QPR manager Ian Holloway was delighted to see Paul Smyth score a debut winner to beat Cardiff after admitting that the selection gamble could have gone "horribly wrong".
Smyth, a summer signing from Linfield, was brought in after Rangers' run of one win in 10 matches.
With the likes of Idrissa Sylla and Conor Washington having failed to impress this season, Holloway turned t o the Northern Ireland Under-21 forward.
And the 20-year-old responded by netting a 72nd-minute winner after Matt Smith's header had cancelled out Joe Ralls' penalty, condemning promotion-chasing Cardiff to a fourth consecutive defeat.
"It was probably one of the biggest risks I've ever taken," said Holloway.
"But if you keep doing what you're doing and people are missing (chances) then someone else deserves a chance to have a go.
"It could have gone horribly wrong, but it didn't. He was a breath of fresh air.
"I thought their centre-backs might have problems with him, it was just about how he was going to handle it.
"He handled it brilliantly, caused them all sorts of problems and I'm delighted he scored.
"We have been creating chances for whoever's played and sometimes the pressure builds on you as a striker and for me it was time for someone else to have a go.
"It was a decision to give someone else a chance to play. Sometimes you have to do that. He's done us the world of good.
"Sometimes you need that bit of freshness. We are reshaping the tree of QPR."
It was an unhappy return to west London for Cardiff's ex-QPR manager Neil Warnock, who was left furious after Junior Hoilett, playing against his former club, had a late effort disallowed for offside.
Additional reporting by the Press Association.
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