First-half goals from Luke Freeman, direct from a corner, and Tomer Hemed, from the penalty spot, gave QPR a comfortable 2-0 victory over dismal Town at Portman Road, where the Blues remain without a win in more than six months. Freeman curled his flag-kick over keeper Dean Gerken on 13 and Hemed netted from the spot in first-half injury time.

Town boss Paul Hurst named the same XI which started the 3-2 win, the Blues' first of the season, at Swansea a fortnight ago.

That saw Matthew Pennington again at right-back and Janoi Donacien on the left with Jonas Knudsen on the bench, which was also unchanged from the trip to the Liberty Stadium.

Skipper Luke Chambers was over the illness which a number of players had suffered from during the last week and took his usual role at the centre of the defence, while Grant Ward, who we understand was the mystery pre-match injury doubt, was also in the XI.

QPR, wearing a lurid pink away kit, made two changes from the team which drew 1-1 at home with Derby prior to the international break with Hemed and Pawel Wszolek replacing one-time Town trialist Nahki Wells and Jordan Cousins, who dropped to the bench.

The visitors, kicking towards the Sir Alf Ramsey Stand, had the best of the opening few minutes but without creating a chance, although former Blues loanee Massimo Luongo blazed well wide following a corner on eight.

Three minutes later, Rangers went closer when Hemed headed over from another flag-kick.

The West Londoners threatened again on 13 when Wszolek got on to Chambers’s header back towards Gerken as they chased a ball down the right but the keeper saved the Polish international’s shot from a tight angle.

However, directly from the corner the visitors took the lead. Freeman curled the ball in under the bar and Gerken was unable to get enough on it to turn it over.

Town found themselves behind before they had got going via another very preventable goal.

The visitors continued to have most of the ball and make all the running with the Blues unable to string anything together until the half-hour mark when a long spell of passing, largely orchestrated by Andre Dozzell, ended with Gwion Edwards whipping over a cross which was beyond any of his team-mates.

Moments later at the other end, a loose Nsiala pass gave the ball to Wszolek, who broke into the area before his shot was blocked.

Town were showing signs of finally making some headway, however, and they might have levelled on 35. Chalobah broke forward into the right of the box and cut back to an unmarked Ward, who mistimed his shot and the ball looped well wide.

But moments before the break the Blues found themselves 2-0 behind. After they had failed to clear another of Freeman’s corners from the right, the ball fell to Eberechi Eze, who tried to work himself space in the box before Nsiala slid in and upended him.

There was little doubt that it was a penalty and Hemed found the net from the spot with a low shot to Gerken’s left.

The whistle went within seconds to loud boos from the Portman Road crowd after a disastrous half from the Blues.

QPR started the stronger before being gifted their goal by they type of error which has been all to common from Town’s keepers and defence all season.

The Blues had started to get into the game and might have equalised through Ward - their only chance of the half - before QPR were handed their penalty and increased lead via Nsiala’s rash challenge.

QPR almost increased their lead within seconds of the restart. Eke’s boot appeared to be high as he took the ball off Chambers’s head just outside the box but referee Geoff Eltringham failed to whistle. Fortunately for Town Gerken had come off his line quickly and saved from the England U20 international.

QPR skipper Toni Leistner was shown the game’s first yellow card in the 53rd minute for a foul on Sears midway inside the visitors’ half. The freekick was in a potentially dangerous position but Ward’s ball into the box was easy for the QPR defence to deal with.

Four minutes later Wszolek shot from distance straight at Gerken, then on 59 Pennington made a strong run forward from deep and played a ball for Sears but the striker had strayed offside.

QPR keeper Joe Lumley was forced into his first save of the afternoon in the 61st minute to sarcastic cheers from some sections of the Sir Bobby Robson Stand.

Sears broke away on the left and sent a cross behind Edwards at the far post. Chalobah picked the ball up and sent it back in to Ward, whose header was too close to the QPR keeper to seriously trouble him.

Blues boss Hurst made a double change in the 66th minute with Ward and Edwards making way for Kayden Jackson and 18-year-old debutant Jack Lankester, the first player born in the 2000s to appear for the Town first team.

The subs got involved immediately, Jackson breaking away on the left of the box and sending the ball across towards Lankester on the edge of the six-yard box, however a defender cleared ahead of the youngster.

Three minutes later, Gerken saved from Hemed, then on 71 the visitors had another chance to wrap it up when the Blues made a dreadful mess of a freekick in a promising position and Eze was sent away on goal by QPR with Skuse just sliding in to dispossess the youngster as he prepared to shoot.

Former Wycombe Wanderers loanee Eze went closer to his side’s third goal of the game two minutes later, deftly chipping over Gerken from the edge of the box but seeing the ball bounce off the top of the bar and over.

Yet another loose Town pass, this time from Nsiala, gifted the ball to Eze inside the Blues half on 79 but the impressive youngster’s cross was cut out after he had broken into the area.

A third QPR goal was looking far more likely than a Town first but on 84 Sears sent in a low cross from the right which a visiting defender stabbed away from Jackson.

On 89 Lumley was forced to rush of his line to intercept Dozzell’s pass for Jackson to chase, then ran out of his area to complete the clearance before Josh Scowen replaced man of the match Eze.

The final whistle triggered more boos from the Portman Road faithful after probably the Blues’ worst performance of the season.

QPR were the better side from start to finish with Town on the back foot throughout aside from a couple of brief spells in the first half, all too often surrendering possession needlessly and often in dangerous areas.

They continued their season-long habit of gifting goals and in the end the two-goal margin flattered the home side with the visitors spurning a number of chances and Gerken making a couple of important saves.

At the other end, Ward’s first-half opportunity was the only real chance, set pieces in potentially threatening areas were wasted time and again and the result never looked in any doubt once Hemed had stroked home his penalty.

The defeat, the second at home this season, sees the Blues drop to bottom of the table level on points, goal difference and goals scored with Hull City, who climb above them having won the fixture between the sides last month.

Town next have back-to-back away games at Leeds, who are fourth, on Wednesday and at 22nd-placed Millwall next Saturday.

Town: Gerken, Pennington, Nsiala, Chambers (c), Donacien, Skuse, Chalobah, Edwards (Lankester 66), Dozzell, Ward (Jackson 66), Sears. Unused: Bialkowski, Knudsen, Nolan, Graham, Downes.

QPR: Lumley, Rangel, Leistner (c), Lynch, Bidwell, Cameron, Luongo, Freeman, Eze (Scowen 90), Wszolek, Hemed (Wells 72). Unused: Ingram, Hall, Cousins, Smith, Osayi-Samuel. Referee: Geoff Eltringham (County Durham). Att 18,345 (QPR: 1,338).

Photo: TWTD

CornardBlue added 21:04 - Oct 20 Please Evans sack him this weekend and no more bloody Yorkshire men.
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TheCurly added 21:05 - Oct 20 That was one of the worst displays I have seen from an Ipswich Town side, thankfully QPR were not much better than us otherwise it could easily have been a 8-0 drubbing. Like many on here I was of the opinion that it was time for McCarthy to go, his negative tactics and stubbornness, aligned to his falling out with the fans meant there was nowhere for him to go. I was relatively pleased with the appointment of Paul Hurst, although he was not my choice. I looked forward to the new season with renewed optimism, hoping to see some positive attacking football and the Town playing a new style of the pressing game. New players arrived and I hoped our new manager had unearthed some gems from the lower leagues. The season began slowly and I gave Paul Hurst the benefit of the doubt even though I did not approve of the sale of so many of our proven Championship strikers especially Waghorn. I hoped we would see a steady improvement as the new players bedded in and the squad adapted to the new style of play. There has been no improvement, no matter who the manager picks, the players look like a bunch of strangers playing together for the first time, we look shaky in defence, slow and ponderous in attack. Of the 10 new players only Edwards has shown anything like the quality required for sustained Championship football. It is now all too apparent that Paul Hurst's recruitment and tactics are nothing short of disastrous. I feel the only course of action is for him to be relived of his post forthwith and for Burley and Butcher to be installed as interim managers until the end of the season. The alternative my friends is Division 3 football and I'm sure none of us wants that

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Zondervanromeo added 21:05 - Oct 20 Feel hurst paying the price for not coming in with 6 games To go at end of last season could have got a good feel for what needed to be done
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warktheline added 21:09 - Oct 20 Without doubt in my lifetime Evans has been the worst thing to happen to Ipswich Town FC! As I said whilst waiting for McCarthy to decide when he was ready to leave ( what a ruddy joke ) it would take an almighty slice of good fortune for the right man to be appointed ! All out of luck folks, the slow lingering decline continues!.....for those still hankering over McCarthy, he is in large part responsible for our current predicament!.....explaining the reasoning behind this would be lost upon such people! Stagnancy eventually lends itself to diminution......go ask ‘fist pumping' Chambers, a true leader with a losing mentality !

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marinerswagepacket added 21:15 - Oct 20 utter crap , time to go Hurst and EVANS , club has been destroyed.....
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bluemay77 added 21:16 - Oct 20 Paul just go please you and Marcus have ruined the club we all love!!! You are out of your depth it was never going to work selling our best player from last year and basically overhauling the whole team so much go now so we can have half a chance of trying to avoid relegation which will happen if you stay any longer!!!!
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Kirbmeister added 21:36 - Oct 20 I see Marriott scored again for Derby. 36 goals since the start of last season. Clearly wasn't good enough for Town.
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GiveusaWave added 21:36 - Oct 20 Mostly agree with comments above... League 1 players...league 1 manager and league 1 bound.... Sometimes when a team is doing badly you can point at one or two players and say "we need improving in this area" etc. Not with this team...players are much of a muchness. Nobody particularly poor...just a mix of league 1 and league 2 standard... QPR predicted our tactics from the very start and were well set up to nullify our formation. It seems that our only change of tactics was to go to hoofing it forwards...with nobody up front strong enough to win the headers... We were very...very lucky to win at Swansea and should still be looking for our first win....

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Kirbmeister added 21:37 - Oct 20 I see Marriott scored again for Derby. 36 goals since the start of last season. Clearly wasn't good enough for Town.
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Geddis78 added 21:41 - Oct 20 For those calling on Evans to sell up, he already has said he would. Seriously though, who would buy our club? Be grateful for Evans. If he threw the towel in, it would be all over for our club. And in defence of Chambers, I think he has played well this year and always gives 100% in the shirt. Never understand why so many true Town fans get on his back. Warktheline, explain!

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RobsonWark added 22:00 - Oct 20 Geddis78 are you kidding me? Chambers has been the worst player over the last few years. He constantly gets caught out of position, constantly makes mistakes, I don't think I've ever seen him make a tackle (he runs back towards goal when a player takes him on), blames everyone else on the pitch when he makes a mistake! But hey, he talks a lot so deserves a place in the team each week (no mater that he doesn't even deserve to play non league football).

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Geddis78 added 22:13 - Oct 20 Robson Warktheline, you must be watching different games to me. No, he's not the greatest centre half in the country but nowhere near what you are accusing him of. He was decent again today. At leat he genuinely cares about the club like you and I do. And for those that marked me down about Evans, tell me, if you were a billionaire, would you buy a consistently loss making venture with few assets like Ipswich? Don't want to fall out, we are all hurting here. Wish I had an answer.

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TonyHumesIpswich added 22:18 - Oct 20 Poor poor poor game. Tactically inept, out-thought and played off the park. On another day QPR could have made this 8-0. I know a number of posters are calling for a new manager but whoever that manager is they will be working with these players who are nowhere near good enough. It'll be a miracle if we don't end up bottom.
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blueboy1981 added 22:21 - Oct 20 I hope the McCarthyites have taken note of how McGoldrick is performing this season, having been released from the MM regime, and being played consistently out of position - and now being played to his strengths. Check back - didn't I predict just that .... ??
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warktheline added 22:26 - Oct 20 Geddis, Chambers was,and still is part of the ‘cozy club'! The club has been stagnent for 5 years, as have been ‘mickites' such as Chambers, picking up easy money in the knowledge the owner himself has no desire for success or, even at minimum, progression ! He should have been first out the door after McCarthy, followed by Skuse and Knudsen ( the Dane who believed McCarthy's mediocracy was good enough for Ipswich ) Hurst's naivety is mind boggling, did you happen to see the photo of Chambers wrapping his arm over the ‘diminutive' Hurst after the fluke win in Swansea? Summed it up so me, the body language between the pair! It isn't a ‘boss divide player' relationship, it's a ‘buddy'relationship, Chambers again has his ‘feet under the table'......undroppable ! How do you think that impacts upon a changing room? Young players ( good enough or not ) realising the different dynamics between the ‘boss' and an ‘elite' hierarchy of players! These players ( elite ) have a ‘mediocre' mentality at best, and a ‘losing' mentality at worst! Chambers is a leader, but with a losing mentality. Hurst doesn't control the dressing room because he bought into the ‘cozy club'. He hasn't got McCarthy's presence or standing in game! The ‘writing was on the wall', when McCarthy moves on clubs generally ‘slide'....thus as a new manager you ‘clear out the old regulars' and start afresh.....unfortunately ( for Ipswich ) Hurst lost his ‘vision' early doors, and now sits ( jointing with some players ) on top of a pile of sh###!

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blueboy1981 added 22:27 - Oct 20 Geddis78 ........ have to agree with you ref Chambers, not the best of defenders as we all know, however I feel he was decent today, and had a tidy game - felt quite sorry for him to be honest - players around him out of position uneccessarily so, and some clearly not up to basic Championship standard. He should have Pennington in the centre with him, as a consistent pairing.

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FrankMarshall added 22:41 - Oct 20 Thought Chambers was solid today, it was the players playing out of position that were the issue. Bit too much doom and gloom here. Just ONE WIN and we could see ourselves be lifted out of the bottom 3. So there is hope still. Hurst just needs more time for the team to gel and show what they are truly capable of. In the post-match interview, Hurst made it clear that we were second favourite for relegation this season so it was always going to be a hard battle from the off. Surviving relegation is and was always the primary target for our club in my opinion. Too many people with too high expectations has created this issue. Coming 4th from bottom would be a major success for our club and if that happens I will be breaking out the champers and cheering. This was always going to be a transition period for our club. COYB!!

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runningout added 22:55 - Oct 20 optimism is a must even after watching sh*t v sh*tter.. embarrassing getting beat by a team led by the wally with the brolly
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Shotleytractor added 23:15 - Oct 20 Planning for league 2. The upsetting thing is I'm not sad. I as a kid I remember being upset at losing playoffs with Burley in charge, upset about relegation after we'd qualified for Europe the season before. All gone down hill since Jim was sacked. Had it with the club & won't watch another game until something drastically changes for the better. Bring back the pride of Anglia. Sadly Paul Hurst is the man to get you into league 1.

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ip6blue added 23:20 - Oct 20 I'm all for trying something different, thinking outside the box bringing in hungry league 1 / 2 players to develope but we need QUALITY mixed in. Quality requires investment to which ME must be accountable for. The championship has moved on, its at a different level both on and off the pitch. Technically superior overseas players are flooding in tho we seem to be casting our net closer to home. The team as it is collectively isn't good enough. Something just hasn't felt right since the Evans era began, his business head maybe there but his footballing heart isnt. Forget a 5 point plan it's about the here and now, what happens in the future will happen. Young players will rise some pros will fall. I believe the league this season was there for the taking. Just sadly not for us.

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osseyseleven added 23:45 - Oct 20 EVANS MUST GO................nothing will change at our club while he is owner........clueless , amateur , no idea about football , he is either just messing around with our club or hasn't got the money to even make us competitive in the Championship.........you don't have to be a football genius to realise if you get a non league manager in and buy a load of overpriced untested league one players you end up in league one ..........did anyone else honestly believe the outcome would be any different. It's so obvious and boring.........we are all witnessing the slow death of ITFC Under EVANS

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Minneapolis_ITFC added 01:20 - Oct 21 It would be too easy to criticize the team and management on the back of today's loss even taking into account game report and reaction, point being I don't get as close to the action as some others or may miss relevant incidents and viewpoint. However there's enough there to suggest it was another sorry ass afternoon and the team didn't show enough commitment and were beaten by an opposition who themselves were far from glorious. Feel sorry for Hurst, realize there's those who can't take to him and view him as an inconvenience but he's clearly someone who's finding it hard to adapt to a new challenge. Not much else to add to this issue. End position in the League, 1 win in 13 League Games, and an early FA Cup exit and mid-league finish to look forward to. I wish I could be more hopeful but been with it long enough now to realize what feasibly lies ahead. Would vehemently wish for the owners departure but realize this is ultimately a futile endeavor.

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aas1010 added 01:23 - Oct 21 Just go ! Just go now before you totally ruin this club ! Take Evans with you .. worst manager ever !!! Go go go go
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BrettenhamBlue added 03:02 - Oct 21 We were second best and have been all season even against the poorer sides. I believe we will struggle next season in league 1. Unlike Shotleytractor, I do think we will stay up in league 1 next season but it will be a close call. Poorest Ipswich side I've seen in my living memory. Meanwhile Norwich go from strength to strength and look like promotion contenders which adds salt in the wound. Bad times at PR and feel sorry in advance to the next manager, squad is clearly a mess.

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Gandj64 added 05:48 - Oct 21 What a great number of posters don't realise is that for Evans to go he needs to find a buyer ??? He is not going to give the club away for nothing ? I am sure we owe him a great deal of money, given that we were so close to administration? If you know anyone who wants to buy a club that's on its knees, please let us all know ? Even Ed Sheeran with his considerable wealth would not be so foolish ! So please just be patient and get behind the team.....the ‘Evans must go' mantra is understandable but naive, because it won't happen until we find an interested buyer !

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