An uninspiring first half was followed up by a second half lacking fight and character as QPR were comfortably beaten by Derby County.

The defeat made it 16 games without a win on the road, and based on last night's evidence, it could be a while longer before the run comes to an end.

But what were the main talking points to arise? Grab yourself a coffee and buckle in as I try to to dissect what went wrong.

5-4-1: A system for winning?

A trip to face Derby was never going to be an easy one for QPR, but the set-up on the night seemed prepared for damage limitation.

Struggling for options, Holloway opted for a 5-4-1 formation in the first half, and with little to show going forward, it became evident fairly early on that a 0-0 was a suitable target for the evening.

The game-plan worked for 44 minutes, but a defensive lapse in stoppage time gave Derby a lead, throwing the play-book out of the window and forcing QPR to chase the game; something which they frankly never did.

Ollie changed the system numerous times on the second period to no avail, and it's looking increasingly likely that Holloway has run out of ideas for developing a winning formula.

One more for the injury pile

It wasn't long ago that Joel Lynch was brought back into the team after injury, but it appears he's heading back to the treatment room.

The defender suffered a foot injury against the Rams, and with Holloway hinting that he's likely to miss the clash with Brentford, it makes QPR's defensive option particularly sparse.

Ollie hinted at bringing youth into his squad for Monday night, with the likes of Giles Phillips or Niko Hamalainen the front-runners to come into the fold due to the Hoops only having three fit first team defenders; none of whom are centre-backs.

A thankless task for Wheeler

The former Exeter City man went largely unnoticed against Derby, but in fairness to him it never looked like a game for him to prosper.

Lining up as a lone striker, Wheeler looked isolated up top with Mackie and Ngbakoto not being even nearly close enough to him, meaning you could pretty much count his touches of the ball on one hand.

Wheeler provides a particular set of skills which includes his work-rate and a burst of pace, but neither of these can be utilised effectively as a lone striker, meaning his chances of making an impression were always slim.

Hopefully Wheeler will get another chance in a system which plays to his strength.

Hoops at rock-bottom?

The poor defending which allowed Derby to take the lead was frustrating to say the least, but that was by no means the worst part.

As soon as that goal went in, you could see the wind falling out of the QPR sails, as all eleven players came to the realisation that they would have to claw their way back into the game.

The second half was lacking in fight, passion and quality, with QPR practically throwing in the towel on 53 minutes when the Derby lead was doubled.

This wasn't something we've seen so far this season; and that is a huge concern.

Confidence in the squad seems to be at rock-bottom at present, and it appears that Monday's clash with the Bees could be make-or-break for the Hoops morale.

The biggest match of the season?

Everyone loves a west London derby, but after last night the clash with Brentford seems to have kicked up a notch.

It may not be a must-win at this stage of the campaign, but it has to be a must-not-lose.

With confidence around QPR at a season-low, a defeat against the Bees could be catastrophic for the club, and so attention must now turn to righting the wrongs of the last few weeks and allowing the team to play with confidence to inject some life into Loftus Road next week.

Have a listen to our QPR podcast: Spirit of 67 where we dissect what went wrong in QPR's 2-0 defeat to Derby County.