By Dom Benson
April 28 2002

One of the worst matches ever witnessed at Loftus Road ended with an injury time try for Shane Roiser. The score immediately erased Quins' hopes of a losing bonus point. In truth, they could and should have kicked Wasps into oblivion during a weary end-of-season scrap. JF01's summary of proceedings is probably as much as is needed to be said on this sorry affair:

Not the best game I've sat through, even if I did miss 10 minutes in the first half trying to get a beer. (Why is it that if more than 5,000 turn up everything of a food nature falls apart?)

Where did Josh find his kicking foot? Since Quins had two tactics, the up-and-under and the hoof down their right which Josh dealt with I thought that the table doesn't lie - they were very poor and are in deep doo-doo.

Once again (Shawsie, Volls) someone has decided to end the season with a very dodgy barnet. What has Sammo been up to? Why? Doesn't he know about the injury curse of the dodgy barnet?

Lander. Not so much a name, more a term of vicious abuse.

My notes were only marginally longer but for the record...

The opening shots were a taster of what was to come. Wasps driving forward on the front foot, but allowing openings to go begging. Our lineouts were a shambles, offering Quins the chance to rumble back into the first quarter. With Tykes, Bath and Sarries watching the Sky proceedings with more than a passing interest, our passing went to completely pot. Quins' David Slemen got his eye in with a penalty goal on 9 minutes.

Kenny Logan trumped him with a 43m effort. This seemed to unsettle Quins stand-in kicker and he missed with three long range goals during the remainder of the half. Alex King's nonchalent dropped goal put us ahead after 28 minutes.

Both teams failed to raise their game before half-time and would have got rockets from their respective coaches during the interval. Whatever was said was to no avail. Slemen missed with a hurried dropped goal attempt. Whenever he had ball in hand he continued to kick it away down the right hand touchline. Such lack of invention set the pattern of play for the half. Our lineout continued to creak, offering Quins some hope.

When they finally ran at our backs, Will Greenwood's diagonal chip kick into our in-goal area found not one but two quartered shirts running onto the ball unopposed. Tony Diprose stretched for the inevitable score only to be baulked by his speeding fullback, Julian Gollings and the ball was knocked on.

Wasps finally put together a running move and Josh Lewsey shot down the right wing but was downed before the line. Lawrence Dallaglio followed up but knocked on in his haste to turn a rare excursion into Quins 22 into points.

Back came Quins after Wasps conspired to muck up another lineout. Slemen levelled the scores with his second penalty goal.

The endgame was set up for the most enterprising team to bag the points. King decided if Quins didn't want them, he would steal them with another sublime dropped goal. Quins last hurrah went awry when Greenwood's cut-out pass was intercpted by Shane Roiser. Mercifully our winger was still alert despite being a spectator for most of the match and he ran the ball in from 60 metres.

King's conversion cruelly underlined Quins fate - no bonus point, nor the two points they at least deserved for the draw. We all await their decisive match with Leeds Tykes next Friday with relish. May the best (or least worst) team win!

Scriv's report on the Official Website.