QPR 1 Reading 1: Former Holland team-mates Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink and Jaap Stam play out draw at Loftus Road

JIMMY FLOYD HASSELBAINK put his embarrassing involvement in football’s recent bung scandal to bed by nicking a point off former Holland team-mate Jaap Stam.

The same grasping agent and undercover investigations team that were involved in Sam Allardyce’s demise as England manager lured the Rangers boss into a meeting where he offered his services as a guest speaker for silly money.

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But the club stood by their man and, on this showing, so have his players.

The R's took an early lead when Pawel Wszolek controlled the ball on the volley and tucked the ball past Ali Al-Habsi, with his second touch, without it hitting the deck.

It was all created by Olamide Shodipo, who dinked a perfect ball over the top of the visiting defence and into the goalscorer’s path.

But the Royals were level after 21 minutes when American midfielder Danny Williams – not to be confused with the 43-year-old former heavyweight British champion boxer of the same name – volleyed a cross back across goal that left keeper Alex Smithies stranded.

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After the break both sides lurched forward on occasions but there was a desperate lack of quality and supporters from both sides seemed to grow tired of waiting hopelessly for some of the spark that created the early goals.

Conor Washington almost recreated Wszolek’s opener in the dying minutes when he took a lobbed pass down and was clear on goal. But Al-Habsi was rapid off his line and made a great save to keep the scores even.

FACTS, STATS, GOALS AND LOLS

• James Perch got the nod to start ahead of QPR defender Steven Caulker and he had fans on the edge of their seats with his under-cooked headed back-pass inside three minutes. Luckily his team-mates saved his bacon.

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• Former Chelsea academy starlet John Swift scored a screamer for the England U21s last week when the demolished Bosnia and Herzegovina 5-0 and he showed flashes of his class in west London, but they were fleeting moments. A player with his skill should be controlling drab affairs like this and scoring goals.
• The would have been a tear-up on the White City estate among the football-loving young herberts lurking about. After 13 minutes, Royals defender Joey van den Berg walloped a ball up over the away stand and into the streets of Shepherds Bush for the locals to track down for a quality kick-about.
• Not all the agents Hasselbaink deals with are bozos. The middle man who found summer loan signing Pawel Wszolek got it spot on as the 24-year-old Polish midfielder – who was picked up from Hellas Verona in Serie B – produce two sublime mid-air touches to score the opener.
• QPR’s hulking striker Seb Polter is a fans’ favourite and he’s certainly unorthodox. His unique style is not so much bull-in-a-china-shop, more randy-rhino-in the-museum-of-ancient-miniature-teacups. But he definitely has the shape and commitment of a Championship target-man and his touch has improved since he arrived.
• If Jimmy can get a few extra quid for public speaking, Rangers fans will be hoping he spends it on some creativity in his side. When Karl Henry looks like your best midfield playmaker you know you’re in for a long afternoon.
• There’s no chance of Man United hero Jaap Stam getting any splinters on his backside from the Reading bench. The Dutch manager never sat down, shouting and pointing his players all over the pitch from minute one to 90.
• QPR unveiled their new former players’ association at half time, with ex-players and eternal heroes like Stan Bowles, Marc Bircham and Martin Rowlands on the pitch. The Hoops could definitely do with some of that old magic in this sometimes solid but uninspiring side.
• Rs’ keeper Alex Smithies could get a game at centre-back if Grant Hall – who went off injured in the first half - is out for long. The No1 raced off his line after Reading had sprung the offside trap and produced a perfectly timed sliding tackle to clear the danger on 69 minutes.
• Rangers fans are not too happy with the slow but steady progress Hasselbaink is trying to make. The local crowd is used to seeing wild talents like Rodney Marsh, Adel Taarabt, Pete Doherty and Mick Jones, of the Clash, at Loftus Road. This stuff is much more zzz factor than X Factor.