Hate is a strong word. It is also a word that is often misused. People often don't really hate those they profess to. They just dislike them, often quite strongly. The repugnance of so-called 'hate' figures such as Chris Moyles and Jimmy Nesbitt is clear for all to see, but do you really hate them? Really? In the way that you hate terrorists, murderers, or those who bring harm to your nearest and dearest? If the answer is yes then well done. You've passed the test. You've seen through my subtle ploy and you are fully aware that the likes of Moyles and Nesbitt are as deserving of your hatred as bin Laden and Hussain. You see, I really hate QPR. Really hate them. Should the club ever go bust I would go have a celebratory piss against Loftus Road. I feel no need to justify my hatred. Anyone who has seen any of the games involving Hull City and QPR since our return to the second-tier will understand. I just wanted to establish the fact that my hatred goes beyond dislike or irritation. It's genuine, full-blown hate.

The last time we faced QPR, Stuart Elliott provided divine retribution for their cheating, thuggishness and general unpleasantness by scoring twice in the last five minutes of a game at the KC, a game that at the time looked as though it would be the catalyst for City's easing away from relegation and QPR's journey towards League 1. As it transpired, John Gregory put a run together in April that moved the Rs clear of the bottom three and consigned his team to another season of struggle in the second tier. And what an enjoyable struggle they were experiencing: Gregory sacked, financial difficulties, in the bottom three, and a succession of vacuous celebrities being wheeled out by the new owners Flavio Briatore and Bernie Ecclestone in a vain attempt to distract the viewing public from the shit-tip that Loftus Road undoubtedly is.

As was the case last year, QPR were under the care of a brand new manager for the visit of Hull City. Last season, John Gregory saw his side beat a disinterested City 2-0 as the reality of Phil Parkinson's limitations as a manager kicked in. This year, Luigi de Canio, the most Italian sounding man in the world, was getting his first close-up view of his time-wasting, shirt-pulling, diving bunch of 'footballers' after Mick Harford was harshly cast aside after masterminding the Rs' recent mini revival.

Phil Brown's post-game selection headache centred around his midfield. Six into four doesn't go, and two of Ashbee, Livermore, Okocha, Hughes, Garcia and Marney would have to make do with a place on the bench. A training injury sustained by Hughes whittled that number down to five, meaning that Brown made the wrong choice of dropping Livermore, who had done nothing wrong and plenty right in his previous four games. Selection should be based on what a player does on the pitch. I get the impression that we don't follow this basic of football management sometimes.

Anyway, we lined up...

Myhill
Ricketts, Brown, Turner, Delaney
Garcia, Ashbee, Marney, Okocha
Windass, Campbell
Subs: Duke, Dawson, Livermore, Featherstone, McPhee.

For QPR, the same XI that had impressively beaten Charlton the week before were retained, save for the luckless Adam Bolder, who was replaced by new signing Buzsaky.

City kicked off, and instantly enjoyed their best spell of the game. Before QPR had a kick, Windass got behind the home defence and only a last-ditch tackle prevented Camp being forced into action. A minute later Turner heads over an Okocha free-kick. Then in the third minute, Delaney wins a free-kick in a dangerous wide position, only for Okocha to fail to beat a one-man wall. More on Okocha later...

After this initial flurry, the game settled into a scrappy mess. Neither side showed any guile going forward, and QPR looked nervous in front of their new manager. Their first attack of note came on 13, when Delaney inexplicably hit the ball for a corner from the halfway line. Ash bravely snuffed out the set-piece only for QPR to hit back and force Myhill to tip a dangerous diagonal ball for a corner.

On 15, Campbell wins a free-kick on the edge of the box, but takes it quickly, allowing Okocha to hit a tame backpass into keeper Camp's grateful arms.

Despite the impressive Nygaard causing them some aerial problems, the most reassuring thing about City is the presence of Turner and Brown. As the rest of the team decide that they don't really fancy putting in a full afternoon's shift, our impressive centre-back pairing is left to repel a number of dangerous-looking crosses from the impressive Ephraim, the industrious Vine, and the classy Buszaky.

In the 25th minute, just after Deano is denied an ambitious appeal for a penalty, Rowlands hits an excellent ball to West Ham loanee Ephraim, who taunts an under-par Sam Ricketts and cuts inside, seemingly into an awaiting pack of Hull City midfielders. Somehow, despite being surrounded by three City players, Ephraim gets a low shot away, which takes a slight deflection and nestles in the bottom corner despite Boaz's despairing dive. They don't deserve to score, but we most certainly deserve to be behind. Horrible stuff.

On 30, Deano does well to win the ball and send a curling shot just wide, but the only way we look like scoring is if QPR's defence makes a howler, and the impressive Cranie is an effective safeguard against this. On 33, QPR start being QPR. Ricketts brushes against Ephraim in the box, causing the winger to roll around on the floor in agony. The only surprise was that it took them 33 minutes to revert to type. Fucking scum.

The half then fizzles out, with QPR seeming content to ensure they go into half-time with a lead, and City lacking the ideas, guile and willing to force an equaliser. Only Turner and Brown have put in decent shifts, while Ash has worked hard. The rest have largely been poor, while Okocha has been rancid. I don't know whether this was because he was injured or uninterested, but if he and Brown honestly think a display like that is in any way acceptable, then we could well be in for another struggle this season. The only way that I can put into words how bad Okocha was is by saying that he was my least favourite player on the pitch. A pitch that included 11 QPR players. Really, really horrible. He should have been taken off in the first half. Taking him off at half time was a no-brainer. Sadly, we started the second half with the same 11 that ended the first.

It is unsurprising, then, that we are utterly battered for the next ten minutes. As it was looking like a QPR second was inevitable, Jay-Jay does his first positive thing of the game, hitting a great pass for Campbell to run on to. He is cynically scythed down and the QPR player is booked. From a decent Marney free-kick, QPR break down City's right, but just as it looks like we've regrouped, the ball falls to the dangerous Leigertwood. With Jay-Jay marking him, it seems that there's nowhere for the QPR midfielder to go, but Okocha sadly just stands and watches as Leigertwood skips by him. He then makes a token amble towards Leigertwood before stopping altogether to admire the 25-yard curler that gives Myhill no chance. Disgraceful stuff Okocha. Even an injury can't excuse such a lack of effort. If you don't want to put in the odd bit of hard work to justify your wages then please just go now.

Brown springs into action and makes a substitution. McPhee replaces Garcia. Garcia has been poor, but at least he's not been a liability. How Okocha wasn't the first to be replaced I'll never know.

A word on McPhee. He's not very good. We all kind of know that now. But he does do simple things quite well, and his introduction means we have more movement up front. Within two minutes, he surges down a wing and is cynically pulled back. The QPR miscreant is carded but the free-kick comes to nothing. Two minutes later and Marney surges through their defence, only to again by cynically brought down - a favourite tactic of QPR but one that proves effective. They are thoroghly unpleasant though.

On 67, Marney, who was our best player in the second half (basically because Okocha's role was reduced to virtual spectator by now and our attacks were being channeled though Dean), burst through their defence again and forces a good save from Camp. A minute later and McPhee breaks down our right only to get into a good crossing position and see only one City shirt in the box. Which is disgraceful from a team chasing a game.

On 71, Featherstone replaces Okocha and we can start playing with 11 men. Hoo-fucking-ray.

We then start to enjoy a bit more territory, and Deano, who had an industrious second half, did superbly to win a corner which saw McPhee go agonisingly close after Delaney had chipped the ball back in after QPR had cleared. This proves to be the last time we seemed like salvaging anything from the game, however. Late bookings for Turner and Delaney, and a goal for McPhee rightfully disallowed for offside, were the only incidents fo note as the home fans found their voice and the home side started their showboating and getting the ball in the corners. The usual time-wasting was present, but in truth it didn't matter. We were never going to get back in this game.

When the final whistle came, a few City players accepted the smattering of ill-deserved applause and then trooped off to be given a bollocking by Brown. I only hope that Brown is as harsh on himself, as he got the team selection very wrong in the first place, and then refused to do anything about it by taking off Okocha.

Of the team, Myhill stood little chance with either goal and did OK apart from that. Brown and Turner, as I've already stated, were as good as ever, Ricketts never really came to terms with Ephraim, and Delaney was hindered by having Okocha in front of him. Garcia was utterly anonymous, you know what I thought of Okocha, Marney was our best player in the second half, and came to life as Okocha fell deeper into his slumber, and Ash was half-decent in the first half, and pretty dreadful in the second. When it comes to on-pitch motivating, Wayne Brown does twice as much as Ash seems to be prepared to do. Windass and Campbell didn't do a great job of getting the ball to hold up, and were offside on way too many occasions, but can rightly point to the pathetic service they received as an excuse for their poor afternoons.

What was worrying though, was the lack of effort and heart in the team. Only so much blame can be apportioned to Okocha's utter awfulness, and after a decent first five minutes or so, we never looked interested in the game. This is the second year on the trot now that a poor QPR side have beaten us without getting out of second gear. It will fall on deaf ears, but Phil Brown needs to take more notice of what actually goes on in a match and pay less attention to what happens in training and his beloved Prozone stats. Livermore might not have won us the game, but the slick midfield interplay that we have enjoyed in recent games just didn't happen. A trip to Burnley is never the nicest of journeys to get a season back on track, but if we're not to slip into a relegation battle we have to put right the wrongs of a horrible, horrible display, and do it quickly. (RG)