Two late goals gave QPR a 4-2 victory over 10-man Stoke – their first win in 13 matches and only their second at home since October last year.
After Lyndon Dykes put the hosts ahead, Ryan Mmaee’s third goal in his past six appearances brought Stoke level.
Enda Stevens was sent off early in the second half but Wouter Burger put the Potters ahead before Dykes netted his second of the night.
Ben Pearson’s last-minute own goal was the stroke of luck struggling Rangers desperately needed, and Chris Willock added a fourth in stoppage time.
Before kick-off, QPR paid tribute to club great Terry Venables, with rousing applause for the former England boss following his death last week.
Venables was a popular player at Loftus Road and during a four-year spell as manager guided Rangers to an FA Cup final, promotion to the top flight and then a fifth-placed finish which saw the club qualify for Europe.
QPR’s current plight is a far cry from those heady days, but current boss Marti Cifuentes will at least take some encouragement from their relative improvement since his recent appointment.
His first win came in the Spaniard’s fourth match at the helm – a run which has included two draws.
Rangers took the lead after 11 minutes, when Dykes scored from the spot after Stevens was adjudged to have fouled Steve Cook while trying to prevent him from reaching Paul Smyth’s cross.
However, they missed two glorious chances to double their lead – and then conceded an equaliser a minute before half-time.
After Pearson made a mess of trying to intercept Ilias Chair’s pass, the ball bounced off Elijah Dixon-Bonner to Smyth, who was denied at point-blank range by keeper Jack Bonham.
Another defensive mishap, this time by Ciaran Clark, who presented the ball straight to Dykes, gifted the Scotland striker an opportunity but he shot straight at Bonham.
Immediately after that let-off for Stoke, they broke forward and keeper Asmir Begovic tipped away Tyrese Campbell’s effort after the forward found himself through on goal.
From the resulting corner by Bae Jun-Ho, Mmaee fired into the bottom corner after his first shot had been blocked.
When Stevens was sent off eight minutes after the interval, the tide seemed to be turning in QPR’s favour.
The defender pulled back Smyth near the edge of the penalty area and was shown a second yellow card.
But six minutes later, Stoke went ahead when Burger collected Mmaee’s pass near the edge of the penalty area and sent a left-footed strike beyond Begovic and in off the post.
Rangers responded, with Chair shooting against a post before Dykes hauled them level in the 79th minute.
Willock’s cross was cleared as far as Dykes, who controlled the ball on his chest before shooting low into the bottom corner.
Great work on the left by substitute Ziyad Larkeche led to the all-important goal which put Rangers ahead.
Larkeche fought ferociously for the ball before the Frenchman’s low cross was poked into his own net by Pearson.
And in the dying moments, Willock’s low strike beat Bonham at his near post.
Hull City 3-3 Ipswich Town: Tigers fight back three times to deny Tractor Boys
Ipswich Town missed the chance to move into an automatic promotion spot as play-off-chasing Hull City came from behind three times in a thrilling 3-3 Championship draw at The MKM Stadium.
Ipswich knew a victory would take them second after Leeds United were surprisingly beaten 4-0 by Queens Park Rangers on Friday, and they led on three separate occasions, George Hirst opening the scoring before Omari Hutchinson produced two brilliant strikes from the edge of the area.
However, buoyed by slip-ups from rivals Norwich City and West Brom earlier on Saturday, Hull dug deep to fight back on each occasion, Ozan Tufan and Liam Delap scoring their first two equalisers.
With Liam Rosenior's men 3-2 down with just four minutes to play, substitute Noah Ohio blasted his shot in off the crossbar to punish an error from Ipswich goalkeeper Vaclav Hladky.
The result keeps Ipswich behind second-placed Leeds on goal difference, though the Tractor Boys have a game in hand to come at Coventry City on Tuesday.
Hull, meanwhile, are two points adrift of the top six, with Norwich's goal difference advantage meaning their top-six spot is all but assured. The Tigers will, however, leapfrog West Brom if they beat Plymouth Argyle on the final day and Albion lose to Preston North End.
Data Debrief: Hutchinson's best not enough
Hutchinson was a man who deserved to be on the winning side on Saturday, giving Ryan Allsop no chance with two near-identical left-footed strikes from the right corner of the penalty area.
His goals came from an expected goals (xG) total of just 0.6, and he led all players on the pitch for shots (eight) and passes in the final third (21), also laying on three chances for his team-mates.
Al-Khaleej 0-1 Al-Nassr: Ronaldo misfires on return as Laporte nets winner
Cristiano Ronaldo returned from suspension but failed to find the net as Al-Nassr secured a 1-0 win over Al-Khaleej on Saturday, with Aymeric Laporte coming up with the decisive goal.
Ronaldo was in action for the first time since being sent off for an elbow in a 2-1 Saudi Super Cup loss to Al-Hilal earlier this month, with his initial two-match ban being reduced to one on appeal.
He missed three good chances as Al-Nassr threatened to fall further behind runaway Saudi Pro League leaders Al-Hilal, but former Manchester City defender Laporte spared his blushes by nodding Marcelo Brozovic's deep free-kick into the bottom-left corner with 68 minutes gone.
Al-Nassr remain nine points adrift of Al-Hilal at the summit in spite of their win, with Jorge Jesus' team unbeaten through 28 games this season as they close in on a record-extending 18th title.
Data Debrief: Ronaldo misfires on return
Ronaldo was presented with the Saudi Pro League's Player of the Month award for March ahead of kick-off, having scored four goals in three league appearances last month.
However, his sights were off on Saturday as he failed to net despite three of the visitors' four big chances, as defined by Opta, falling his way. He led all players on the pitch for expected goals (1.27 xG), shots (five), shots on target (three) and touches in the area (nine) without reward.
Huddersfield all but relegated from Championship while League Two play-off spots decided
Huddersfield Town saw their relegation from the Championship all but confirmed after a 1-1 draw with fellow strugglers Birmingham City on Saturday.
The Terriers avoided a defeat that would have seen them relegated on Saturday, but even a win on the final day over promotion hopefuls Ipswich Town will not be enough unless they overcome a huge goal difference of 15 goals with Plymouth Argyle.
Birmingham remain in the other relegation place and now must beat Norwich City to stand a chance of staying up with Sheffield Wednesday, Plymouth and Blackburn Rovers also still in danger.
At the other end of the table, the Canaries dropped points in a 2-2 draw with Swansea City, leaving the door open for Hull City, who face Ipswich Town later today.
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