Blackburn head coach John Eustace lauded ‘inspirational’ captain Lewis Travis after his goal set them on their way to a 2-0 win over 10-man QPR.
Travis spent last season on loan after falling out of favour with previous coach Jon Dahl Tomasson but has been an ever-present this season under Eustace and marked his 200th career league start with the second-half opener – his second in as many home games.
Danny Batth’s first for the club after the hour settled the contest that had been very much even until Jonathan Varane’s reckless challenge in first-half stoppage time earned him a straight red card and gave QPR a whole half to play a man down.
It was too big a task as Rovers broke through to make it four straight wins at home for the first time since March last year.
Eustace said of Travis: “He’s an outstanding leader. He’s a leader of men. He’s got the respect of the whole building.
“All the fans love him. I couldn’t wait to start working with him when he came in. I kept in touch with him last season as well, so he knows how important he is to this group. He’s the captain of the football club and you can see his performances getting better and better every game
“I’m delighted he’s scored a couple of goals (this season) but what he brings to the group is more than just a footballer. He’s a real good leader and a gentleman, and he’s an inspiration for a lot of the boys as well so he’s a very, very good captain.
“I thought we were very good. First half, QPR frustrated us, but we played some good progressive football. Had a couple of half chances, kept the ball really well. Obviously going down to 10 men, it was more evident that we could play around them and hurt them on the sides, and it was pleasing to get the two goals.”
QPR matched Rovers before Varane’s dismissal, which Marti Cifuentes described as a ‘game changer’.
The QPR boss said: “I think it was a decent first half of football, with two teams trying to play positive football.
“I think we started the game actually pretty well against a team that has done really well at home. We didn’t concede more than one action, and got a clear one with Smythy (Paul Smyth) at the beginning of the first half. It’s disappointing because we had some ideas on how to improve in the second half, we were almost ready to go to the changing room, and yes, a red card is definitely a game changer.
“We tried our best, we knew it was about not losing our head in the beginning because we knew Blackburn would push at the start of the second half. They got a situation at the beginning, but we managed quite well.
“We conceded a goal with a deflection which is unfortunate after losing a ball we should never lose high up the pitch. Then it’s a set piece, but we never showed low morale. We tried to work hard, to not concede chances, to wait our moment for opportunities to score. But the sooner we forget about today’s performance and game, the better.”
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