Boreham Wood continued their pre-season preparations with a confident 2-1 win over Championship outfit Queens Park Rangers, at Meadow Park.
Mark Warburtons’ side broke the deadlock from the spot, when Ebere Eze stepped up to convert from 12-yards. Wood reacted shortly after through Kabongo Tshimanga.
PASE Academy product Sorba Thomas handed the home side the lead in the second half, with a stunning chipped finish.
Wood remained in their familiar 3-5-2 formation, with Tom Champion and Jordan Thomson featuring either side of David Stephens in defence. Tshimanga lead the line alongside Tyrone Marsh, ahead of Kane Smith, Piero Mingoia, Adam McDonnell, Keiran Murtagh and Femi Ilesanmi.
QPR started the brighter of the two sides, with highly rated youngster Eze enjoying the game’s opening opportunity, but he could only stroke it into the hands of the Wood’s trialist ‘keeper.
The visitors broke the deadlock minutes later after David Stephens brought down Bright Osayi-Samuel inside the area. The referee pointed straight to the spot and Eze stepped up to coolly convert.
Luke Garrard’s new-look side began to gel as the first half grew older and they netted with their first shot on goal. Summer signing Tshimanga drove through from midfield and thumped the ball home from 20-yards, with Liam Kelly unable to prevent it nestling into the bottom right.
Mingoia showed glimpses of his class in the opening exchanges, lifting a delicate ball over the top of the QPR defence, but Marsh was unable to meet it ahead of Kelly, who gladly claimed.
Chances were at a premium following that, as the Wood took control of possession, but struggles to craft an opening. Tshimanga forced a mistake from the away defence, which won the home side a corner, but the Garrard’s men couldn’t follow it up.
Luke Amos showed composure to take the ball down in close quarters and sweep it out wide on the volley, but the low ball into the box was dealt with by the home defence, with Ilesanmi eventually clearing.
Kelly fumbled a teasing free-kick from Mingoia and The Hoops’ defence struggled to get the ball out of their own box, with their eventual clearance teeing up Murtagh for a vicious half-volley. The midfielder’s effort was blocked and still the home defence couldn’t clear, as Mingoia snapped up the afters, but could only thrash wide.
The Wood were ahead within minutes of the second half whistle, as Sorba Thomas took down a lobbed ball over the Hoops’ defence and lofted it over the top of ‘keeper Kelly and into the bottom left corner.
Play began to settle following the Wood’s second goal, as the away side took control of possession, but struggled to do much with it. Jamal Fyfield reacted for the Wood but could only send a half-volley dipping over the bar from a corner.
Looking for a way back into the encounter, QPR swept a low ball across the Wood box which found Niko Hamalainen, but the forward miss-struck the ball and sent it wide from close range.
Wood XI: Trialist A (Huddart 66’), Ilesanmi, Champion © (Woodards), Stephens, Mingoia (Thomas 45’), McDonnell (Ricketts 45’), Tshimanga (Trialist B 66’), Murtagh, Marsh (Shakes 66’), Thompson (Fyfield 45’), Smith
QPR XI: Kelly, Hall, Amos, Eze, Ball, Manning, Oteh, Chair, Osayi-Samuel, Rangel, Barbet
Goals:
Wood: Tshimanga 11’, Thomas 49’
QPR: Eze (pen) 6’