Austin, who had earlier been booked, was then sent off just minutes after scoring, but there was not enough time remaining for the Clarets to stage a comeback.

Here, Sports Mole looks at who excelled for both sides in this six-pointer in London.

Charlie Austin of QPR celebrates scoring his team's second goal during the Barclays Premier League match against Burnley on December 6, 2014 © Getty Images

QUEENS PARK RANGERS

Goal

Robert Green: Barely tested at all, but did pull off one fine save in the first half to keep out Arfield from close range. Very quiet afternoon apart from that. (6/10)

Defence

Mauricio Isla: Struggled with Boyd at times in the first half, but was far more solid in the second 45, and set up Austin for the all-important second goal. (7/10)

Richard Dunne: Solid performance from the big centre-half to ensure that Ings barely had a kick all afternoon. The Burnley man was never going to add to his impressive form today. (8/10)

Steven Caulker: Ensured that Barnes, like Ings, was little more than a spectator in Burnley's final third. Good performance, but had less to do than his centre-back partner. (6/10)

Suk-Young Yun: Coped well with Arfield and Trippier down the right-hand flank, but should have put the game to bed after missing a one-on-one late in the contest. (5/10)

Midfield

Eduardo Vargas: Looked good in the first half and was unlucky not to score after Keane cleared his goal-bound effort off the line. Far less prominent in the second half, however. (5/10)

Karl Henry: Combative performance that saw him suffer a head wound early on. Found himself turned by Arfield once too often, but got away with all of them. (5/10)

Joey Barton: Enjoyed his quarterback role and sprayed some brilliant long passes throughout the first half, but like a number of his midfield teammates, dipped slightly after the restart. (5/10)

Leroy Fer: Opened the scoring with a goal that he owes to quite a big slice of fortune, but was also involved in the one-two that led to the second goal. Not his best overall game, but his contributions were decisive. (6/10)

Attack

Bobby Zamora: Looked anonymous at times on his return to first-team action following a back injury. Never really got into the game. Substituted on 66 minutes. (4/10)

Charlie Austin: Mixed bag for the in-form striker, who struck his eighth goal of the season, but found himself sent off just three minutes later. Also unselfishly played in Fer for the opening goal. Not always in the game, but has once again produced telling contributions. (6/10)

Substitutes

Jordan Mutch: Replaced Vargas when Austin was sent off and doubled up well with Isla on the right side of defence. (5/10)

Niko Kranjcar: Came on for Zamora to help QPR change their shape, and it worked as the hosts looked a more potent attacking force upon his arrival. (6/10)

BURNLEY

Goal

Tom Heaton: Could do very little about either goal, but did come up with one or two key saves to keep the scoreline down afterwards. (6/10)

Defence

Kieran Trippier: Did okay defensively, but the right-back wasted a lot of set-piece opportunities. (5/10)

Michael Keane: Shackled Austin well for the most part and showed great intelligence to move behind Heaton and clear a Vargas effort off the line in the first half. (6/10)

Jason Shackell: Decent performance from the skipper overall and produced one or two crucial blocks, but was guilty of not being tighter to Austin for the second and killer goal. Disappointing. (5/10)

Ben Mee: Deputised for the injured Stephen Ward and might count himself unlucky not to have prevented the opening goal, which looked to have deflected off him as he closed down Fer. (5/10)

Midfield

George Boyd: Lively performance from the winger, who struck the post with a fine effort in the first half. His goal against Newcastle in midweek looked to have done him the world of good, but he faded badly in the second half and missed a good chance at 1-0. (6/10)

Dean Marney: Sat deep in Burnley's midfield and looked to put out fires, but he occasionally ventured too far forward and the visitors looked vulnerable to counter-attacks. (5/10)

David Jones: Had one or two audacious snap-shots in both halves, but none of them ever troubled Green in the QPR net. Looked okay in midfield other than that. (5/10)

Scott Arfield: Missed Burnley's best chance of the game after picking the ball up from a rebound and firing against the face of Green from close range. It might have changed the game. (4/10)

Attack

Ashley Barnes: Like his strike partner, barely had a kick in the entire game before being subbed for Sordell on 89 minutes. The change could have come a bit sooner. (4/10)

Danny Ings: Never got going this afternoon by virtue of Dunne's harassment. (4/10)

Substitutes

Ross Wallace: Replaced Arfield on 75 minutes, but his introduction had very little impact. (5/10)

Lukas Jutkiewicz: Only had about four minutes in which to influence the game. (5/10)