Bold Lions shake up Ibrox but home side roar back
Frustrated Holt proud of his players’brave efforts
Former squaddie Gary Holt’s shock troopers put up a spirited performance against Rangers on Armed Forces Day but it wasn’t enough as Rangers ran out 3- 1 winners.
It looked like it could have been very different at the end of the first half when Rangers were booed off the park by a frustrated home support.
Neither side had created many clean-cut chances and Nicky Devlin had more than snuffed out the threat of Ryan Kent, so the Lions had more than earned the right to go in level at the break.
Livingston taking a shock lead at the start of the second did not do much to lift the mood of the home fans either.
Lyndon Dykes drew a silly foul from Scott Arfield inside the box and left referee Willie Collum little option but to point to the spot.
Steven Lawless shot low to Allan McGregor’s right and suddenly the men from West Lothian found themselves sitting in second place in the league.
As Rangers picked up the pace and went in search of a leveller, Dykes was booked for kicking out at Alfredo Morelos in the 49th minute and that proved to be costly later on.
The home side equalised on the 54th minute after Marvin Bartley fouled Morelos deep in his own half. James Tavernier’s
free-kick lacked fizz but somehow made it through a cluster of players and into the net.
Rangers probably deserved a lead and were beginning to edge proceedings but Livingston almost took the lead again on the hour mark.
The excellent Dykes was really beginning to impress himself on the game and he robbed Nikola Katic of possession deep in the Rangers half and won his side a corner. Chris Erskine rose high to meet Keaghan Jacobs’ corner and his header smashed against the bar and was cleared before any of the Livi players could pounce on the loose ball.
Chances continued to come for both sides but Rangers quality eventually shone through.
Jack McMillan blocked a Morelos shot to turn it out for a corner in the 70th minute but the Colombian was on hand to head home for the home side from the resulting flag-kick.
Then the referee changed the whole dynamic of this match when he sent off Dykes.
The Aussie hitman had been outstanding throughout and was leading the line superbly but when he went up for a high ball with Connor Goldson, the referee decided he had infringed the Rangers player and Dykes was giving his marching orders – much to the chagrin of Holt who was disgusted by the decision.
Aymen Souda was thrown on as a late sub but couldn’t help stem the Rangers charge and Brandon Barker fired into the roof of the net to clinch the three points for Rangers on the 79th minute.
Livingston kept plugging away but being a man and two goals down was too big a deficit to overcome.
Holt was full of praise for his troops afterwards but was very disappointed with the red card for Dykes.
He said: “I am proud as punch, I asked them to stand here toe to toe and be big and bold. When you come to a place like this you need the small decisions to go in your favour.
“First goal for them I don’t think it was a free-kick, I thought Marvin won the ball, got it clean. Next minute it is in the net.
“I haven’t spoke to Willie (Collum) so I don’t know but by all accounts he said to Marvin that he would have sent him off if he hadn’t won the ball so how is it a free-kick then?
“But it is the wee things that you need to go in your favour. You need that wee bit of luck and I don’t think we got it today.
“With Lyndon I don’t think it was a second yellow – it was very harsh. He has not gone up and thrown his elbow, he contested the ball in the air.
“If we are going to get cards for that, we will have eight or nine every week.”