SHAUN Wright-Phillips is confident the R’s ‘bodies on the line’ mentality will stand them in good stead between now and the end of the season.





Tuesday night’s victory against Sunderland at the Stadium of Light was Rangers’ first Barclays Premier League away success of the campaign – it was also Wright-Phillips’ first outing in the top-flight this season.





Entering the fray as a replacement for Matt Phillips in the 52nd minute, the 33 year-old played his part in a fine away performance, to the delight of the former Manchester City midfielder,





“It was definitely worth the wait,” he told www.qpr.co.uk.





“It was a massive team performance – and it was for the fans, especially those that have been to every away game and seen us lose week after week.





“I thought the boys were outstanding. Each and every one of us put our bodies on the line and delivered the game plan.





“It was amazing to get some game time.





“I was a bit anxious in the first five minutes, but once I got into the game I felt good out there.”









Wright-Phillips believes the attention to detail shown by Chris Ramsey and Kevin Bond in the build-up to the game paid dividends in the North East, adding: “We worked hard, we stayed compact and we defended well when we had to.





“We’ve worked tirelessly on the training ground since Chris took over and I think what we’ve been working on came to fruition in the game.





“Between Chris and Bondy we’ve had a great sense of direction in terms of what they want us to do. To be compact, to press as a unit and to make the most of the triggers that we’ve talked about.





“We now know as a team what is required and we executed it well at Sunderland, as well as against Southampton for long spells.





“We can only get better and better through hard work on the training pitches. Good habits come from working hard in training and that’s what we are doing.”





The win against the Mackems – courtesy of goals from Leroy Fer and Bobby Zamora – lifted Rangers out of the bottom three and Wright-Phillips is hopeful the victory can be the springboard for a positive run for the R’s.





“It’s a massive boost to be out of the bottom three, especially when everyone was writing us off following Saturday’s late defeat and the injuries we picked up,” he said.





“To come to the Stadium of Light, win 2-0 against Gus’s team and play as we did is outstanding.





“We need to build on this now. Work hard in the week, rest up when we’ve got time off and make sure we’re fully prepared for Hull in a few weeks’ time.





“Let’s hope this result is the springboard for us. We needed a boost after a difficult period, so to come away, finally win, keep a clean sheet and move out of the bottom three has given us that.”





Finally, SWP reserved special praise for the travelling Hoops faithful, commenting: “The fans here are terrific.





“They’ve stood behind us all season, even when things haven’t been going our way away from home.





“Hopefully we rewarded those of them who travelled up on Tuesday night and made their trip worthwhile.”



