THE LATE SHOW
‘Ugly’ victory is a thing of beauty for boss Gerrard
STEVEN GERRARD last night hailed his Rangers players for the ‘ugly’ win that lifted their Kilmarnock curse and secured a handsome start to the new Premiership season.
The Ibrox outfit were staring at dropped points on day one of their campaign when Stephen O’Donnell’s 83rd-minute strike cancelled out a first-half opener from Scott Arfield.
Rangers claimed a dramatic stoppage-time clincher, however, when Connor Goldson headed in a James Tavernier corner kick — prompting jubilant visiting fans to spill out of the Chadwick Stand and onto the pitch.
Gerrard’s side lost both of their league visits to Rugby Park last season, forming part of a longer trend that had left the club without a top-flight win at the venue since 2011. The Ibrox manager
was delighted with the spirit shown yesterday to ensure there was no repeat of those past failings despite a lack of chances from open play.
‘It was a story of set-pieces and we ended up winning 2-1,’ reflected Gerrard. ‘I thought it would have been harsh and cruel if we didn’t come away with maximum points.
‘We controlled the majority of the game, although we switched off at the back post for their goal.
‘We shouldn’t be giving away stupid fouls in our own half when we only have a one-goal lead.
‘There’s a few things we need to learn from pretty quickly but, in the main, I’m pretty pleased with the character and the effort.
‘Kilmarnock took ten points from us last season, so it was important to come here and win. Sometimes you have to show a different side. Sometimes it’s not pretty and nice.
‘Sometimes you just have to get over the line and win ugly and Connor has come big for us.’
Gerrard had called for his side to show greater resilience in the closing stages of matches, pointing to the damage done by late goals last season.
Rangers collected only five points from their first four Premiership matches after last-gasp concessions twice cost them victory.
‘We did concede too many goals in the final stages,’ said Gerrard.
‘I remember in the first couple of away fixtures last season we lost one late on at Aberdeen and then conceded a late set-piece at Motherwell.
‘I understand that happens from time to time but if it happens too often, you need to learn from it.
‘This time it has gone our way and I’m pleased with the outcome.’
While delighted with the mentality shown, Gerrard was reluctant to view it as early evidence of Rangers’ capability to offer Celtic a sustained title challenge.
‘It is too early to talk about titles,’ he insisted. ‘We are 90 minutes into a season. I understand people are going to ask questions and talk about us an awful lot.
‘For me, we just focus from game to game. We want to fight as hard as we can all the way to the end.
‘I have said to my players individually and collectively that it’s too early to talk about titles. There is too much football to be played.
‘But it certainly helps when you start well. It is the start I was looking for.’
Goalscorer Arfield agreed that the late show was an expression of the character within a squad augmented by eight summer additions.
‘Every last-minute winner is enjoyable and it is really enjoyable to do it at a place like this because you know how tough it is before the game and during the game,’ said the Canada midfielder.
‘To get the goal and show that character and go as long as we needed to, was very enjoyable.
‘That is the thing that we spoke about at the end of last season, that we spoke about during the season.
‘Again, that is what we have said at the start of the season. As long as we go as strong as possible, as long as possible, we can keep going and we have got leaders in there that are going to step up at big times.
‘I think we showed it on numerous occasions last year but then we fell short. At a club like this, it gets magnified and it should be because you should be winning most games.
‘In every game, that is our objective to do that. It is a mentality and that is the sort of mentality that the manager has brought into this group of players.
‘That is what he has been banging on about, to go as long as possible. It has come to fruition today and we are really happy with it.’