Scottish Premiership: A Historic 3-2 Win for Ross County Against Rangers
Philippe Clement, the manager of Rangers, disclosed that his half-time words of caution were not heeded, leading to a surprising loss to Ross County and damaging the Rangers’ chances of winning the Scottish Premiership title.
In the first half, Ross County’s captain Jack Baldwin unfortunately scored an own goal 15 minutes in, despite Rangers’ mediocre performance and Ross County having multiple chances to score more.
Subsequently, Ross County notched two rapid goals after half-time, thanks to Simon Murray and George Harmon. Josh Sims then added an impressive third goal, and the team managed to survive a late-stage penalty from James Tavernier, the Rangers’ captain, to secure a 3-2 victory.
This marked Ross County’s inaugural victory over Rangers in 24 attempts, which included 20 losses and four draws.
The unexpected loss resides the Rangers four points behind the front-runners Celtic with an additional match yet to be played against Dundee on the upcoming Wednesday night. Meanwhile, Ross County who is positioned second from the bottom, closed in on 10th-positioned St Johnstone to just one point as they approach the split.
Clement remarked, “Today, we squandered our points. Our first half performance both with the ball and in challenges was inadequate. We had opportunities, but were ineffective in converting clear ones in the first half.
Walking into half-time leading by a goal isn’t enough given our first half performance and the players were advised likewise. I expected a marked improvement in the second half to maintain our lead, but we lost to two goals in a quick span and ended up trailing.
This act of playing catch-up drained us and inadvertently infused energy into our rivals who put in tremendous defensive effort across the field.
In the latter half of the game, I saw the urgency and effort that was lacking earlier; it was displayed only for 30 minutes instead of the entire game. Our defence was unusually sloppy, resulting in strange goals.
Despite having numerous opportunities, we failed to score enough; a timely note of our flawed execution. Ultimately, we handed momentum to Ross County who valiantly defended till the end. It’s essential that we improve our control of the ball and opposition to ensure they are denied any advantage in energy.”
County manager Don Cowie posits that his team drew greatly from the unfolding events during the match to solidify an important victory. Despite facing a goal, Cowie mentioned that they generated a few strong opportunities but was critical of their efficacy in these scenarios. Nevertheless, he observed that the players acknowledged the situation and developed their strategy from that point onwards.
Cowie shared that he communicated to his team at the mid-point of the game that their first-half performance was impressive and their trailing position in the score was disappointing. He encouraged them to commence the subsequent half energetically and optimistically, and they indeed delivered. Towards the game’s conclusion, Cowie admitted that there was palpable tension, but he was satisfied with how his players summoned bravery to secure a penalty, and thus, the game.
Cowie also addressed a post-game situation with Clement, expressing his understanding for why the latter didn’t shake hands immediately after the game. Clement explained that he urgently needed to evaluate his message to his team and that this abrupt exit should not be seen as a slight to Cowie, whom he greatly admires. Cowie was undisturbed by the event, stating that he realised Clement’s intentions. He added that they had a respectful interaction during the pre-game discussion, and doesn’t find a contention with him.