1 min
QPR left it late to keep their slim Championship Play-Off hopes alive with a 1-0 win over Derby County which also condemned the Rams to relegation as results elsewhere went against them.
Luke Amos thought he had opened the scoring after ten minutes but was adjudged to be offside after beating Derby keeper Ryan Allsop following Lyndon Dykes’ flick-on.
Derby then went close when Luke Plange headed Tom Lawrence’s drilled free-kick over from close range.
The start of the second-half saw QPR’s Ilias Chair and Dykes both test Allsop before Nathan Byrne should have done better with a low effort at the other end.
Derby, knowing only a victory would keep their survival hopes alive, pushed men forward with QPR exploiting the space at the back to seal the win on the counter-attack.
With just two minutes remaining, Dykes calmly picked out Amos to drill the ball past Allsop for a winner before Derby’s Tom Lawrence was sent off in injury time for a second bookable offence.
Key Points
Check out all the key talking points and reaction from London Football Scene below…
Key Moment
Luke Amos’ late goal could be crucial at both ends of the table – condemning Derby to relegation while keeping QPR’s slim Play-Off hopes alive.
Moan of the Match
There was a lack of attacking intensity throughout for QPR with not enough forward runs off-the-ball being made.
Talking Point
Performances like this won’t be enough to get QPR into the top-six, so how can they improve in their last three matches to ensure they still stand a chance?
Man of the Match
Luke Amos – looked the most likely QPR player to make anything happen and netted the crucial late goal.
Tweet of the Match
Referee Watch
Josh Smith (Bedfordshire) – largely consistent and made the right call to send Tom Lawrence off for a second bookable offence in stoppage time.
Atmosphere
The Derby fans made all the noise throughout until the late goal, with the home fans just about seeing their team over the line.
Verdict
QPR will need to have more intensity to have a chance of reaching the Play-Offs, while Derby did not create enough to really punish them.
