this afternoon, going down 2-4 to Hearts at a hostile
Tynecastle.
The setback was a serious blow to the Light Blues
coming as it did just four days before their opening
Champions League fixture against Stuttgart - but the
root cause of the reversal was Manager Walter Smith's
team selection which inexplicably saw a weakened
visiting side take the field, with Barry Ferguson,
Brahim Hemdani, Lee McCulloch and Jean-Claude
Darcheville all absent. Making his debut in midfield
was Amdy Faye.
David Weir captained the Ibrox men who wore all-blue,
but it was the home side who made the early running
with Audrius Ksanavicius testing Allan McGregor with a
25-yard shot that the goalkeeper touched wide in nine
minutes.
The opening goal was merely delayed three minutes
however - Andy Driver taking advantage of a Carlos
Cuellar error to drive home an angled left-foot shot.
Rangers had their backs to the wall, and it was 2-0 in
25 minutes when Ibrahim Tall hooked the ball home from
the edge of the box with the aid of a deflection.
Eight minutes later the game exploded when Robbie
Neilson caught DaMarcus Beasley with a late tackle
that provoked a reaction from the Ranger. Shamefully
the full-back collapsed as if shot, and Referee Mike
McCurry produced a yellow card for both players.
Despicably however Christian Nade got away scot-free
after aiming a kick at David Weir off the ball.
McCurry then felt obliged to spaek to both Hearts
Coach Stephen Frail and Ally McCoist.
Rangers had been rocked by a most thrilling display
from the home side during that opening 45 minutes, but
the unnecessary changes in the visitors line-up had
undoubtedly contributed in large measure to their
discomfort. Walter Smith, who had perhaps
underestimated the Gorgie challenge, recognised this
at the interval by introducing both Ferguson and
Darcheville in place of Faye and the ineffective Kris
Boyd who had scarcely touched the ball during that
first-half.
Hearts' physical approach had to an extent intimidated
the Light Blues, and no sooner had the second-half
started than Nade was barging into McGregor. Again the
striker got off scot-free with Mike McCurry taking no
action.
Rangers needed a quick goal to get back into the game
- and that's exactly what they got in 47 minutes when
Daniel Cousin netted from the penalty spot after
Neilson had upended Ferguson.
Suddenly it was a different ball-game, and the Ibrox
men began to take control - but just when an equaliser
seemed inevitable Alan Hutton threw it all away,
conceding a penalty in 64 minutes with a reckless
tackle on substitute Kestutis Ivaskevicius.
Michael Stewart converted the spot-kick, and Rangers
were back to square one.
Five minutes later unbelievably it was 4-1 when
Ivaskevicius cut in from the left before firing in a
left-foot shot from the edge of the box that McGregor
got down to but failed to hold.
Rangers were on the ropes, but did manage to reduce
the deficit in 73 minutes when Beasley rifled the ball
home from Darcheville's slip.
Three minutes later there was yet another unsavoury
incident when Hearts substitute Calum Elliot
deliberately ran into McGregor before collapsing in a
heap. Yet another example of simulation from a team
who have developed cheating into an art form - egged
on by a hostile home crowd whose racial and homophobic
abuse of the opposition was shameful.
Wonder what the SPL delegate made of it all.
HEARTS Banks; Neilson, Tall, Berra, Wallace; Kingston,
Zaliukas (Palazuelos 71), Stewart, Driver
(Ivaskevicius 47); Nade (Elliot 75), Ksanavicius
UNUSED SUBS Kurskis, Kancelskis, Pospisil, Karipidis,
RANGERS McGregor; Hutton, Weir, Cuellar, Papac;
Whittaker, Faye (Ferguson 45), Thomson, Beasley;
Cousin (Novo 75), Boyd (Darcheville 45)
UNUSED SUBS Smith, Naismith, Lennon, Loy
REFEREE Mike McCurry
Attendance 16,948