A night at the soap opera
Gers making a drama out of a crisis
CORONATION STREET actor Craig Charles was performing in Inverness town centre last night.
But along the road at the Caledonian Stadium, the plot thickened in this Rangers soap opera.
And yet again for the travelling Bears, what they were watching made for grim viewing.
It wasn’t exactly the same script as the one that was played out last Sunday at Dens Park.
This was a better performance from the Ibrox men. It was more pleasing on the eye at times, certainly.
But ultimately it had the same ending – another damaging defeat for stand-in boss Graeme Murty’s side and the loss of another three points.
TV star Charles, who was in the Highlands doing a soul and funk music show, also appeared in the science fiction hit Red Dwarf.
But as last night’s events unfolded at Caley Thistle’s ground, Rangers’ future was still unclear.
Murty remains in charge for the foreseeable. But how long can the uncertainty over the head coach – and the director of football role – go on?
It’s understandable that the Ibrox hierarchy want to take their time. No one is disputing that.
They must get the appointment of Mark Warburton and Davie Weir’s successors right. They can’t afford not to.
But after potentially slipping nine points behind secondplaced Aberdeen in the Premiership, the Gers punters are getting restless.
They want a shred of information to cling on to.
They want to be made aware of what is happening behind the scenes.
That storyline has taken a few twists as well. On Thursday, rumours were rife that Dutch coach Martin Jol was in Glasgow and set for Ibrox talks.
That looks like a red herring. But over a fortnight after Warburton’s shock departure, the club don’t seem to be any closer to getting their men.
Last night, the current protagonists in this Rangers episode fluffed their lines again in Inverness.
And yet their opening to the match would have had punters on the edge of their seats.
Unlike at Dens Park, Murty’s players looked up for it. On a freezing cold night, their passing was crisp and precise, the movement clever – and they looked a threat.
On-loan Arsenal man Jon Toral, playing in a deeper role, was dictating the play.
They were first to every loose ball and early on Richie Foran’s side couldn’t get a kick.
But that’s the problem with this Rangers cast.
Even in Warburton’s time at the club, they weren’t ruthless enough. Never have been. Murty will have known better than anyone that they had to score when they were dominant.
The fact they didn’t gave Caley Thistle confidence and the home team were always going to work their way into the game and compete.
That’s exactly what they did and it was no real surprise that after having most of the pressure, Rangers conceded just before half-time.
Greg Tansey’s strike on Inverness Caley Thistle’s 1000th game was a cracking opener. But from the visitors’ point of view, it was avoidable.
Not switching on from the throw-in, James Tavernier’s botched clearance and then not getting close enough to the midfielder to fully block the shot.
To be fair to them, Rangers actually responded well in the second half, pressing the Highlanders deep into their own half.
When Toral was presented with a gilt-edged chance one-on-one he skewed it wide and the opportunity was lost. Finally, they got a goal their play deserved from Martyn Waghorn’s penalty and it looked like they’d go on and win it. But despite testing Owain Fon Williams, their own keeper Wes Foderingham also had to pull out stops to deny Tansey again and Billy Mckay. He even kept out a penalty with his save from Iain Vigurs – and that looked like earning them a draw. But Mckay had the last word in a thrilling finale when he bagged the winner. And so the drama continues for Gers.
The punters are getting restless – they want a shred of information to cling to