10-man Rangers see off Hibs in Development League

Rangers took a well deserved three points against Development league leaders Hibs at Hibernian Training Centre this afternoon despite playing a large chunk of the second half with only ten men.

With a handful of senior players starting, Rangers looked to gain an early lead and had the perfect opportunity after just a few minuted when referee Evan Cairns pointed to the spot after a foul on David Bates. Joe Dodoo stepped up to take the spot kick but ballooned his effort high over Paddy Martin’s crossbar.

It didn’t take much longer for Rangers to break the deadlock however. A corner from the right hand side was met by David Bates, who had a free header, but his header was blocked. The rebound only fell as far as Dodoo and he slid the ball home from a few yards.

Graeme Murty’s side kept up the pressure of their hosts with Gilmour and Beerman in particular causing problems down the left. Hibs tried to get themselves back into the game before the break, Chris Humphrey and the impressive Fraser Murray their main attacking outlets, but Danny and Aidan Wilson comfortably dealt with anything thrown at them.

The early going of second-half followed a similar pattern as the first with Rangers looking to impose themselves on their hosts and extend their advantage. The Young Gers saw lots of possession and it was only some dogged defending that stopped them adding a second. Hibs finally tried to salvage something from the game and forced a series of smart saves from Robbie McCrorie.

The game was then turned on it’s head after a red card for Rangers’ Billy Gilmour for a dangerous challenge. The referee made the right decision to dismiss the midfielder but given some of the other challenges he had allowed to go unpunished it seemed a little harsh. The Hibs players reaction to the challenge was embarrassing and saw several Hibs players looking for a fight. The referee quickly lost control of the game and despite flashing a few yellow cards in the aftermath never really regained it.

Although they were a player down, Rangers still, largely, looked assured on the ball and confident defensively but Hibs would grab an equaliser with just a few minutes left on the clock. A free-kick from wide was headed at goal, drawing a fantastic save from McCrorie but the rebound fell kindly for Hibs and was stabbed home.

Rangers weren’t finished though. With seconds left, Myles Beerman picked up on a slack pass out from the Hibs defence and drove thirty yards before firing an unstoppable shot over Martin and into to the top corner. The Maltese full-back has been an important player for the Development Squad since joining from Man City and took his goal brilliantly.

Rangers: Robby McCrorie, David Bates, Myles Beerman, Max Ashmore, Aidan Wilson, Danny Wilson, Liam Burt, Harry Forrester, Joe Dodoo, Billy Gilmour, Ross Lyon

Subs: Wright, Bradley, Rudden, Atayaki, Krones, Gibson, Abaradan

Goals: Dodoo 16, Beerman 90