QPR deservedly claimed a first win since March 9 when they edged past Sheffield Wednesday in an opening-day thriller.
Both sides scorned a hatful of chances in an end-to-end game. Wednesday hit the post with Rangers hanging on, but the surprise was a scoreline of only three when there could have been six plus.
Perhaps, the biggest surprise came before a ball was kicked.
What odds Joey Barton and Ali Faurlin getting a start? One pining a move from Loftus Road, the other wearing squad number 32 and seemingly just as distant in Harry Redknapp’s thoughts.
But the recuperating manager dug his crutches a little deeper into the dugout gravel when Andy Johnson was an inch away with a low deflected shot, and the striker, also no recent stranger to knee problems then saw a piledriver fisted away by Chris Kirkland in the space of a minute.
Armand Traore was another an eye-opener on the team sheet, but was in the right place to shepherd a ball away as Atdhe Nuhiu threatened.
Neither the Rs left-back nor anyone else saw the danger when the Wednesday new boy cut inside from the right and guided a low left-foot shot past Green for 0-1.
Junior Hoilett was in the right place at back post as he met a delicious curler from Danny Simpson, but under pressure, succeeded only in thumping into the away fans.
On the same spot arriving via a glanced header this time, Bobby Zamora doesn’t want to see a repeat of the miss that saw the forward control, but then hit a point-blank shot against Kirkland.
But the equaliser followed pretty quickly.
The dangerous Hoilett darted inside and drove what looked suspiciously like a shot only to provide a tap-in for Nedum Onuoha lurking five yards out.
Hoilett again started the move for the second with a chip met by Barton’s header, parried by Kirkland and falling kindly for Johnson to volley into the empty net.
Four minutes into the second half, the pass of the game from Barton, 60 yards and counting, picked out Hoilett on the left.
The winger cleverly sidestepped two defenders, but his seven-yard thumper again hammered the spread Kirkland rather than the net.
How Wednesday missed 30 seconds later needs Michail Antonio to own up.
Left free in the centre to connect with a cross from six yards after the opposition swept down the right, the winger only got a sidefoot underneath the ball that saw it fly over the bar.
Whatever else, that man Barton is rarely far from controversy.
Seconds after he earned a deserved yellow for a late tackle, the midfielder got the rub of the green when he stuck out a leg to see sub Jacques Maghoma fall over it. Penalty? No. Yellow card to the disbelieving forward for simulation.
When the booked forward took aim from the left and whacked the base of the post, and even though sub Charlie Austin just missed with a guided header over the bar, it was round one to Rangers.
QPR: 4-4-2: GK: Green, RB: Simpson, CD: Onuoha, CD: Hill, LB: Traore; RM: Faurlin, CM: Barton (Wright-Phillips 80), CM: Henry, LM: Hoilett (Jenas 88); FW: Johnson, Zamora (Austin 69); subs: Murphy, Derry, Dunne, Yun
