Vauxhall drive out Rangers in shoot-out

Queen's Park Rangers, a Premiership club as recently as 1996, and FA Cup finalists 20 years ago, touched a new low last night in going out of the first round at home to opponents founded in 1963 as a works team. Vauxhall Motors, solid and reliable, did the British car industry and the UniBond League proud in adding their name to the list of Merseyside's stirring Cup deeds.

Appropriately Carl Nesbitt, who will be back on the production line at Ellesmere Port today, was among the scorers in a penalty shoot-out as Paul Furlong and Karl Connolly both missed for Rangers. By all accounts, the Motormen, unbeaten now in 17 matches, could easily have won the first game, a goalless draw at Chester's Deva Stadium. Neat and composed when in possession, they impressed the home crowd more than QPR, who stuttered like an old banger on a cold morning.

"There was no passion," Ian Holloway, the QPR manager, lamented. "To say I'm upset is an understatement. And financially, it's an absolute disaster."

Playing in front of 324 people away to Marine on Saturday was probably not the best preparation for visiting what is, thanks to Fulham's tenancy, a Premiership ground again. Vauxhall duly took 20 minutes to settle in, during which time they conceded a goal, before remembering that they were fully entitled to be there and creating five good chances in as many minutes, including an equaliser.

Andy Thomson put Rangers ahead with one of the Second Division side's few coherent moves of the match, taking Gino Padula's pass and lifting the ball over the teenaged goalkeeper, Andy Ralph. It was their first goal in five games but had the unwanted effect of inspiring the opposition.

Peter Cumiskey, a lively left-winger, missed from 10 yards, then hit a cross-shot that pleaded for a touch, before Terry Fearns forced his way through and Phil Brazier, the former captain of Liverpool's FA Youth Cup winning team, appeared from the right-back position to score. Boos from the home supporters at the chaos in their team's defence increased as Fearns and Matt Haddrell went close to taking further advantage of it within the next two minutes.

Renewed urgency on the resumption bore all the marks of a severe talking-to by their passionate manager, but, despite the introduction of two attack-minded substitutes in Karl Connolly and the 18-year-old Dennis Oli, there was no breakthrough. Clarke Carlisle came closest with a header against the bar in extra time, before the part-timers went into over-drive with four immaculate penalty kicks to earn a televised second round tie at Macclesfield.

Queen's Park Rangers (4-4-2): Digby; Forbes, Carlisle, Palmer, Padula (Connolly, 70); Burgess (Oli, 58), Langley, Bircham, Williams (Murphy, 110); Furlong, Thomson. Substitutes not used: Culkin (gk), Connolly, Oli, Daly.

Vauxhall Motors (4-4-2): Ralph; Brazier, Haddrell, Collins, McDermott; Lawton (Thompson, 119), Aspinall (Lynch, 71), Nesbitt, Cuminsky; Fearns, Young. Substitutes not used: Hogg (gk), Lynch, Ward, Welton.

Referee: S Tomlin (Lewes).