QUEENS PARK RANGERS 1 CITY 1
FA Premier League
6th February 1993
attendance 13,003
scorers
City Sheron(76)
QPR (66 pen)
Ref M Reed
City Dibble, Ranson, Phelan, McMahon, Curle, Vonk, White, Sheron, Quinn, Simpson, Holden – subs Ingebrigtsen(30), Reid)62)
QPR Roberts, Bardsley, Brevett, Barker, Maddix, McDonald, Wilson, Impey, Ferdinand, Allen, Sinton – subs Peacock(unused), White(unused), Stejskal(unused)
FROM THE PRESS BOX
FRANK McGHEE WRITING IN THE OBSERVER 7TH FEBRUARY 1993
Andy Dibble, the Manchester City goalkeeper, lived through the most confused 48 hours of his career to help his team save a point. it all started when he was loaned to Oldham on Thursday and due to play in a first team for the first time in more than a year.
He was abruptly recalled to City’s squad on Friday, when reserve keeper Margetson was injured, and then plunged into his first Premier League match after the number one man Coton was suddenly taken ill between warm-up and kick off. It happened so quickly City had to seek the referee’s permission, and Queens Park Rangers’ approval, for the change to be made.
Perhaps it was fortunate that nothing much happened anywhere near Dibble for 45 minutes as too many players on both sides seemed more concerned with settling the legacy of ill-feeling left by City’s FA Cup victory over QPR three weeks ago.
Inside the first 10 minutes the trainers were on four times to treat Sinton and Ferdinand of Rangers and Quinn and McMahon of City. In fact the City pair eventually left the field, and this must be particularly worrying with the next round of the FA Cup due next weekend. Both men were in hospital last night, McMahon with his severe groin strain and Quinn with a shin injury.
Coton, meanwhile, will have blood tests tomorrow to trace the virus which affected him so dramatically.
Surprisingly all the midfield vigor, to put it politely, did not extend to the penalty areas. Rangers, with most of the play, spent much of the first half throwing handfuls of confetti at a City defence which stored and let it happen without starting much in the way of counter-attacks themselves.
But Dibble had more than sufficient to do in a second half as full of action as the first had been empty. His number one tormentor was winger Sinton, whose mastery of full-back Ranson led directly to a stream of crosses and shots. More might have come of it had Ferdinand, who has been widely touted to join England’s squad tomorrow, played with less muscle and more brain after City’s White had hit the bar with two headers from Holden’s service, it began to look as though it would probably take a penalty to break the deadlock. So it proved. Wilson scored from one in the 66th minute after Impey had gone tumbling over Vonk’s outstretched leg.
Dibble was frantically busy for a spell, saving brilliantly from Ferdinand, but City claimed the only other goal of the game when Rangers defence suddenly went missing. Unchallenged, left back Phelan ran on and on unchallengeed down the left before crossing for Sheron, who was unmarked, to steer a lovely header past Rangers’ keeper Roberts.