Scott Malone scored a stunning injury-time equaliser as Cardiff City came back from 2-0 down to draw 2-2 with Queens Park Rangers.
The hosts nudged ahead in the first half through Clint Hill before Charlie Austin doubled their lead 11 minutes into the second half. Sean Morrison halved the deficit before Malone struck to earn Cardiff a share of the spoils in the Championship game.
Sloppy start
The game started with both teams looking fairly uncomfortable on the ball with many passes going astray. Cardiff lacked any real quality up front in the first half with two low crosses provided their best chances of the half.
Anthony Pilkington was inches from connecting with crosses from Alex Revell and Joe Ralls as the Bluebirds upped the ante. Tjaronn Chery and Matt Phillips were being given too much space as their crosses across goal were worrying the Cardiff defence. City were punished for a poor back pass by Peltier as a corner from Phillips found an unmarked Clint Hill who easily headed home the opener.
Rangers double their lead
The Bluebirds enjoyed a fair bit of possession in Rangers' half at the beginning of the second period. However, they had to thank Simon Moore for a terrific save when Phillips broke down the right wing and fired towards goal. Despite Moore’s superb save, the Hoops doubled their advantage from the resulting corner, as Hill again got to the ball first, directing the ball towards Austin who turned home the second goal.
Cardiff were definitely undeservedly 2-0 behind but they stayed in the game and got right back into it a few minutes after the hour mark. Peter Whittingham's corner landed right on the penalty spot for Morrison to burst forward and direct a powerful header low past Robert Green.
At the other end, Austin looked certain to bag his second but he was somehow denied by an incredible goal-line clearance by Matthew Connolly. City soon needed another fine Moore save to keep Phillips out once more as Rangers pushed to secure all three points.
Late drama
The goal late Cardiff pushed for arrived seconds into inury-time as the impressive Ralls picked out Malone who was free on the left, he had time to control the ball before firing an unstoppable half volley into the top corner giving Russell Slade's side a deserved share of the spoils.
Verdict
The man of the match was definitely Cardiff's Scott Malone. His willingness to get forward and track back made him a joy to watch and his stunning half volley capped off a fine individual performance. Ramsey arguably got his changes wrong, taking Chery and Austin off as early as he did limited QPR on the attack as they lacked real quality.
QPR created the more chances but Cardiff possibly deserved all three points after a dominating second half. Massimo Luongo and Ben Gladwin were both quiet in large patches on their home debuts. The only real concerns for Cardiff are that their two goals came from defenders and that both goals conceded came from set pieces. A great advert for Championship football.