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The international break was supposed to work to Stoke's advantage, putting distance between them and that 5-0 thrashing by Bolton, and giving several players time to return to fitness. But, though Tony Pulis's side found the crowd and momentum behind them in the final 25 minutes, Heidar Helguson's simple brace was enough to give QPR a victory that makes it three consecutive defeats for Stoke at home.

The primary culprit, for the home fans, was the referee, who failed to react when Joey Barton twice appeared to commit a foul in the penalty area. The second shout, after a tackle from behind on Robert Huth in the final 10 minutes, was the stronger, and a tired QPR side losing players to fatigue and injury may not have found a means of regaining the lead had Stoke equalised from the spot so late on. Pulis was evidently displeased with the decisions, suggesting that referees arrive at the Britannia with "a perception of the club", but did not shy away from discussing his team's own failings.

"The big thing here is that we've conceded three goals, and we're doing that too regularly now; our defending has been very poor," he said.

Danny Higginbotham's return to the left-back position had enabled Pulis to name the central defensive partnership of Ryan Shawcross and Robert Huth, but Stoke still proved susceptible to QPR's neat football in the final third.

"We're on a run where we're getting punished for individual errors at the moment. We've got to keep more clean sheets. It's concentration more than anything else," Pulis said.

After Jon Walters had given Stoke the lead in the eighth minute, just moments after Barton's collision with Jermaine Pennant had piqued Stoke supporters for the first time, Helguson levelled the scores with an unstoppable header. Losing his marker to meet Armand Traoré's cross – the defender-cum-winger having been played in down the left by a fine ball from Alejandro Faurlin – at the near post, the striker left Thomas Sorensen, making his first league start after Asmir Begovic's shaky performance against Bolton, no chance.

By that point Peter Crouch, who set up Walter's opener, might have scored Stoke's second, but for Clint Hill's goalline intervention.

Instead Luke Young was able to steal into the area to sweep home a second for QPR just before half-time, the opportunity laid on after a tidy interchange between Shaun Wright-Phillips and Jamie Mackie down the right. Within 10 minutes of the second half, Rangers were 3-1 up, Helguson catching Huth out at the far post to turn a deliciously casual inswinging cross from Barton into the net.

A few minutes later, Wright-Phillips hit the post and Helguson was offside when he tapped the rebound in. After that point, the visitors began to tire and Shawcross's close-range header with 25 minutes remaining suggested more goals to come – especially when Pulis sent on Kenwyne Jones and Ricardo Fuller.

The referee's inaction after Barton brought down Huth drew the ire of a crowd determined to shout the ball into the net.

"I'm Arsène Wenger, I didn't see it," joked Warnock. "If we were a little bit fortunate in that, it was the only thing; I don't think that takes away from the result. We deserved the win with our performance."

The QPR manager delighted in taking three points from a stadium where Chelsea (and plenty of other sides) have failed in recent years. "When you come to Stoke you've got to stand up and be counted. Not many people win here – I was disappointed when Newcastle won [in Stoke's last home game, at the end of October] because they don't lose too many here.

"This league is an incredible journey; to forget about the disappointment of losing to Manchester City and come here and roll our sleeves up … we can't quite believe it, given where we were 18 months ago."

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