The football community has been urged to show referees more respect this week, but Clive Oliver did his profession few favours at Molineux yesterday with a terrible performance that even ruffled the smooth feathers of Queens Park Rangers’ dapper manager Luigi de Canio.

Oliver awarded a penalty to each side that De Canio and his Wolves counterpart Mick McCarthy agreed were both fanciful, ignored a far better shout for a spot-kick from Rangers and then gifted Wolves five minutes of added time at the end of a second half that did not feature any interruptions other than four substitutions.

Andy Keogh took advantage by scrambling in his second goal of the game five minutes into that period to level the scores for the third occasion in a thrilling afternoon and give Wolves’ playoff hopes a massive boost.

It was the least the home side deserved for their enterprising display which McCarthy reckoned was the equal of anything they have produced all season, but the normally understated De Canio was unhappy as his side ended the day in 14th place in the Championship, still a distant seven points outside an unlikely playoff berth.

“Obviously it’s a bit sour to come away from home against a team with more points than us and two of their goals come in injury time in both halves,” he said. “We had some good chances but we wasted them. We know we can play good football and we can play much better than that.”

“I don’t really know where the five minutes came from. As far as I know it’s 30 seconds for a substitution and both of us made two in the second half. There weren’t any injuries, neither of the physios came on the pitch and neither of teams did any time-wasting. But I think the referee should be questioned about more than that.”

Both teams had gone into the game in good form, each boasting a record of just one defeat in their past seven league games Akos Buzsaky opened the scoring with his 10th goal in 24 starts for QPR before Keogh, who had earlier been booed by a section of the home fans, equalised on the stroke of half-time.

Oliver then made two poor penalty decisions, first when the ball struck Neill Collins on the shoulder and then when Matt Jarvis was impeded by Michael Mancienne outside the box.

Dexter Blackstock and Sylvan Ebanks-Blake both converted the spot-kicks. Mikele Leigertwood looked to have won the game for the visitors with a 79th-minute pile driver but Keogh had the last say, sparking mass celebrations on the Wolves bench.

“That might well turn out to be the most valuable point we have got all season,” said McCarthy, whose side are now in ninth place, a point outside the playoff positions. “I don't remember when we have played as well as that. That’s as good as we have been.

“We had our chances and we certainly deserved to get level. Our penalty should never have been given but it levelled things off. They got a very good third goal but we kept on fighting and my players showed great character to make it 3-3.”

Star man: Andy Keogh (Wolves)

Player ratings

Wolves: Hennessey 5, Foley 6, Collins 6, Edwards (Craddock 5min, 5), Elakabi 5, Jarvis 7, Alafinjana 6, Henry 6, Gray 7 (Eastwood 58 min, 6), Ebanks-Blake 7, Keogh 8

QPR: Camp 8, Mancienne 5, Connolly 6 (Rehman 58mins, 5), Hall 6, Delaney 6, Buzsaky 7 (Ainsworth 72min), Leigertwood 8, Rowlands 7 (Mahon 30min, 6), Vine 6, Blackstock 7 (Ainsworth 72min), Agyemang 7 Scorers: Wolves:Keogh 44, 90, Ebanks-Blake 64 pen QPR:Buzsaky 28, Blackstock 46 pen, Leigertwood 79 Yellow cards: Wolves:Collins, Jarvis QPR:Mancienne, Delaney, Blackstock

Referee:C Oliver

Attendance:24,290

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