Phil Parkinson: Wrexham smelt blood in late come-from-behind win at QPR

Wrexham boss Phil Parkinson said his side “smelt blood” in an incredible 3-2  Championship victory at QPR.

Steve Cook’s late goal appeared to have secured the points for the hosts but after Rangers defender Amadou Mbengue was sent off in stoppage time, the visitors scored twice in the space of a minute.

Josh Windass equalised and fellow substitute Ollie Rathbone netted a dramatic winner in the final moments with a thumping right-footed strike from 30 yards. It lifted the Welsh side up to sixth in the Championship table.

Parkinson said: “You saw how quickly we got the ball and got back (after the late equaliser).

“We smelt blood. You can feel that as a team sometimes. Their lad got sent off, I don’t know whether that impacted it or not, but you felt that we were the team most likely to go and win it.”

Harvey Vale scored an early opener and Rangers were on top for much of the first half, but Callum Doyle levelled for Wrexham early in the second half.

Just as Cook’s goal looked like being decisive, Parkinson’s substitutes had a huge impact, with Windass hooking the ball home and Rathbone smashing in his fifth goal in his past 10 appearances.

Parkinson said: “Josh showed incredible technique and what can I say about Ollie – his goals-per-minutes, it’s probably the top in the league.

“The big thing for us was that we were leaving players out of the team that may have expected to play. I felt the professionalism of the group got us the win.

“Players are always disgruntled when they’re not in the team, but there was a togetherness about the group and that showed, particularly with Josh and Ollie.

“It was difficult out there. It’s probably the worst pitch in the division. To go away with the three points is a big bonus for us.”

QPR boss Julien Stephan admitted Mbengue’s dismissal was a pivotal moment, but refused to directly blame him.

The often over-zealous Mbengue was already on a yellow card – his 10th of the season – when he rashly fouled George Thomason.

“To finish the game with 10 players in the last minute had a huge impact, I think, at the end of the game,” said Stephan.

“But I don’t want to analyse the game only of the last five or six minutes. We need to have a full analysis of the game.

“We were very dominant in the first half and with more efficiency it (would have been) 2-0 for us. With another goal in the first half it could have been a different second half.  That’s why we need to have a full analysis of the game.

“We found a way to score a second goal and the game was under control at that moment. And yes, the last four or five minutes we know what happened.

“With one less player, Wrexham’s physicality – and we know their physicality and wanted to reduce the number of their crosses, which we did very well – but with fatigue in the last five minutes and one player less, it was not possible to continue to press.”