ROSS County claimed a historic victory over Rangers at the Global Energy Stadium this afternoon, greatly improving their chances of Premiership survival and giving Celtic the edge in the Scottish title race.
Philippe Clement’s team took the lead in the 15th minute when Don Cowie’s captain Jack Baldwin turned the ball into his own net after James Tavernier’s corner.
But County didn’t let their heads go down. They were arguably the better side in the first half and they equalized in the second half when Simon Murray beat Jack Butland.
From now on, they added to the misery of their opponents who were chasing three. George Harmon gave them the lead just three minutes after the equalizer and Josh Sims then equalized three points.
Tavernier was pulled one back in the 89th minute when a VAR check showed Brandon Khela making a tackle inside his own half. But it turned out to be too late for the visitors. They were later booed and jeered in the park.
It was the first time in its 95-year existence that the Highland club had beaten their Glasgow rivals. They finally defeated their opponents in the 25th question.
The shock defeat means Rangers are now four points behind Celtic, who they still need to face in the Premier League table at Parkhead, with a game against Dundee at Dens Park on Wednesday night.
Here are five talking points from an extraordinary afternoon.
Title turning point?
This wasn’t the first game Clement would choose to play after the frustrating midweek break.
County might have never beaten Rangers in their previous 24 attempts and sit second in the top-flight table struggling for survival. Still, it was a long journey to make this journey so soon after the events in Tayside.
They gave the traveling fans in the Academy End a goal to cheer on in the first half when they scored from Tavernier’s corner. Fabio Silva nodded and Baldwin headed home under pressure from John Souttar.
However, later they began to experience deficiencies in every field; especially on defense. The ease with which Murray, Harmon and Sims scored angered Clement on the touchline and he made at least four substitutions.
Borna Barisic, Fabio Silva, Kieran Dowell and Cyriel Dessers left the game and were replaced by Dujon Sterling, Rabbi Matondo, Tom Lawrence and Kemar Roofe respectively.
However, the changes made no difference to the trial. Todd Cantwell hit the crossbar from distance. But at no stage did they look capable of taking one point, let alone three. They made a lucky break with a spot kick.
Their fate is still very much in their own hands. If they win all the remaining matches, they will be champions in May. However, it is not possible to repeat this abomination, which shows whether they can achieve their goals or not.
sima beginning
Abdallah Sima made it 16 for the 2023/24 season seven days ago when he fired a deflected shot beyond Joe Hart after replacing the ineffective Scott Wright at half-time.
Hopes are high among Rangers supporters that the Brighton loanee, who underwent surgery on a calf injury he sustained while playing with Senegal in the Africa Cup of Nations in January, can give his team an offensive edge in the remaining matches. weeks of the season.
It was the 22-year-old’s first start since the 3-1 win over Kilmarnock at Ibrox on January 2. He needs competitive minutes to get his fitness and sharpness back to the level he was before his spell. on the sidelines. However, he provided much more presence and threat on the right flank than Wright had seven days earlier.
He came close to doubling his Ibrox club’s lead on several occasions in the first 45 minutes. Ross Laidlaw headed in after James Tavernier had got on the end of his shot and also saw an effort go wide of the bar.
He sent the ball into the net in the second half, but referee Matthew MacDermid did not allow it, ruling out handball. The striker will benefit from this escape. But Rangers need every player to be at their peak right now and that is simply not the case.
Toothless Rangers
Mohamed Diomande’s thumb injury against Celtic saw Dowell, who returned from the bench in the second half after a three-month injury lay-off in that game, move into midfield alongside John Lundstram.
The former Nottingham Forest, Shefield United, Derby County, Wigan Athletic and Norwich City player has had no trouble since moving to Rangers on a free transfer last summer.
But when he came forward, he gave some clues as to why previous manager Michael Beale was so keen to bring him in. He was good this afternoon and made room for Lawrence in the second half as Clement moved into attack.
But the visitors were poor both up front and at the back this afternoon. Especially dessert shops had an empty day.
district class
Cowie, the interim County executive, clearly thought that desperate times called for desperate measures; He made at least five changes to the team that lost 1-0 to Kilmarnock at Rugby Park last weekend, and the goalkeeper was one of them.
Fulham loanee George Wickens was replaced by Laidlaw, with Harmon, Victor Loturi, Sims and Yan Dhanda also arriving, while Loick Ayina, Eamonn Brophy, Jordan White and Josh Reid were substituted.
The changes had the desired effect. His attacks created more scoring chances than his opponents in the opening exchanges. However, Harmon, Murray, Dhanda and Sims failed to capitalize on them. Jack Butland made a good save from the latter’s shot. When Harmon curled an attempt high over the crossbar after being connected by Ekli King nine minutes before half-time, it sort of summed up their afternoon so far.
Despite this, they resisted and got their reward in the second minute of the second half. Butland denied Murray with his outstretched leg. However, the red-haired striker kept his cool and found the target on the second question. The striker turned provider a few minutes later.
He tested Butland from a tight angle. The England hopeful kept his shot out but laid at the feet of Harmon, who kept his composure to put his side ahead and send the home fans into the crowd of 6,382. More celebrations ensued when Sims appeared as a ghost and took action.
They are currently just one point behind St Johnstone in the league. If they can continue to perform like this in the coming weeks, they will avoid the drop for the second time in as many seasons. But they set the bar too high.
Goalkeeper heroics
Laidlaw more than justified his involvement. Todd Cantwell denied Sima and Dessers with excellent blocks to keep County in the game. Without the returning vice-captain, salvaging a result, let alone victory, would have been beyond them.