QPR's Clint Hill sees off Leeds United as Austin hits bar at the death
Paul Doyle
Queens Park Rangers are entitled to savour scruffy successes after last season's lavish bungling. This was their dullest performance in a campaign in which they have yet to shine but Clint Hill's late goal enabled them to leave a daunting away assignment with a victory and the conviction that they have set out strongly on their journey back to the bright lights of the Premier League.
"I don't think we got the ball down and played as we can but we kept the clean sheet, got the win at a very difficult place and are still unbeaten so we are very pleased," said Rangers' assistant manager, Kevin Bond.
Harry Redknapp remains hopeful of recruiting further before the transfer window closes but he can be satisfied that here he received further evidence that the side he has assembled possess the spirit and steeliness that were seldom seen last season. Inspiration remains rare but there is no lack of perspiration.
"The atmosphere around the dressing room is totally different [to last season] and you can see that everybody is fighting for the cause," Bond said.
The same could be said of Leeds and ultimately the difference between the sides was that the visitors got the basics right while the hosts defended one free kick badly in the 75th minute to allow Hill to slam the ball into the net from close range.
Redknapp had devoted much of the buildup reminiscing about the formidable Leeds teams of the past, which was fitting given that kick-off coincided with the 50th anniversary of the Leeds debut of Johnny Giles. What followed seemed a backwards tribute to the Irishman, the total absence of guile and class serving to highlight his greatness.
Unlike Giles, the first half was instantly forgettable. It takes painstaking excavation of the mind to recall that Shaun Wright-Phillips twice managed to outjump opponents and aim soft headers towards goal. Beyond those curious fragments of action, the first period was a stupefying sprawl of sterile passing and plodding. The one flourish of skill – a nicely disguised Gary O'Neil pass followed by a neat finish by Joey Barton – was nullified by an incorrect flag for offside.
The second half brought moderate improvement, though it was an errant pass by Stephen Warnock that presented Charlie Austin with a chance for his first goal since joining QPR from Burnley for £4m five games ago. The striker took the ball too close to the goalkeeper Paddy Kenny, who charged down his shot.
Ross McCormack's decision to sign a new contract despite being courted by Middlesbrough has been Leeds's biggest piece of business this summer – though Brian McDermott says he is hopeful of signing a new winger before the deadline – but the Scotland international struggled to make an impact.
He should, however, have been given a penalty in the 55th minute when Danny Simpson handled the ball from his header. It did not look a calculated offence but the defender's negligence was punishable.
The match seemed to be toddling towards a draw until Barton delivered a free-kick from the left 15 minutes from the end. Amid panic in the Leeds defence Kenny fumbled the ball and Hill, the trusty 34-year-old left-back, announced himself as an unlikely predator.
Facing their first defeat of the season, Leeds did not lie down. Dominic Poleon and Scott Wootton missed late chances to equalise and Rodolph Austin whacked a 30-yard shot off the crossbar in stoppage time.
That was a belated glimpse of the sort of thinking that McDermott is trying to cultivate in the club he took over at the end of last season. "The big thing I said to them afterwards is you have to get on the ball and make things happen," the Leeds manager said. "Just try something, have the confidence to do something different."