St Johnstone 1-2 Rangers: James Tavernier's stunning, long-range strike clinches vital win for Steven Gerrard's men as they come from behind to clinch all three points 

  • The hosts took a shock lead through Michael O'Halloran in the second half  
  • But Rangers equalised just seven minutes later thanks to a Kemar Roofe penalty
  • James Tavernier popped up with the winner just ten minutes from time  

As Zander Clark galloped forward to contest a corner-kick deep into stoppage-time, Steven Gerrard can only have feared the worst.

Rangers had suffered form this sort of ending before. This time, and to Gerrard’s immense relief, the St Johnstone goalkeeper was not able to get his head to the cross, there was to be no late equaliser of the kind that led to Rangers’ elimination from last season’s Scottish Cup.

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Instead the plaudits can be enjoyed by the reigning Premiership champions’ captain James Tavernier, who lit up this topsy-turvy football match with a moment of match-winning brilliance, a shot that was Beckham-esque in its execution as it flew beyond Clark and into the top corner.

rangers left it late to seal a win over St Johnstone thanks to James Tavernier's long-range effort
It was a big win for Steven Gerrard's side, who are top of the Scottish Premiership

The win returned Rangers to the top of the table but one could well argue that the home team did not deserve this defeat. 

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Forced into fielding a patchwork team through injury and some damaging transfer business on deadline day, Callum Davidson played on percentages in the first half and was rewarded as his team edged in front just after half-time thanks to a fine finish from one-time Rangers player Michael O’Halloran.

The Perth side would have further chances to score but it was Rangers who responded with conviction, first through a Kemar Roofe penalty and then that stunning Tavernier strike that returned last season’s league winner’s to the summit of the table.

MATCH FACTS  

St Johnstone (5-3-2) Clark; Rooney, Brown, Muller (Vertainen 83), McCart, Devine; Wotherspoon, Craig, Crawford (May 85); O’Halloran, Kane. Subs – Parish, Dendoncker, Ambrose, Gilmour, Ballantyne.

Goals: O'Halloran 51  

Rangers (4-3-3) McLaughlin; Tavernier, Balogun, Helander (Simpson 77), Bassey; Kamara, Davis, Aribo; Kent (Lundstram 82), Morelos (Sakala 78), Roofe. Subs – McGregor, Barisic, Arfield, Wright.

Goals: Roofe 58 pen, Tavernier 79  

Referee – Willie Collum.

 

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A positive Covid test had forced Tavernier to miss the Old Firm victory over Celtic a fortnight ago and this time it was the normally ever-present Conor Goldson’s turn to miss out after being forced into isolation.

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Leon Balogun, outstanding against Celtic, stepped inside but would have an uncomfortable afternoon in which he never truly settled into the game.

Returning from his own personal lockdown was manager Gerrard, forced into isolation for the derby and the preceding Europa League qualifier against Alashkert.

His main selection issue surrounded the goalkeeping position. Youngster Robby McCrorie had deputised competently the two previous games but was left out altogether to facilitate the return of the first and second choices to the match day squad.

It was Jon McLaughlin and not first choice Allan McGregor who started and within ten minutes he had picked up a booking for scything down O’Halloran who had beaten both he and Balogun to a speculative through ball from Liam Craig.

It was an encouraging start for the home fans who had drifted towards McDiarmid Park, aching for some good news after a horrible end to the transfer window in which their club’s two best players were sold.

They got a pre-match lift with the announcement that Davidson had signed a new long-term contract until 2025 yet the cold fact remained that the team on the pitch looked well short of the side that worked wonders to lift both the League and Scottish Cups last season.

In addition to the sales of captain Jason Kerr and Ali McCann, Liam Gordon, Callum Booth and Murray Davidson were all out injured.

With new signing Efe Ambrose deemed fit enough only for a place on the bench this looked liked a fire-fighting job for the home team.

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Davidson’s game-plan was simply to disrupt the champions’ flow. With wing-backs Shaun Rooney and Reece Devine tucking in to make a back five, the ball was repeatedly launched into the air, either for Chris Kane to contest with the Rangers’ defenders or O’Halloran to chase down the channels.

Gerrard’s men were struggling to get going. While Kemar Roofe did his best to offer a focal point and fired off the first half’s only shot on target, his sidekick Alfredo Morelos might as well not have been playing.

And with Ryan Kent off colour and Joe Aribo and Glen Kamara struggling for midfield space, there was precious little invention from the away.

Zander Clark did well to beat that 20-yard Roofe shot away but other than that he needed only watch a couple of speculative efforts from set-pieces clear his crossbar by metres.

Forward Kemar Roofe equalised for the Gers in the 59th minute from the penalty-spot

Saints’ ploy of looking for O’Halloran hit gold five minutes after the interval. Defender Hayden Muller stepped on to the ball and sent a searching pass into that same channel between Balogun and Tavernier.

O’Halloran got there and checked back before thumping his finish high into the far corner. Gerrard would have been pleased with the response of his players, less so that it should require them to fall behind to deliver it.

Suddenly Morelos was in the game, if inches short of connecting with Tavernier’s vicious low cross along the six-yard box. Some combination play between Kamara and Aribo worked the passage that led to Kent being fed inside the box for the penalty award.

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Saints looked to have enough bodies goal side to cover but the former Liverpool man’s quick feet invited a stray leg from Muller as he checked back.

Collum’s decision met with little protest from the home players.

Roofe’s emphatic finish was the cue for a little added mayhem. As the goalscorer collected the ball and made back towards the centre circle he was obstructed by Liam Craig. Onto the scene came Morelos, toppling the St Johnstone captain with a shove before Shaun Rooney arrived to have his say.

All four players saw yellow and, perhaps sensing he’d got away with one, Morelos reacted by leaping jubilantly in celebration.

McCann’s de facto replacement Ali Crawford had enjoyed a productive shift in midfield but blew his chance to restore the lead, skying his finish after Balogun got himself in a mess trying to deal with Kane’s cross.

Captain Tavernier celebrates at full-time with Calvin Bassey after his sensational winning goal

And then O’Halloran teed up a second opportunity to respond. This time matched for pace by Filip Helander, the forward ran the Swede to the byline and then wriggled free before rolling the ball towards the back post. Devine’s finish took a nick off Tavernier but would not have troubled McLaughlin.

Helander, the hero of the derby win, appeared to over-extend in his efforts to cover and was carried off on a stretcher.

Having almost found his range with a free-kick that dipped over, Tavernier pulled out a moment of supreme quality to settle it.

Under no pressure as he collected a pass from Kent, he had time to dismiss the idea of a cross and instead wound his right leg back and unleashed a piledriving shot that sent the ball bending and looping beyond Clark and into the far corner.

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