NEWCASTLE’S fate will be decided on the final day of the season after John Carver’s side surrendered a lead to lose 2-1 at already-relegated Queens Park Rangers.

A win for Newcastle, along with Hull City’s defeat at Tottenham, would have secured Premier League football for John Carver’s side going into the final weekend of the season, but QPR – beaten 6-0 by Manchester City last week – cancelled out Emmanuel Riviere’s goal through Matt Phillips while Leroy Fer sealed the points with a fine strike from distance.

Newcastle will fight it out with Hull City and Sunderland for the final relegation place after Leicester secured safety with a point at the Stadium of Light.

QPR put up little resistance to Newcastle in a meek first half, and the Magpies did not have to work hard to take a lead in at the interval.

It came from Riviere, who ended a season-long drought to score his first league goal of the campaign, collecting Tim Krul’s long ball adroitly and scooping over Rob Green in the 24th minute.

Green had to be replaced five minutes later when he was inadvertently wiped out by Joey Barton as Rangers attempted to clear the ball after good work by Moussa Sissoko, who had burst into the box.

Magpies skipper Fabricio Coloccini brought a fine save out of substitute goalkeeper Alex McCarthy after Daryl Janmaat launched a ball into the six-yard area moments before half-time.

However, Rangers were a completely different kettle of fish after the interval, with the Magpies failing to react to a sustained spell of pressure from their hosts on the restart, which culminated in Phillips nodding home in the 54th minute.

The game was turned on its head on the hour mark, when Fer unleashed an unstoppable shot into the top corner after Ryan Taylor had ducked a challenge from Phillips to release the Dutchman.

Chasing the game, Newcastle went 4-2-4 in a bid to get a result, but QPR defended doggedly to see the victory – Chris Ramsey’s first at Loftus Road – out.

QUEENS PARK RANGERS (4-4-2): Green (McCarthy 34); Onuoha, Caulker (Yun 46), Dunne, Hill; Phillips, Barton, Henry, Hoilett (Grego-Cox 46); Fer, Austin. Subs: Wright-Phillips, Doughty, Furlong, Comley.

NEWCASTLE UNITED (4-3-3): Krul; Janmaat, Coloccini (c), Dummett, Gutierrez; Colback, R.Taylor (Aarons 64)Sissoko; Cabella (Ameobi 73), Perez, Rivière (Cisse 63). Subs: Woodman, Anita, Abeid, Gouffran.

Attendance: 17,608 (1,845 away)