QPR fan Albert Adomah scored both Aston Villa’s goals in their 2-1 win at Loftus Road on Saturday, having gone under Rangers’ radar as youngster despite being on their doorstep.
Adomah played non-League football with Harrow Borough and was picked up by Barnet before spells at Bristol City, Middlesbrough and now Villa.
The winger is in good company. West Londoners like Lee Cook and Martin Rowlands were initially missed by QPR – and previously some of England’s top players also grew up in the area and were not picked up before eventually making their name in the game.
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Born in Shepherd’s Bush, Pearce was a huge QPR fan in his youth and trained with the club for five months but was not signed. He played non-League football for Wealdstone and was later picked up by Coventry before establishing himself as England left-back during a 12-year spell at Nottingham Forest.
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Barnes grew up in Shepherd’s Bush and, like Pearce, was a QPR fan who felt crushed by the club’s failure to sign him after a trial but went on to establish himself as one of the country’s top players. In Barnes’ case he was picked up by Watford, who sold him to Liverpool in 1987.
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QPR’s director of football – ironically now with overall responsibility for improving local scouting – made his name at Rangers but only after being signed from Hayes in 1986 by the then manager Jim Smith, who also signed the likes of David Seaman and Paul Parker. Ferdinand had initially gone under the radar despite having been born and raised in the local area.
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A childhood friend of Ferdinand, Wise was a fanatical QPR fan who also grew up a stone’s throw from Loftus Road. But he too went elsewhere, joining Southampton before making his name at Wimbledon and returning to west London with Chelsea, where he became a club legend.
This post was last modified on 22/11/2017
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England and QPR Legend Tony Currie grew up in Cricklewood, Joined QPR as an amateur but was released and snapped up by Watford. Deemed not good enough for us but played 17 times for England !
Sometimes you can't see the wood for the trees
If we could have signed all these players would they have become the stars they are.
As much as I want everyone that pulls on a QPR shirt to be as proud of it as myself I feel that fans of the club are not always the best on the pitch. Sometimes I think they forget they are part of a team & like me on the stands I'm the best player in all positions & I will always pick the best option & my shots are always on target.
I guess I'm another one they missed
Denis Wise lived in Denham House, right opposite the 'away' entrance in South Africa Rd 10yds from the ground. 2 more that spring to mind are the lad who lived literally next door to the Loftus Road entrance of the ground [1 yd] named after the whole Rs team Anthony Philip David Terry Frank Donald Stanley Gerry Gordon Stephen James "Charlie" Oatway who played for Brighton and was just the type of combative player we always need and of course Don Shanks who started at Fulham, who lived in the block of flats [Behind Denham Hse, Mitchell Hse, I think] second to last on South Africa Rd [40yds] before Bloemfontein Rd.
I don't doubt for a second there are plenty more..!!