First the good news – Matt Jarvis is fit and flying.

Jarvis returned for the last half hour at Loftus Road and is as good as new.

Games – and they will come thick and fast over the next month – will bring the flying winger up to speed and closer to the starts he and the fans crave.

Now the not so good news. For the second match in a row, Wolves conceded before they started playing – and they are leaving it later to hit back.

Just like they did against Birmingham last week, Wolves needed the opposition to hit the net to spark their jumpleads before they produced anywhere near the best in this chilly corner of west London.

Against Blues it took Cameron Jerome’s 48th minute goal to inject fresh urgency into Mick McCarthy’s side.

Facing a QPR outfit packed with no little guile, class and determination, they finally lifted themselves out of their lethargy after Martin Rowlands’ 63rd minute wonder strike.

Try as they might – and for the second game in a row they employed all four strikers at various times – they couldn’t penetrate a defence in which Damion Stewart was as dominant a figure as Wolves have encountered this season.

Stewart and Co became the first defence since Reading’s on September 30 to stop Wolves scoring – and only the second team all season on a day when the Royals’ 1-0 win at Barnsley moved them level at the top of the Championship scoring charts with McCarthy’s men on 45.

McCarthy had warned Wolves were the “ideal opponents” for Rangers, what with the Championship leaders in town and a new boss Paulo Sousa to impress.

At the end of a week where Wolves’ leadership credentials were questioned by Birmingham and Sheffield United players, McCarthy had also warned of sides seeing them as a scalp.

It’s a fair guess QPR studied Wolves and the league table beforehand, and McCarthy’s side certainly came up against a side bristling with determination.

But the eagerness of the opposition, as well as the late kick-off time – something acknowledged by McCarthy – were no excuses for an insipid first-half performance during which they were only kept from falling behind by the heroics of Wayne Hennessey.

The Wales international would now be expected to see off the challenge of Carl Ikeme – if fit – for tomorrow night’s clash with Derby after two first-half saves to keep the scores goalless.

The first, after eight minutes, came when the normally unflappable Michael Mancienne slipped to allow Patrick Agyemang a free shot at goal which cannoned off the keeper’s legs.

Hennessey was also required to palm away Lee Cook’s angled effort from Heidar Helguson’s pull-back as Wolves struggled to get to grips with their hosts’ intensity.

Wolves’ own efforts had been notable but extremely isolated and against the run of play – Dave Edwards’ curler and Dave Jones’ free kick both dropping inches the wrong side of the post.

By contrast, Rangers had the run of the Wolves half and controlled the game during the first 45 minutes.

Wolves’ best effort before what proved the winner was Sylvan Ebanks-Blake’s header that the 12-goal striker failed to get enough purchase on from Jarvis’ cross.

Almost immediately, Rangers grabbed a deserved winner when Rowlands produced a world class strike that took a wicked dip as it flashed past Hennessey’s outstretched hand. At least one Wolves player admitted afterwards that Rowlands’ task should have been made harder by closing him down quicker.

That he was symptomatic of most of Wolves’ play up until then.

Jarvis’ appearance for the first time in 12 games was a heartwarming sight for the 2,000 Wolves fans that made the trip.

And the 22-year-old didn’t disappoint with a display every bit as convincing as before his injury.

Strangely, Jarvis’ farewell and return games have both been marked by defeats without scoring, but there’s no denying his impact. From the moment he came on, the former Gillingham man was a threat, injecting much-needed tempo to the visitors’ play.

On the first two occasions he got the ball, he teased, tormented then beat right-back Peter Ramage before producing superb crosses.

First he set up Ebanks-Blake’s chance, then sub Sam Vokes for a header tipped wide by keeper Radek Cerny.

There was also what was initially seen as an attempt to win a penalty when he fell under challenge in injury-time.

But Jarvis is as honest as he is fleet-footed and admitted he had slipped.

Jarvis’ performance apart, there was little to remind us which team were the Championship leaders.

It was a night when the partnerships that have done so much to achieve the success Wolves have had this season faltered.

Former QPR loan defender Mancienne and Richard Stearman endured their most uneasy alliance yet in tandem as they were exploited by an in-the-mood Agyemang.

Up front, a strangely lethargic-looking Chris Iwelumo had neither the form nor service to trouble Stewart, and he and Ebanks-Blake had little chance to work their magic together.

For the second game in a row, Vokes provided a strong case for the bench and the teenager is currently performing as well as any one of the four strikers at the club.

The same couldn’t be said for Michael Kightly, who had the sort of game wingers dread.

With too many players below par, Wolves were shackled too easily for too long.

And when they bared their teeth in a much more energetic last half hour, they couldn’t find the killer touch.

Now they face a Derby side whose excellent run to the Carling Cup semi-finals is in contrast to their indifferent form in the League.

Indeed, Paul Jewell’s side have lost their last three away games in the Championship without scoring.

Like Wolves, who saw their six-point lead halved by Blues’ 3-2 win over Watford, they will be smarting after a weekend defeat, the Rams’ being beaten 2-1 at home by Crystal Palace.

But as Wolves proved in the final 30 minutes on Saturday, there isn’t too much wrong.

Especially with Jarvis back in full flow.