QPR 0 Sheffield United 3: Dominant Blades secure further capital gains at expense of QPR

Seven times the Blades have been handed a trip to London in the FA Cup over the past decade and they have lost just once.

Even then, there were plenty of mitigating reasons for the defeat – not least it being a semi-final at Wembley as Premier League Hull City were taken all the way in an eight-goal thriller.

Yesterday saw United’s dominance in London return in fine style, a first-half goal from Marc McNulty and Jamal Campbell-Ryce’s double sending the League One club through to the fourth round at the expense of Queens Park Rangers.

It was no more than Nigel Clough’s side deserved, too, after a controlled display that combined defensive resolve with an ability to break at speed.

Rangers became the fifth top-flight club to be knocked out of cup competitions by the South Yorkshire club in the past year.

United had opted to walk to Loftus Road from their hotel, half a mile away. It is an approach Clough has tried a few times as a manager, his belief being that a stretching of the legs means his players will be on their game from the start.

It certainly worked against the Rs, the Blades making a mockery of the two divisions that separate the two clubs as Harry Redknapp’s men joined Aston Villa, Fulham, West Ham United and Southampton on the list of Premier League scalps claimed by Clough’s men.

The game’s opening goal came nine minutes before the break when McNulty, after being released by a sublime pass from Louis Reed, finished with aplomb past Alex McCarthy.

McNulty’s opener was deserved, United having played the better football and they were unlucky not to be ahead already by the time the summer signing from Livingston found the net.

Just two minutes before his opener, McNulty’s tenacity had seen him dispossess Nedum 
Onuoha on the goal-line before wriggling himself into a position to shoot only to then stumble at the vital moment.

McCarthy had also needed to be alert to keep out Stefan Scougall’s shot on 12 minutes, and a drilled pass across the face of goal by Campbell-Ryce deserved a team-mate to be on hand to tap into an empty net.

Rangers offered little in the way of attacking threat in those opening 45 minutes, Leroy Fer 
going closest with an early snapshot that Mark Howard had little trouble in deflecting behind.

United’s dominance continued after the break and it took just five minutes for the Yorkshire side to double their advantage.

Jordon Mutch was culpable, the Rangers midfielder inexplicably turning Reed’s floated corner back towards his own goal from inside the six-yard box to leave Campbell-Ryce with the simple task of smashing the ball into the net from all of a yard.

Rangers did later waste a great chance when Bobby Zamora headed wide but, in truth, United rarely looked in trouble and their fourth win in seven FA Cup visits to London was rounded off by Campbell-Ryce in stoppage time.

Queens Park Rangers: McCarthy; Onuoha, Caulker (Isla 61), Ferdinand, Traore; Hoilett (Zamora 46), Mutch, Henry (Vargas 61); Fer; Phillips, Austin. Unused substitutes: Murphy, Hill, Furlong, Grego-Cox.

Sheffield United: Howard; Flynn, McEveley, Kennedy, Harris; Campbell-Ryce, Reed, Doyle (Higdon 90), Baxter (Wallace 89); Scougall; McNulty (Murphy 82). Unused substitutes: Turner, Alcock, McGahey, Higdon, Dimiao.

Referee: M Clattenburg (County Durham),

Man of the match: Louis Reed.