McCLAREN HAILS QPR’S CHARACTER
STEVE McClaren claimed his side’s Championship draw at Hull was a huge result for the club and players.
QPR fought back after conceding two Jarrod Bowen goals to earn a share of the points at the KCOM Stadium, courtesy of second-half strikes from Josh Scowen and Tomer Hemed.
McClaren admitted he had struggled to lift his players following the midweek home defeat by Rotherham United, but praised their spirit after they earned a point in their bid to stay clear of the relegation zone.
McClaren said: “That was huge. We beat Leeds United two weeks ago and I thought that result was a turning point.
“We have been disappointing in the past three games. After being beaten with the last header of the game on Wednesday, on Thursday it was very difficult to lift the players.”
McClaren was disappointed to see his side trail at the halftime interval against Hull, but pleased they did not give in.
He added: “We said at halftime we need to win the second half. Once we equalised we could have gone on and won the game. The key was our character. It’s a result that we have to take advantage of in the next eight games.”
McClaren and Hull head coach Nigel Adkins were in agreement that Bowen shone on a dull day which saw just over 11,000 fans turn up. McClaren said: “We couldn’t cope with the boy Bowen. What a good player. They have got a real gem in him.”
Bowen raced through on to a ball over the top after just five minutes, but his low shot forced a save from Joe Lumley. But he could not deny Bowen a minute later as the winger cut inside Jake Bidwell from Kamil Grosicki’s pass and fired low into the opposite corner of the goal.
Bowen claimed his 21st goal of the season just before the break, collecting a ball from Grosicki to the far post from, before cutting inside his marker again and repeating his shot across goal, this time from a shorter distance.
Just before the hour Hull nearly grabbed a third and, for once, Bowen fluffed his lines.
QPR were back in the game shortly after as substitute Scowen beat David Marshall with a scuffed effort into the corner of the goal.
Just as it looked like Hull had done enough to secure the win QPR equalised with six minutes to go. Substitute Hemed poked home from close range four minutes after coming on.
Bowen also drew praise from Adkins, who said: “We have got off to a great start. What a great goal from Jarrod.”
Adkins was not happy with either goal his team conceded, but felt his players were let down by the officials. “We had said before the game how important it was to go and win it,” added Adkins.
“The first goal it should have been a free-kick in the build-up. The second goal, the ball has gone out, but the linesman can’t see it because he is not up with play. Our centre-half is appealing for it and they score. I am so frustrated that we put ourselves in a position to win the game and we have only got a point.”