Watford wheels well and truly off!

If Jobi McAnuff`s last gasp equalizer against Cardiff was Christmas dinner served up by a bunch of turkeys then the 4-2 defeat to the not-so-Super Hoops of QPR was Christmas pudding at it`s very worst - stodgy, uninspiring, leaving a rather dodgy taste in the mouth.

Even before Dexter Blackstock went down faster than a Turkey curry on Boxing Day under nothing more than a shoulder barge by the hapless Jordan Stewart, this was going to be one of those days.

Martin Rowlands penalty - sending Richard Lee the wrong way - just about summed it up. QPR had 5 shots on goal and scored 4 times. Lee didn`t make a save in the Watford goal.

But if you don`t score goals, you don`t win games and let`s face it, if you can`t score goals against a defense as bad, as slow, as poor as the QPR backline then boy, 2008 is going to be a long year.

The only surprise to the Hornets faithful was that it took Boothroyd 70 minutes before throwing leading scored King Marlon into the fray - 70 minutes of huffing and puffing by Hendo without really making inroads into blowing down the stray house that was the Rangers rear guard. 70 minutes of quite frankly nothing from Duke Ellington.

Let`s be brutally honest - QPR were the worst team to come to Vicarage Road (bar Watford) all season long and we`ve seen some dross play the Golden Boys at home - Yes, they were that bad. But credit, where credit is due - a 4 goal is a good reward for rubbish passing, poor accuracy and nothing more than a gameplan that was 'suck it and see`.

The truth of the matter is that Watford were truly dreadful! The marking on the setpiece that led to Damien Stewart`s headed 2nd was dire. The managers decisions to take off Doyley with 10 to go - from which noone was left to cover the space that Buzaky ran into for the killer 4th - was desperate. The room [and time] in which Rowlands swept home the 3rd just before the break was indecent in this division.

But Watford (and Boothroyd) will never learn. It took the Hornets gaffer until the start of the second half to take a seat on the touchline to usher his troops despite the fact that we were 3-0 down at home to a team playing like a side second from bottom. Boothroyd should have been screaming from the bench within minutes of Chris Foy blowing up for the penalty in the 14th minute! Some leader huh.

In a way Dr Watford is kinda pleased Watford got turned over by this shower from West London. It must now highlight to the Watford coaching staff what areas the club must cover for in the January sales - a left back is urgent, a centre back even more so.

But it`s ok folks - Aidy has 'seen enough bright spots` . Yes - Danny Shittu totally and utterly ran the show for the 45 minutes he was on. Yes - Tommy Smith is extremely consistent and at times he caused chaos in the box. Yes - the first 20 minutes were a damn sight better than Cardiff.

And, in truth, that`s it - The QPR Vital site says how happy is to be a Hoop! Well, bully for them because on this showing they have little to look forward to. Yet, they will sleep easier knowing that us Watford fans are in for a way rougher ride in 2008.