 24 (unassisted)
Bookings: Hause 45 (foul), Le Fondre 74 (foul), Coady 90+4 (foul)
QPR: Green 7; Perch 6, Hall 6, Onuoha 6, Konchesky 5; Faurlin 7 (Polter 89, -), Henry 7; Luongo 8, Chery 8 (Doughty 78, 7), Phillips 8; Austin 7
Subs not used: Hill, Gladwin, Lumley, Emmanuel-Thomas, Hoilett
Goals: Austin 38 (assisted Phillips), Phillips 52 (assisted Luongo), 72 (assisted Luongo)
Bookings: Onuoha 60 (foul), Henry 64 (foul)
Referee — Peter Bankes (Merseyside) 7 Thought he got the Onuoha booking badly wrong, that looked a good tackle to me, and where on earth he got five minutes at the end from when the second half had three substitutions, three goals and no injuries I don't know. Overall though, pretty decent.
Last season he showed 97 yellows and seven reds in 27 matches played almost entirely in League One and Two. His two Championship matches featured six yellows and a red at Forest v Cardiff and four yellows at Middlesbrough v Huddersfield.
Premier League >>> Spurs v Chelsea goes the way of Michael Oliver.
Championship >>> Gavin Ward has Brighton v Birmingham.
League One >>> Neil Swarbrick drops down from the Premier League to keep an eye on the Barnsley v Sheff Utd derby game.
League Two >>> Trevor Kettle lumbers through Barnet v Mansfield.
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