RANGERS
DISGRACE THEMSELVES AT THE VETCH
Being a Rangers fan, you develop a thick skin. You expect that every
other week all your mates at work will be taking the piss after your
latest defeat, you expect that every now and then a smaller team
will make a mockery of you in the cup. What you do not expect is to
walk out of a football ground thoroughly ashamed of your team.
From first whistle to last Rangers
were made to look ordinary by a team that currently sits in 18th
position in Division 3. They are in this position for a reason, they
are crap. Today you would have thought we were playing Brazil such
was the time and space allowed by a lacklustre and at times
disinterested Rangers side.
All the talk of injuries during the week had given people hope that
a few fresh faces might be added to the squad. We arrived to see the
usual suspects going through their pre-match warm up. Christer
Warren replaced Paul Bruce at left back, a change that is hardly
going to inspire confidence and Leroy Griffiths replaced Andy
Thomson who was given the day off for family reasons. As always the
rule of no Thommo no goals was in effect.
The team could not have made a worse start. The game was not yet ten
minutes old when flying postman John Williams gave Swansea the lead.
A sweeping move from back to front led to Mamady Sidibe delivering
an inch perfect cross for Williams to tap home. In Williams and
Sidibe Swansea had a front pairing that had both size and
electrifying pace. Against our rather cumbersome pairing of Chris
Plummer and Steve Palmer, they had an absolute field day. The ease
with which they went past our two lumbering carthorses was
ridiculous.
Shortly before half time, Swansea added a second through Nick Cusack.
Christer Warren gave away a needless free kick on half way. A long
ball was pumped to the edge of the box, flicked on and fired home by
Cusack with barely a challenge to be seen. Half time and 2-0 down
against a side that should not have been posing any threat. Now you
would think that this should be a sign that changes were needed. No
bloody chance! The same eleven that had failed to create a single
chance took the field for the second period. I assume Holloway
expected them to turn the game around themselves. If this was the
case, he was the only one in the ground with that thought in his
head.
Another fifteen odd minutes had passed when Holloway made two
changes and in the process wasted a substitution that could have
been vital. Mark Perry was replaced by Ollie Burgess, which was fair
enough, but then Bruce replaced Warren! What the hell was all that
about. Why bother to replace one shit left back with another. What
we needed was a presence up front to hold the ball and bring others
into play. Stuart Wardley would have been the far better option but
no, Holloway knows better. I hate to say it but I am really starting
to get pissed off with Holloway's tactical naivety. As mush as I
admire him for the conditions he has to work under, I can not excuse
his inability to read a game and make changes that might help us
win.
As it turned out Bruce had our only meaningful attempt at goal. His
twenty-five yard free kick glanced off the outside of former Rangers
target Roger Freestone's post. Another lengthy period of apathy
ensued before a double blow from Swansea finally killed off any
hopes of a comeback.
A hopeful punt forward bounced between Digby and Sidibe. Digby came
rushing from his goal and had an air shot at the ball, this left
Sidibe with the simple task of controlling the ball and rolling it
into the gaping net. Just before full time Swansea stalwart Steve
Parking added the fourth from all of two feet.
From a total of fourteen player used in this game only two can hold
their heads high knowing that they did all they could to try and
prevent this sickening defeat. Ollie Burgess ran his heart out on
the right wing and supplied good quality passes for the rest of the
team to arse up. The other player to emerge with credit is Terrell
Forbes. If it had not been for a quite breathtaking display from
Forbes, we could have conceded six or seven. He spent the entire
night clearing up the mess left behind by Plummer and Palmer and
tried in vain to get forward whenever possible.
The rest of the team should hang their heads in shame. They do not
seem to appreciate how much this club means to the beleaguered fans
who have had to endure so much over the past five years. I would
rather have seen a team made up of supporters get crushed 12-0 than
watch so called professional footballers put on a display that made
me feel sick to my stomach.
If we do not respond to this defeat in a positive manner then the
fans will start to turn not only on the team but on Holloway as
well. We already have absolutely no faith in what happens at board
level and it would be a sorry state of affairs if this were the case
at pitch level to. We have to beat Swindon it is as simple as that.
If we play the same side that played today, we won't. He needs to
inject some pace into the defence and that means that Palmer and
Plummer must be dropped. He needs to find a creative spark in
midfield and that means Perry and Bonnot must be dropped. Most of
all we need a steady supply of goals and that means Griffiths and
Doudou must be dropped.
Such a mass cull may not please everyone but it is time that certain
players realised that a place in the team is not theirs by some sort
of divine right. They must earn the opportunity to pull in the blue
and white hoops and on this display, not many deserve that at the
moment. |