ROOFE NOW THE TOP MAN
Clinical Kemar puts misfiring Morelos in the shade as leaders dismiss Saints
AT THIS rate the ceiling for Kemar Roofe could stretch sky high by May. Knocked out of the Betfred Cup by St Mirren l ast midweek, Steven Gerrard sought a response from his Rangers players. The reaction of his £4million summer signing has been emphatic.
The scorer of two huge goals against Motherwell on Saturday, the Englishman added his ninth in nine league starts — his 11th in all — as the Premiership leaders comfortably negotiated the first test of a potentially awkward festive period in Perth.
The game was effectively over after two minutes of the second half, Ianis Hagi squirming a shot under St Johnstone’s unusually slipshod keeper Zander Clark f or the third goal after a deft Glen Kamara finish for the second.
The only mild regret for the visitors was the failure to pile on the goals.
Returning from a two-match suspension, Alfredo Morelos demonstrated why Roofe is now the main man up front when he replaced the opening goalscorer with less than half an hour to play.
Presented with a shocking clearance by Clark, the substitute had the goal gaping and still managed to hammer the ball wide. It was a shocking miss.
Sixteen points clear at the top of the Premiership, Rangers can be glad that they rely a good deal less on the Colombian these days. Much of that i s down to the clinical contribution of Roofe.
How St Johnstone could use a striker even half as effective. A fifth straight match without a win ended with ten men after late substitute Michael O’Halloran lasted just six minutes, earning two quickfire yellow cards during a brief and unsatisfying cameo before taking an early bath.
A venue where they came unstuck last season, Rangers could be more satisfied with their night’s work.
In Roofe, they already look to have made one of the signings of the season.
The striker has shown he can score the difficult goals from distance in the Europa League as he did in Liege. Just as pleasing for Gerrard is the poacher’s instinct of recent games as he f i red Rangers into the lead after 24 minutes with a goal of simplicity.
Kamara is attracting admiring eyes from the likes of Brighton and, on nights like this, it’s not hard to see why. The bargain £50,000 signing from Dundee made something from nothing, nicking the ball off the toe of Craig Conway as the St Johnstone man howled in vain for a free-kick.
Driving forward, Kamara laid the ball off to Hagi, back i n the starting line-up for Scott Arfield.
The Romanian’s low left-foot shot was powerful, but one home goalkeeper Clark should have dealt with comfortably enough.
Instead St Johnstone’s No1 spilled the ball straight into the path of the lurking Roofe. The £4million signing from Anderlecht may have had an easier finish in his Rangers career care so far. Right now, it’s hard to think of one.
The former Leeds United hitman glanced over at the assistant referee to be sure he wasn’t offside then took off to celebrate his 11th goal of the season.
Playing in their white away shirts, the Ibrox side settled into their groove. After an untidy start, they began to relax.
The architect of the first goal, Kamara was the finisher of the second after 32 minutes.
The Finnish midfielder had previously scored just three times in his Rangers career and he was in the mood to add to that tally from the start, curling a decent effort on to the roof of the net after 15 minutes
Such was the quality of the through ball from Joe Aribo, there was no way of missing the next one. The weight and execution of the Nigerian international’s pass was sublime, Kamara having the simplest task to dink the ball beyond Clark as he raced from his goal.
With a little after half an hour played, Rangers were cruising and St Johnstone pegged in their own half defending for their lives, a porous-looking back line that seemed vulnerable to every decent ball through the middle.
Ryan Kent had time and space in the middle of goal to add a third three minutes before half-time. In contrast with the first goal, Clark dealt with it this time. Yet for Rangers, the first half was unexpectedly comfortable.
For St Johnstone to have any chance, that had to change. Boss Callum Davidson pushed striker Stevie May and Ali McCann on for Conway and Murray Davidson at half-time in a quest to find a way back into the match.
For that to happen, Rangers had to show signs of relenting. Instead they scored a third two minutes after the restart. As with the opening Rangers goal, it didn’t look great for home keeper Clark.
St Johnstone couldn’t match Aribo’s vision and passing, no one could. As with the second goal, a fine through-ball from the midfielder sent Roofe haring towards goal. An explosive shot was bravely blocked by Shaun Rooney before falling kindly for Hagi. The midfielder’s attempt was less ferocious but still had enough to squirm through Clark’s body for 3-0. Game over.
Everything St Johnstone tried ended in frustration. Ten minutes into the second half, they made their best chance of the night when substitute May found a way in behind the Rangers defence and managed to get a shot away on goal. Called into action for the first time, Allan McGregor produced an excellent save.
The next moments of note involving a Saints player brought embarrassment to substitute O’Halloran. Booked for pulling back Morelos, a wild challenge on Borna Barisic earned another yellow from referee Nick Walsh moments later and a red card with seven minutes to play.
The result made it 11 straight victories for Rangers. Negotiate the next three games against Hibs, St Mirren and Celtic as comfortably as they did this one and they will take some stopping. ST JOHNSTONE (3-4-3): Clark 4; McCart 5, Gordon 5, Rooney 6; Booth 5, Davidson 3 (McCann 46), Bryson 5, McNamara 5 (O’Halloran 77); Conway 3 (May 46), Kane 5 (Melamed 82), Wotherspoon 5. Subs not used: Parish, Craig, Hendry, Ferguson. Booked: Wotherspoon, O’Halloran. Sent off: O’Halloran. RANGERS (4-3-3): McGregor 7; Tavernier 7, Helander 6, Goldson 6, Barisic 7; Davis 6 (Zungu 77), Aribo 7, Kamara 7; Hagi 7 (Arfield 82), Roofe 7 (Morelos 64), Kent 5 (Itten 82). Subs not used: McLaughlin, Bassey, Defoe, Patterson, Balogun.
Booked: None. Man of the match: Kemar Roofe. Referee: Nick Walsh.