Championship promotion hopefuls Queens Park Rangers and Burnley played out an entertaining 3-3 draw at Loftus Road earlier today.

It was second versus third in West London and was far from cagey, as both sides had the lead before the match ended all square.

Kevin Doyle's debut goal put QPR in front before Danny Ings expertly volleyed Burnley level. QPR would lead at half time, though, thanks to Richard Dunne's first goal for the club, an acrobatic left-foot volley.

Burnley pulled level for a second time through Sam Vokes, and the Welsh striker then put the Clarets in front by tapping home from Ings's centre.

Another QPR debutant scored the sixth goal of the game when Junior Hoilett crossed for Modibo Maiga to poke into the net from close range.

A point apiece saw both clubs fall further behind Leicester City, who made it nine wins in a row at Bournemouth to go 10 clear at the summit.

Here, Sports Mole takes a closer look at a barmy 90 minutes at Loftus Road.

Match statistics

QPR
Shots: 13
On target: 5
Possession: 54%
Corners: 5
Fouls: 13

Burnley
Shots: 11
On target: 3
Possession: 46%
Corners: 3
Fouls: 8

Was the result fair?

Yes. It was end-to-end throughout the 90 minutes and was a thoroughly enjoyable game to watch. Both managers will feel like their side could have won it, but a draw was the right outcome.

QPR's performance

Despite losing Matt Phillips to injury early on, QPR were in front inside the opening 10 minutes when Doyle flicked home Niko Kranjcar's corner. A perfect way to start life in a blue-and-white shirt for Doyle, who is expected to fill the void left by injured top scorer Charlie Austin. QPR looked comfortable for the next 20 minutes or so until Burnley levelled, and from then on it was a to-and-fro game in which the momentum changed every few minutes. Manager Harry Redknapp will definitely feel that the goals they conceded were avoidable, especially the third. Benoit Assou-Ekotto wasn't having the best of games already when he let Ings steal the ball on the byline and roll it to Vokes for an easy tap-in.

Burnley's performance

Sean Dyche's side completely outplayed the bigger names of QPR in the reverse fixture back in October, and the manager will again be proud of his team's performance today. They recovered well from a shaky start and once again had the deadly duo of Ings and Vokes, who now have 31 goals between them in the league, to thank. Dyche will be pleased with a point but at the same time angry at the third goal. Like Assou-Ekotto, Burnley dilly-dallied on their own touchline and allowed Hoilett to nip in and square for Maiga.

Sports Mole's man of the match

Danny Ings: The England Under-21 international is having a breakout season and continued his superb campaign with another class performance. His finish for Burnley's first was simply brilliant and it was his desire to keep the ball in that led to the third. Dyche will be delighted that Ings, now on 17 league goals, wasn't poached in the January transfer window.

Biggest gaffe

It was so stupid of Assou-Ekotto to allow Ings to retrieve the ball and set up the third. If the former Tottenham man had just been a bit more vigilant in seeing it out, then the result could have been so different.

Referee performance

Roger East had a good game with the whistle, correctly waving away numerous penalty appeals from both sides.

What next?

QPR: Another big game for Rangers against a fellow promotion hopeful as they travel to Derby County next week.

Burnley: The Clarets, meanwhile, host Millwall next Saturday.