Ian Holloway's previous five year stint in charge at QPR was, overall, an uplifting, life-affirming, club revitalising time. LFW looks back at his best and worst.
1 — Paul Furlong
Hard to pick a number one for this, but I've gone for Furs. In 2001/02, already aged 33, he'd made just 17 appearances for Birmingham and scored three times. This was an increasingly injury-afflicted career on the wane. He'd already had one loan spell at QPR under Gerry Francis ended by his lack of fitness and although he scored on his second debut, a home win against Chesterfield on day one, he couldn't get going at Loftus Road and soon incurred the wrath of the boo-boys as results took a downward turn.
Holloway went looking for alternatives — Brett Angell, Callum Willock — as Furlong came in and out of fitness and form without ever scoring. When the R's capped a horrific November and December with a 3-0 loss at Notts County, Furlong sarcastically applauded the fans behind the goal who were queuing up to pelt him. A Christmas sending off in defeat at Tranmere looked like the end but a solid January on the training ground paved the way for four goals in as many games through February. Furlong didn't look back, or stop scoring, for the next two and a half years. He scored 11 in the remaining 20 games that season, securing hero status with the winner against Oldham in the play-off semi final.
He bagged 16 the following season culminating in a wonderful goal on the turn at Hillsborough the day Rangers were finally promoted. Incredibly, now heading towards 37, Furlong got 18 goals and top scored for Rangers in the second tier. Reading and others started showing an interest in actually buying him. A career, and club, reborn and rejuvenated. A spell that began with him as a pariah ended with him a modern day club legend.
QPR 2000, 2002-2007 >>> 149 starts (34 sub apps) >>> 58 goals
2 — Kevin Gallen
Although QPR responded well to an almost total transformation of their squad post relegation in 2001, winning the opening two matches against Stoke and Bury, things had inevitably slipped rather as the nights drew in. Four straight defeats through October - including a Football League Trophy hammering at Yeovil, a 4-1 loss at Peterborough when Danny Shittu was sent off on his debut and a 1-0 home loss to bogey side Northampton — preceded a poor home defeat to Tranmere and a televised 4-0 embarrassment in the FA Cup at Swansea City who were then in the division below.
But the post match at the Vetch Field was weirdly optimistic, as news spread around the terrace that QPR's original boy-wonder Kevin Gallen would be returning to the club after an unhappy stint at Barnsley. Gallen's back-to-goal game made Rangers tick immediately, and the lift his return gave the club was palpable. It took just three days to turn the Swansea performance into a 4-0 home win against Swindon with Gallen scoring the third before half time. Rangers would lose only five of their remaining 28 games and while they'd left themselves too much to do for the play-offs that year they went to the Millennium Stadium 12 months later and won promotion year after that.
Gallen's arrival, followed later by Lee Cook and Marc Bircham, was part of a concerted effort from Holloway to tug on the heartstrings of QPR players who should never have been dropping down to that level but wanted to play for their club. All three became key members of the team as it established itself back in the Championship. Gallen later reinvented himself as a ball-playing central midfield player. It was also the first occasion a bad run of form was snapped with another signing, with number three on this list coming a year later…
QPR 1992-2000, 2001-2007 >>> 348 starts (66 sub apps) >>> 104 goals
3 — Lee Cook
As with Gallen the season before, the arrival of Lee Cook brought a talented player a level lower than he ever should have been because of his love for the club at the perfect time for the team. Gallen revitalised Rangers after a bad run of results in 2001/02, and when Cook arrived 12 months later — initially on loan from Watford — it was even worse. A winless run of 11 games including the infamous defeats to Cardiff, Notts County and Vauxhall Motors, as well as the failure to beat nine-man Luton, had Holloway on the brink.
Cook, who'd been picked up by Watford from Aylesbury, arrived on loan prior to a West London showdown with Brentford. These were the days before Cook had discovered sun beds, or a comb, or the gym, but the moon-faced youngster wasted little time in making an impact and he was key in a rot-stopping 1-1 draw with the Bees. His three-month loan ended 17 matches, and just three defeats, later with a Man of the Match display and goal in a 4-1 home win against Cheltenham. He attended the play-off final as a fan and subsequently signed permanently a year later as QPR's one big outlay following promotion.
He developed into a superb left winger with a devilish cross on him and eye for a spectacular goal. He handed his signing on fee back to QPR when he left for Fulham for £2.5m in 2009 and it's a tragic shame that a knee injury meant he never had the chance to make an impact in the Premier League. Subsequently returned for a less-successful second spell in W12 but by the end of his first, under Gary Waddock and John Gregory, he was carrying the whole team with him.
QPR 2002-2003, 2004-2007, 2008-2012 >>> 170 starts (26 sub apps) >>> 13 goals
4 — Martin Rowlands
Brentford hated Rowlands for jumping ship on a free transfer prior to the 2003/04 campaign, but his arrival and that of Gareth Ainsworth on the opposite wing added two fantastic players to a QPR team that had already gone close to promotion in the play-offs the previous year. As heartbreaking as the Millennium Stadium defeat was, the team was much better prepared for the step up a year later and Rowlands was a big part of that.
A typical Mel Johnson signing, picked up for no money at all while few other people were talking about him only for him to be an almost instant hit. A typical Ian Holloway signing, picked up regardless of a broken leg suffered towards the end of the previous year and therefore indebted to the manager for sticking by him. He arrived a fleet-footed, goal scoring winger — announcing his arrival with a brace in a League Cup upset at Sheff Utd and a fabulous solo goal in injury time at Wrexham (below). He scored 14 goals as Rangers were promoted but later switched to a commanding, box-to-box central midfielder who was one of the best in the Championship before a series of knee injuries killed his career just as he'd broken into the Republic of Ireland squad.
A wonderful signing who served Rangers brilliantly for just shy of ten years. Terrific footballer.
QPR 2003-2012 >>> 198 starts (19 sub apps) >>> 37 goals
5 — Steve Palmer
I was going to be cute and put Kenny Jackett here — his arrival from Watford as Holloway's assistant with the club in administration in summer 2001 proved pivotal as he added experience and tactical knowledge to Ollie's enthusiasm. He brought with him chief scout Mel Johnson and a trio of Watford players — goalkeeper Chris Day, midfielder Alex Bonnot and most importantly defender Steve Palmer.
Holloway's faith in Palmer could be infuriating. Superb Moroccan international Aziz Ben Askar should have been picked far more often than he was, and Palmer was never a central midfielder despite Ollie's attempts to crow-bar him in there. But Palmer's experience, intelligence and calmness made him an ideal signing, and a brilliant captain, for a QPR team being thrown together in chaotic times. That influx of Hornets was key to QPR's success over those three seasons.
QPR 2001-2004 >>> 130 starts (13 sub apps) >>> 10 goals
Others >>> Marc Bircham and Gareth Ainsworth we've already mentioned but how about Gino Padula, who Holloway hardly used for the first six months of his time at Loftus Road but later became a cult figure and a key reason the club went on such a momentum-building run for the 18 months that followed his return to the side. Likewise Danny Shittu, a Winton-funded signing who came to embody so much of what was good about those times. And Marcus Bignot, recently appointed as Grimsby manager, a much-loved character and very consistent utility back across two separate spells with the club.
1 — Jamie Cureton
This one should have been brilliant. A proper, QPR-style, off-the-shoulder number 10 whose goal scoring record has been brilliant just about anywhere he's been — 288 in 643 starts and 205 substitute appearances. He'd scored 25 times for Reading in the two seasons prior to moving to Loftus Road, but turned QPR down in the summer of 2003 and only joined midway through the 2003/04 promotion season once a lucrative move to South Korea to play for Busan Icons hadn't worked out. Problem was, having missed out on Cureton, Rangers had gone out and signed Tony Thorpe for that role instead, so didn't need the little Bristolian any more. Nevertheless, with a bucket collection originally intended to keep the club's head above water available to spend, Rangers had the cash to buy Cureton anyway in an attempt to get an already well-equipped team over the promotion line. Two late goals to seal a crucial 3-2 home win against Port Vale, including a memorable injury-time winner after Vale had equalised in the 90th minute themselves, arguably paid the money back on their own.
But with Thorpe impressing, Cureton was used more often than not as an out-of-position winger in the Championship and it didn't suit him at all. QPR took one of the second tier's best goalscorers of the modern era and completely neutered him. Except, that is, for games against Coventry — Cureton scored a fabulous hat trick, including one Marco Van Basten-like effort against the Sky Blues at Loftus Road and then netted against them again in a 2-1 win in the return fixture at Highfield Road. He eventually left Rangers with just seven goals to his name across 46 appearances, and four of those were against Coventry.
Naturally, when returned to the striker role he usually excelled in, he quickly banged in 24 goals in a strike-every-other-game ratio for Colchester as they punched above their weight in the Championship and got a money move back to Norwich where, again, he scored frequently. Given the money that was spent, where it came from, and how well Cureton did everywhere else — still getting into the 20s for Exeter and Dagenham recently as he's pushed past 40 years old — this was arguably the biggest flop.
QPR 2004-2005 >>> 23 starts (23 sub apps) >>> 7 goals
2 — Stefan Moore
The argument that Holloway's powers waned after Kenny Jackett and Mel Johnson left the club for Swansea and Spurs respectively is given plenty of weight by the next two players. First, Stefan Moore, who Ollie said could "chase paper bags in the park" when he signed from Aston Villa in the summer of 2005. A goal in injury time of his third appearance to seal a 2-1 win against Sheff Utd at Loftus Road promised much, but he would only go on to score twice more in 39 appearances for the club. Seemingly totally disinterested in all the games he featured in, Moore offered all the threat of a dead kitten and all the penetration of an impotent pensioner. He could perhaps argue that, like Cureton, he was often used wide rather than up front, but given that he'd been on loan at Chesterfield, Millwall and Leicester without scoring a goal beforehand, and subsequently went through spells at Kidderminster, Port Vale and Walsall scoring just four times I think it's actually quite likely that he's just not very good.
Has since made a living combining smashing non-league goalscoring records with taxi driving at Halesowen, St Neots, Brackley, Solihull and most recently Corby Town. A man at his level. There was even a suggestion at one point that Holloway had signed the wrong Moore by mistake, having allegedly gone for Stefan's brother Luke. Mind you, given how his career has gone, would he have done much better than his sibling?
QPR 2005-2007 >>> 21 starts (21 sub apps) >>> 3 goals
3 — Dean Sturridge
Moore was required because Holloway's previous attempt to add a goalscorer to his arsenal was in the process of failing as well. Dean Sturridge had only made 11 appearances, without scoring, in 2003/04 for Wolves, topped up with a further 11 apps and one goal in 2004/05 before QPR picked him up on deadline day that season. Gianni Paladini subsequently said (probably worth double sourcing) that Sturridge's old manager at Derby, Jim Smith, had advised Rangers to keep him on a short term contract so he had incentive to actually play. At Holloway's insistence, apparently, an 18 month deal was given to persuade him to move and he managed just six starts, and no goals, across that stint. Paladini also claimed in an interview with LFW that the club had performed only a very basic medical on the player because of the tightness to the transfer deadline, and went largely on the assurances of the physio at Wolves — who was probably just grateful to be getting rid of the tart.
QPR 2005-2006 >>> 6 starts (5 sub apps) >>> 0 goals
4 — Eric Sabin
While the addition of Martin Rowlands on one wing and Gareth Ainsworth on the other transformed Rangers from losing play-off finalists into automatic promotion winners, Ollie did drop a clanger elsewhere in the summer of 2003. Eric Sabin, a tall, rangey, French striker with a decent turn of pace, had terrorised QPR in a defeat at Swindon Town the previous season. Available on a free, Holloway fancied a bit of that on his side. The problem was, that County Ground show was a dog having its day. Sabin was beyond terrible for QPR, bar one magical moment when he appeared half a yard from goal, and several yards offside, to bang in an injury time winner at Grimsby Town — the R's first win in 17 attempts at Blundell Park. Was subsequently released to Northampton where he promptly scored in a 3-0 win for the Cobblers against Rangers in the League Cup. 'Twas ever thus.
QPR 2003-2004 >>> 6 starts (10 sub apps) >>> 1 goal
5 — Arthur Gnohere
When Danny Shittu ruptured his anterior cruciate ligament in the fifteenth minute of a defeat at Bournemouth (a game he nevertheless played through to its conclusion) Holloway said he wanted a "big ugly son of a bitch" to replace him for the promotion run in. Burnley's Arthur Gnohere was happy to oblige and seemed a reasonable shout as a physical defender with Championship experience. On the field he was accident prone, and his dressing room conduct was, allegedly, questionable. Fingers Gnohere was swiftly moved on when Shittu returned from that most serious of injuries after little more than six months.
QPR 2003-2005 >>> 21 starts (1 sub app) >>> 1 goal
Others >>> The old saying about kissing a lot of frogs to find your prince probably applies to Paul Furlong's success at QPR, because Olly did sign a fair number of terrible strikers during his time in charge. They included, but were not limited to, Fulham's Callum Willock on loan and former Everton target man Brett Angell who'd slipped seven Port Vale goals in 17 appearances through a tear in the fabric of reality prior to moving to Loftus Road where he was woeful. The memory of the two of them trying in vain to score in a 0-0 draw against nine man Luton Town is cold sweat in the night stuff. As is any mention of Ugo Ukah, who succeeded in making Sabin look good in that Norhampton game, and Warren Barton's inglorious trio of appearances at the end of his career.
1 — Sheffield Wednesday 1 QPR 3, Saturday May 8, 2004
The culmination of a three-year rebuild in the division below came on the final day of the 2003/04 season at Hillsborough. Despite losing fewer games, QPR had paid for their caution when taking leads in the second half of the season with too many draws allowing Plymouth to steal a march and win the title with a 2-0 victory against Rangers at Home Park three games from the end of the season. QPR now needed two wins to keep Bristol City away from second place and beat Swindon 1-0 at Loftus Road the week before. Full details of what happened next available here.
QPR: Camp; Edghill, Rose, Carlisle (Gnohere 45), Padula; Ainsworth, Johnson, Bircham, Rowlands (Cureton 81); Gallen, Furlong
2 — QPR 1 Oldham Athletic 0, Wednesday May 14, 2003
While Hillsborough was where the promotion was sealed, the pinnacle of the feel-good factor of the time came at the end of the previous season in QPR's first ever venture into the play-offs. Drawn with Iain Dowie's physical Oldham side — which included Fitz Hall, Clint Hill and formidable goalkeeper Les Pogliacomi — the R's had drawn in the north at the weekend but had Richard Langley, a key man in the team, sent off. Langley had also been red carded in a nothing Football League Trophy game earlier in the season meaning he had to sit out the second leg and the final at the Millennium Stadium. On a night when Loftus Road rocked like rarely before, and never since, Paul Furlong sprung the offside trap eight minutes from time to net a memorable winner. There was still time for a regular pantomime villain of the time, Wayne Andrews, to be dismissed, and for Chris Day to make a miraculous injury-time save from Hall's deflected shot amidst a goal mouth scramble. For atmosphere, that night will never be matched.
QPR: Day; Kelly, Carlisle, Shittu, Padula (Williams 70); Thomson (Pacquette 55), Bircham, Palmer, McLeod; Gallen, Furlong
3 — QPR 3 Plymouth Argyle 2, Saturday September 11, 2004
QPR started life at the higher level slowly, however. An opening day home draw with Rotherham, a shellacking at Watford, a creditable 2-2 draw at Sunderland, a defeat at home to Sheff Utd. Wins were hard to come by — Marcus Bean's handled goal for a 1-0 at Gillingham the only maximum initially. With Gianni Paladini and Antonio Caliendo investing in the club, the start of a process which saw it sadly moved away from the shrewd management of Mark Devlin and Bill Power, an unknown Argentinean, Ramon Diaz, was tapped up as a potential Holloway replacement. Gino Padula was even offered a contract in principal to be something of a go between for Diaz and the squad — something which came back to haunt Paladini when Holloway later tried to release Padula on a free only for the player to successfully take the club to court and win a six-figure sum.
Holloway needed wins fast. He got seven of them on the spin. It started with this home success against our regular foes at the time, Plymouth Argyle. Marc Bircham played through the pain barrier, Danny Shittu returned from his lay off, Paul Furlong scored twice including a braved lobbed effort and Kevin Gallen added what turned out to be a crucial third in the last minute. Rangers kept on winning — at Crewe and Brighton later that week, emphatically at home to Coventry and Leicester, in a blood bath at Stoke and at home to West Ham. They'd climbed to fourth in the table, but most importantly they'd saved their manager's job. Diaz subsequently turned up at Oxford.
QPR: Day; Bignot, Rose, Santos, Padula; Rowlands (McLeod 62), Bircham, Bean, Cook (Cureton 62); Gallen, Furlong
4 — QPR 3 Chelsea 1, Saturday July 28, 2001
I was going to go for the 1-0 home win against Stoke on the opening day of Holloway's first full season in charge, but prior to that there'd been a crazy pre-season where Rangers rattled through dozens of triliasts trying to rebuild a squad that had just five fit contracted players left from the end of the previous season. Some gems were missed — Martin Bullock went on to be a thorn in our side for Blackpool, Mamaday Sidibe scored against us in the FA Cup debacle at Swansea and would go on to play in the division above for Stoke — but a very decent team was assembled. One of those games brought our dear neighbours from Stamford Bridge to Loftus Road, with the likes of Marcel Dessailly and William Gallas now on board and Claudio Ranieri in the dugout. Leroy Griffths, a powerful but limited forward signed from Hampton, battered Desailly all afternoon and scored a fine goal in a 3-1 win that was followed by a pitch invasion. A week later in The Brackenbury, everybody who'd been so despondent beforehand was absolutely certain we'd win the league before a ball was even kicked and that led to wins against Stoke and Bury in the first two matches.
QPR: Day, Forbes, Palmer, Ben-Askar, Bruce, Perry, Peacock, Bonnot (Cochrane), Connolly (Walshe), Griffiths (Koejoe), Thomson
5 — Brentford 1 QPR 2, Saturday April 19, 2003
QPR hadn't played Brentford competitively since the 1960s but didn't lose any of six quick-fire league meetings during the Second Division years of Holloway's reign. A 1-1 draw at Loftus Road in the first meeting this season, with Marc Bircham scoring on Lee Cook's debut, stopped the autumn rot and began a turnaround that would last 18 months. By the time Rangers went to Griffin Park in April they were locked in a straight fight with Tranmere with the final play-off spot. The teams won consecutive games for what seemed like weeks but although Danny Shittu gave Rangers a lead in the derby, it looked like they'd have to settle for a draw going into stoppage time. News came through that Tranmere had got a late winner, again, at Notts County just as Gino Padula prepared to swing in a last-second corner. We all know what came next…
QPR: Day; Kelly, Shittu, Carlisle, Padula; Langley, Palmer, Bircham, McLeod; Gallen, Furlong
1 — QPR 1 Vauxhall Motors 1, Tuesday November 16, 2002
Arguably the most humiliating night in he history of the club. Amidst a dreadful autumn run of no wins from 12 games came two failed attempts to beat the semi-professional works team from Ellesmere Port. In difficult, high winds the R's drew the initial FA Cup First Round tie 0-0 at Chester City's Deva Stadium. When Andy Thomson subsequently gave Rangers the lead in Shepherd's Bush it looked like all would be well but Phil Brazier equalised immediately for the visitors who went on to take the game on penalties before making the long overnight coach journey back ready for work in the morning.
QPR: Digby; Forbes, Carlisle, Palmer, Padula (Connolly); Langley, Burgess (Oli), Bircham, Williams (Murphy); Thomson, Furlong
2 — Leeds United 2 QPR 0, Saturday February 4, 2006
Holloway's final game in charge came in February 2006 and, to be honest, was a bit of a mess. Havin thrown his hat in with Gianni Paladini during a messy takeover that saw former Brazilian World Cup winning captain Dunga fly into London especially to use his place non the board to vote out Bill Power and Mark Devlin, Holloway was left to rely on the Italian's notorious empty promises and dodgy transfer deals. Negative football, poor results and crowd unrest became a running theme of 2005/06. A dire performance and midweek home defeat by Leicester had Holloway on the brink of leaving and the team he fielded at Leeds that Saturday felt like a deliberate statement. Rangers gave five full debuts, three to players who never featured for the club again, and a sixth from the bench in a 2-0 defeat. Holloway was placed on gardening leave afterwards, ostensibly for speaking to Leicester about their vacant managerial position. Gary Waddock took charge and things got steadily worse from there. Fun pub quiz question for your pre-match Saturday, name the QPR team that day…
QPR: Barnes; Bignot, Shittu, Lowe, Taylor; Ainsworth (Nygaard 66), Kus (Langley 88), Lomas, Cook (Youssouff 66); Moore, Clarke
3 — Swansea City 4 QPR 0, Sunday November 18, 2001
As discussed earlier, a dire FA Cup First Round defeat, lie on Sky Sports, but an air of optimism around the place afterwards with news of Kevin Gallen's return spreading and sparking a 4-0 win against Swindon a few days later. Another quiz question of a team, and a goal from Mamady Sidibe who Rangers hadn't signed after a summer trial into the bargain.
QPR: Digby; Forbes, Palmer, Plummer, Bignot; Connolly, Perry (Burgess), Bonnot, Warren (Bruce); DouDou, Griffiths (Pacquette 75)
4 — Leeds United 6 QPR 1, Saturday November 20, 2004
There was something about Ian Holloway, Gianni Paladini and visits to Leeds. This one came a year before the final curtain call, when things were going brilliantly well. Rangers' seven match winning run had come to an end at the hands of refereeing nemesis Andy Hall at preston but subsequent victories against high-flying Wigan and Burnley had made it nine wins from 13 games. The run saw Holloway, stop me if you've heard this before, linked with Leicester ahead of the trip to Elland Road which he was originally due to miss because of ill-health. An argument with Paladini ensued and Holloway crawled off his sick bed, saw his team go 1-0 up through Gareth Ainsworth and then collapse.
QPR: Day; Bignot, Shittu, Santos, Rose (Padula 11); Ainsworth, Bircham, Gallen, McLeod (Bean 45); Cureton (Cook 45), Furlong
5 - Notts County 3-0 QPR, Saturday December 14, 2002
The previously discussed darkest moment of the 2002 autumn disaster, following the Vauxhall Motors loss, a 0-0 draw against nine-man Luton and a 4-0 home defeat to Cardiff came this abject surrender at Notts County.
QPR: Culkin; Forbes, Palmer, Carlisle, Murphy; Langley, Bircham, Rose (Thomson 72), Oli (Daly 60); Gallen, Angell (Furlong 60)
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