AN MD80 CREW; DSNDING INTO EWR; MISSED AN ASSIGNED HOLDING FIX WHILE BRIEFING FOR THE APCH.

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WHILE ENRTE TO EWR WX BEGAN DETERIORATING. CTR SUBSEQUENTLY BEGAN VECTORING AND SLOWING US DOWN. WE RECEIVED HOLDING CLRNCS AT BOTH KEHOE AND SLATE RUN WHICH WERE SUBSEQUENTLY CANCELED BY CTR. ALTHOUGH WX MINIMUMS WERE NOT CAT III WE SET UP FOR A PRACTICE AUTOLAND AND BRIEFED THE RWY 4R ILS AND EXCHANGED CTL OF THE ACFT. ZOB SIMULTANEOUSLY ISSUED A HOLDING CLRNC AT FQM; DSNDED TO FL190; AND A SPD REDUCTION TO 250 KTS. I BELIEVE THAT THE CLRNC WAS GIVEN TO US EITHER RIGHT OVER FQM OR JUST BEFORE THE FIX. AS THE FIX WAS NOT DISPLAYED ON THE LEGS PAGE OF THE FMS I MANUALLY ENTERED IT AND SET UP THE HOLD AS PER PROC UNAWARE THAT WE HAD ACTUALLY PASSED OVER THE FIX. AS I COULD NOT GET FQM TO DISPLAY ON THE MAP PAGE I ASKED MY FO TO GO RAW DATA AND SET UP FOR THE ENTRY. UPON DOING SO WE DISCOVERED THAT WE WERE 7 MI E OF FQM. SHORTLY THEREAFTER THE CTLR GAVE US A 300 DEG HDG BACK TO FQM WITH INSTRUCTIONS TO RE-ENTER THE HOLD. BOTH OF US RECOMPUTED THE HOLDING ENTRY AND COMPLIED WITH THE CLRNC. AT THIS TIME A NEW CTLR CANCELED THE HOLDING INSTRUCTIONS AND GAVE US DIRECT HAYED WITH INSTRUCTIONS TO FLY THE REMAINDER OF THE FQM1 ARR. I BELIEVE THAT BOTH THE FO AND MYSELF HAD BEEN DISTRACTED WHILE BRIEFING THE CAT 3 AND WERE UNAWARE THAT WE HAD BEEN ISSUED A CLRNC THAT WE COULD NOT REASONABLY COMPLY WITH. HAD THE CLRNC BEEN GIVEN AT LEAST A COUPLE OF MI PRIOR TO ARRIVING AT FQM WE WOULD'VE HAD NO PROB MAKING THE INITIAL ENTRY INTO THE HOLD.