 Tuesday, 9th Feb 2010 08:50 Town begin their four-match run of away games with a trip to increasingly struggling QPR (KO 8pm). Boss Roy Keane will be looking for three points to take his side away from their current precarious position of 21st in the table, one point off the bottom three. Keane was happy enough with Saturday’s display as the Blues racked up their 15th draw of the season — their record-equalling ninth at home - but was unhappy that Town continue to surrender leads: “I was quite relaxed after Saturday. I was positive with the team’s performance and the efforts of the players. “We’re very, very disappointed with the position in the league, but in terms of the way we’ve generally been playing and the effort and the spirit of the players, I’ve been delighted. But what we haven’t done, and what we’ve been guilty of all season, is finishing the job off. “I can go back to loads of games where we’ve been in winning positions or comfortable positions and we haven’t killed it off in terms of getting a second or third goal, whether it was the Middlesbrough game the other day, West Brom when we had opportunities or others. “Against the good teams like the West Broms and the Middlesbroughs and against Forest earlier in the season, if you don’t get the second goal then you’re heading for trouble.” Keane was pleased with new loan strike pairing David Healy and Daryl Murphy against Boro: “They had a very good first 20-odd minutes. It was a dream start for both of them, but we knew it was going to be a tough ask for them to contribute over the 90 minutes. “We were delighted with the two of them and they had an impact. I think it’s important for a striker like Murph to get off the mark and hopefully he’s up and running now, and over the next week or two I hope David scores. “Just as important was how they contributed in terms of their efforts off the ball and how they contributed in terms of the team performance. That’s what you want from your strikers, but ultimately they have to score goals for us.” The Blues boss says fringe members of his squad are pushing for places: “Some of the other lads have been doing really well in training, people like Pablo, Quinner and I left Jaime out the other day. There are players there ready and willing to come into the team and hopefully I’ll get it right on Tuesday night.” Keane could make one or two changes to his side but not too many at the back. Peters may come in at left-back for David Wright, who was subbed on Saturday, with Liam Rosenior continuing on the right and Gareth McAuley and Damien Delaney in the centre. Arran Lee-Barrett will keep his place in goal with the Blues boss expecting Brian Murphy to play in goal for the reserves at Norwich on Wednesday afternoon. Jon Walters will probably continue on the right side of midfield after making a surprise return from his hamstring injury at the weekend, although Keane, speaking on Monday morning, said his influential skipper’s fitness will be assessed before a decision is made on his inclusion at QPR: “Ideally I didn’t want him to play as many minutes but Jon’s an important player for us. When he’s out on that pitch he leads and he’s just as important in the dressing room. “He’s OK, but we’ll see how he pans out of the next 24 hours. I probably won’t pick my team until Tuesday morning anyway to give the lads who haven’t played much football another 24 hours to see how they recover, the same with David Healy and Daryl Murphy.” Owen Garvan could come back into the side, either in the centre or the left, with David Norris perhaps rested for Town’s second game in four days having only recently returned from his long-term knee injury. Grant Leadbitter with continue in the centre with Jack Colback taking the remaining midfield role. David Healy may drop out having featured very rarely for Sunderland this season with Pablo Couñago perhaps partnering Daryl Murphy, the Irishman having played a greater part for the Black Cats than his Saturday strike partner. Keane says the visit to Loftus Road is the start of a vital spell of four away games for the Blues: “It’s certainly an important period coming up for the players and the club and we need to try and get some victories. “We’ve got three of the teams down there at the bottom. It’s a good test for us but I think that’s what life’s about anyway. I’m looking forward to it. “We’re going find a lot out about the club over the next three of four weeks, whether it’s the players, the staff, the supporters or me as a manager. We’re looking forward it. There’s nothing to fear out there, we’ve got to go out and give it our best and see where that takes us.” The Town manager says he has never known a season with so many draws with the Blues on target to break the Football League record of 23 held by Norwich, Exeter, Hartlepool and Cardiff: “It’s very, very strange the amount of draws we have had. I’ve never experienced anything like that and I’m not sure any of the players have. “If we’d turned half of those draws into victories we’d be having a different conversation.” Keane says QPR will be looking to get back to form after their Saturday defeat to table-propping Peterborough: “They had a disappointment at Peterborough, but if you’re in their shoes, you’re thinking that Ipswich have won one game away in the league all season. They’ll be thinking it’s a great way to bounce back. “As I say our performances at home have been very good, but our last two away performances have been very, very disappointing, so we need to do better. We need to look at the squad, where it might need freshening up for Tuesday and we’ll be having a right go.” Town’s only injury concern, aside from long-term absentees Richard Wright and Luciano Civelli (both knee), is midfielder Lee Martin, who damaged hamstring in a recent reserve match and is out for another seven to 10 days more. Keane admits that the summer signing from Manchester United has not yet made an impression since his move: “It’s not happened for Lee. He’s had one or two injuries, but he’s a talented boy and he’ll have to come through that.” The Blues boss says the mental side of the game will be important in the next few weeks and the long run of away matches: “We have good players but what we’ll find out over the next few weeks won’t be about good players, it’ll be about good characters.” Rangers, currently sitting 14th in the table, four points and seven places above the Blues, are without a win since beating Bristol City 2-1 at home on Boxing Day, losing five and drawing two of the games since. Their home record this season stands at won four, drawn six and lost three. The side currently managed by Mick Harford will be without on-loan Town striker Tamás Priskin, who is unavailable against the Blues, and Peter Ramage and Mikele Leigertwood, who were both sent off in the 1-0 defeat to Peterborough at the weekend. Harford says they should put that result behind them and get their play-off push back on the rails, having dropped to eight points from sixth: "I've said to the players you can't worry about what's happened, and what has gone against us, we've got to stick together. "We'll be up for the Ipswich game, looking to get three points to get our season back on track and try to claw those eight points back." Midfielders Martin Rowlands and Gavin Mahon are both long-term absentees with knee problems. Damien Delaney joined the Blues from QPR in the summer, while Kevin Lisbie, currently with Colchester, made one start and one sub appearance during a loan spell at Loftus Road back in 2000/01, failing to score. Tamás Priskin joined the Rs on loan from Town last week and made his debut in the 1-0 defeat at Peterborough at the weekend but is unavailable for tonight’s match due to a clause in the deal. Former Blue Marcus Bent also joined Rangers on loan last week, from Birmingham City. Town have won 27 of the previous encounters between the sides (25 in the league), Rangers 21 (19) and 18 (17) have ended in draws. Just after Christmas, two goals from Jon Stead and one from Jon Walters gave the Blues a comfortable 3-0 home victory over QPR, who were then managed by Paul Hart. Town will be looking to emulate last season’s double over the West Londoners, the Portman Road match ending 2-0 with Jon Stead netting both goals and the Loftus Road game finishing 3-1 to Town with Stead, Pablo Couñago and Jon Walters hitting back after Samuel Di Carmine had put the home side ahead early on. Prior to tonight's game there will be a minute's silence for QPR's honorary life president Harold Winton, who died on Monday night after a long battle with cancer. Tonight’s referee is Fred Graham from Essex, who has shown 43 yellow and five red cards in 18 games so far this season. Graham’s last Town game was the 2-1 home victory over Blackpool at Portman Road in February 2008 in which he kept his cards in his pocket. Squad from: Lee-Barrett, B Murphy, Rosenior, Peters, D Wright, Delaney, McAuley, Balkestein, Leadbitter, Norris, Garvan, Colback, Quinn, Walters, Edwards, D Murphy, Healy, Stead, Couñago.
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