GERRARD IS UP, UP AND AWAY

Rangers manager finally gets to savour victory on the road

WITH its three sides and supermarket backdrop, The Hope CBD Stadium cannot rank beside some of the more storied venues at which Steven Gerrard has tasted success in dramatic fashion.

Even so, he will remember it as the site of a little landmark in his Rangers tenure after this extraordinary conclusion.

A first away Premiership win for his side — at the fifth time of asking — looked highly unlikely when Hamilton substitute Steven Boyd struck in the 80th minute to cancel out Ryan Kent’s first-half opener.

Gerrard didn’t attempt to disguise how sluggish and slipshod his side had looked until that point. The obvious fear was of recent history repeating itself.

Yet another tale of woe on the road was averted when Alex Penny came to unwelcome prominence. The 21-year-old Accies defender, signed from Peterborough in the summer, conceded two penalties in the space of three minutes — with a handball quickly followed by a foul on Alfredo Morelos.

James Tavernier converted both with aplomb — making it seven spot-kicks from eight goals overall this term — before Morelos set the seal on a late goal surge in stoppage-time.

The relief Rangers felt was huge. As a club, this was their first away league win since St Johnstone were swept aside in February.

It means another box has now been ticked as Gerrard’s tenure continues to take shape. And, just as importantly, no ground has been lost in the bid to close on the teams above them. The Ibrox outfit are up to fifth in the standings, above Hibernian on goal difference, and still five points behind leaders Hearts.

This hard-won victory also provided an ultimately positive start to an important week. Spartak Moscow visit in the Europa League on Thursday evening before a trip to Hampden for the Betfred Cup semi-final against Aberdeen next Sunday.

How those emotions contrasted with their hosts. For Hamilton, thrashed 6-0 by Hibs in their last outing, this was a different kind of pain. They had enough chances across the 90 minutes to claim at least a point, yet ended up picking through another hefty scoreline. Martin Canning’s only consolation was in knowing every other bottom-four rival had also lost over this weekend.

Canning’s team lined up against a Rangers selection notable for the inclusion of Jordan Rossiter. Scott Arfield’s hamstring strain created a midfield vacancy that was filled by the ex-Liverpool youngster, whose two years at Ibrox have been dominated by injuries. This was his first start since the final day of last season.

Rangers had hoped to have learned harsh lessons from last month’s defeat on artificial turf against Livingston as they strove to replicate their excellent Ibrox form.

Yet the early signs were not promising for Gerrard. Looking uncertain on another plastic pitch and lacking any fluency in their play, the first half threatened to become further bleak viewing for the travelling support.

It took 31 minutes for Rangers to deliver their first meaningful shot on target. Ovie Ejaria had halfslipped as he struck it — one of many instances of players losing their footing — but Gary Woods was still forced to shovel it around the post.

Prior to that, an interchange between Morelos and Daniel Candeias led to the Portuguese winger firing wide. Kent had also found the side-netting from an acute angle, but it had been anything but assured dominance from the Ibrox men.

With Hamilton posing at least as much threat, they were a team in need of a spark.

Ignition arrived four minutes before the break via Kent’s third goal of the season. The Liverpool loanee has gradually grown in influence in recent weeks to become a confident contributor.

Danger signs flashed for Accies when Lassana Coulibaly cut out an attempted pass forward from Ziggy Gordon. The Malian midfielder picked out Morelos, who promptly flicked a clever pass to meet Kent’s charge through the inside-left channel.

The winger outstripped Penny for pace before lifting a composed finish over the onrushing Woods and into an unguarded net. Kent’s joy wasn’t dimmed by his celebration being punished by a booking.

That little slice of incision condemned Accies to a halftime deficit. But Canning’s team trudged off knowing it could have been otherwise.

They had given as good as they’d got. Chances were fashioned. Yet the coolness shown by Kent was absent from their ranks.

Right-back Aaron McGowan was unlucky with a swipe off the outside of his right boot that whistled over Allan McGregor’s bar. But he would have reason to regret a better opportunity that followed.

Referee Andrew Dallas dismissed penalty claims as Mickel Miller and Tavernier tussled inside the area, with the ball being lifted towards the far post. McGowan was up highest to meet it but his header lacked accuracy.

Darian MacKinnon was the other Accies player to have sight of goal. His left-foot shot — under pressure from Coulibaly — skidded wide of McGregor’s right-hand post after Rangers’ defence failed to deal with Frederik Brustad’s cross. An opportunity to quickly cancel out Kent’s strike also slipped away. MacKinnon was in the right place to benefit when McGregor could only punch half-clear from a crowded six-yard area, yet his instinctive effort drifted too high.

Accies resumed their quest after the restart, knowing how crucial it could be to claim the next goal. Miller did well to wriggle into the area, but couldn’t retain his composure when closed down by McGregor.

A more glaring miss followed. When Rakish Bingham’s drive was pushed out by McGregor, it fell perfectly for fellow substitute James Keatings. Somehow, though, he managed to miss the target.

It would be the third man off the Accies bench who would draw them level with ten minutes to play. Boyd’s cross was headed back in his direction by Connor Goldson, providing an invitation the youngster didn’t refuse. He skipped away from a weak Rossiter challenge before curling home a fantastic finish.

Rangers were in trouble. At least until Penny struck out his arm to block a Candeias cross. Tavernier converted and rapidly repeated the feat when Dallas again penalised Penny, this time when he was suckered into tripping Morelos.

The Colombian would then have the final say in a frantic finish, sweeping into the net after Candeias was blocked.

HAMILTON (5-4-1): Woods 6; McGowan 6, Penny 4, Tshiembe 6, Gordon 6 (Boyd 76), McMann 5; Miller 5 (Keatings 69), Martin 6, MacKinnon 6, Imrie 6; Brustad 6 (Bingham 62). Subs not used: Fulton, Want, Smith, Sowah. Booked: Miller, Martin, MacKinnon, Boyd.

RANGERS (4-3-3): McGregor 6; Tavernier 7, Goldson 6, Katic 5 (Worrall 78), Halliday 6; Rossiter 6 (Grezda 82), Coulibaly 6, Ejaria 6; Candeias 6, Morelos 6, Kent 7 (McCrorie 88). Subs not used: Foderingham, Umar, Flanagan, Middleton. Booked: Kent, Candeias, Rossiter, Morelos, Halliday.

Man of the match: Ryan Kent. Referee: Andrew Dallas. Attendance: 5,013.