TOMMY Smith could be in hot water with his dad if Rangers beat Newcastle United on tonight.

The QPR winger is a boyhood supporter of the Magpies because of his Geordie father.

Smith, who is likely to start on the bench for the Loftus Road clash, admits it was one of the first fixtures he looked for when they were released almost three months ago.

He said: "Obviously I'm looking forward to facing the likes of Manchester United and Arsenal, but also Newcastle, who I supported as a boy.

“Even though I was from the South, my dad was a Geordie so I followed them."

Smith is desperate to improve on the unwanted record of having played in the Premier League three times - only to be relegated on every occasion.

The 31-year-old dropped out of the top-flight with Watford, in 2000 and 2007, and Portsmouth two seasons ago.

But he insists the new-look QPR side have a better chance of Premier League survival.

“All three situations were different," said Smith.

“The first time I was only 18 or 19 the first time I got relegated with Watford.

“Everyone was disappointed when we went down but no one was too fazed by it because Watford had always been in the Championship or League One.

“The second time with we probably weren't ready to be in the top flight. We never thought we would be challenging that year and got promoted out of the blue.

“When I signed for Portsmouth I thought the club was in a good position. However, we didn't get paid for two months and the club ended up in administration.

“I feel I signed under false pretences, so that was hard to take. With the problems going on off the pitch, it was difficult trying to keep focused on it.

“But if you look at the squad we have here we should stay up. With Jay Bothroyd and DJ Campbell up front there's definitely goals in our team, and although I don't think we'll be challenging for Europe, hopefully we'll have a good year.

“I'm desperate to stay up and not have another relegation on my CV."

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