Falkirk 3-6 Rangers: Danny Rohl's Jekyll and Hyde side come roaring back after criminal first-half display
On their last visit to Falkirk back in October, Rangers laboured to a 1-1 draw which would ultimately cost Russell Martin his job.Martin was sacked later that night after furious supporters had gathered outside the stadium and surrounded the Rangers team bus.Smuggled out of a side door, the sight of Martin being led away in a car by a police escort felt like it would be one of the defining images of Rangers’ season.There were no blue flashing lights on this occasion, but another crime scene had developed over the first half-hour of this return to the Falkirk Stadium.Trailing 2-0 to a Falkirk team who had been utterly superb, Danny Rohl’s side were in serious danger of seeing their title challenge go up in smoke.After Hearts and Celtic had both recorded victories on Saturday, the only appropriate response from Rangers was to take three points here against the high-flying Bairns. Bojan Miovski completes the scoring with his second goal of the day in Rangers' 6-3 victory Striker Youssef Chermiti fires home Rangers' fifth goal in a breathless encounter at Falkirk Rangers' victorious players are given a vote of confidence by the away support at full-timeHad they failed to do so, they would have been relying on snookers with only five games to play. This was Jekyll and Hyde stuff from Rohl’s side.They were a shambles for the first 40 minutes and were lucky to only be two goals behind. Then a switch was flicked and they were a team transformed.They scored six goals, four of which came in an incredible 16-minute burst that started just before half-time to turn the game completely on its head.At a venue where Martin had required police protection six months ago, Rohl had managed to get out of jail.Rangers could not cope with the width, pace and movement of Falkirk in that opening period. But it was Nico Raskin, above all others, who would be instrumental in the fightback.Rangers have now scored 14 goals in their last three league matches. When they click into gear, as they did in the second half, they can overpower teams.This was also a major boost to their goal difference, which could yet be pivotal in the title race. But serious questions remain over the defensive capabilities of this team. The deficiencies were plain for all to see during that first half.Rangers will now fly out to Spain for a warm-weather camp, whilst Falkirk will have to lick their wounds and regroup ahead of their Scottish Cup semi-final with bitter rivals Dunfermline next weekend.John McGlynn’s side have been a revelation this season, playing the same bold and attacking brand of football which saw them win back-to-back promotions in League One and the Championship over the past two years.They were all over Rangers in the early stages. Particular in the wide areas, Falkirk were having a lot of joy — and their good start found tangible reward after only six minutes.Calvin Miller nipped in behind James Tavernier, who had been caught out of position. That in itself was to become a theme over the course of the afternoon.Miller’s low cross evaded everyone in a Rangers jersey and eventually found Ben Broggio at the back post. The on-loan Aston Villa man showed lovely composure to clip the ball past Jack Butland.Rangers could not cope with the pace and width in the Falkirk team. Time and time again the Bairns were getting in behind down the channels.Miller was causing all sorts of problems. Likewise Barney Stewart up front, who looked so much sharper than both Emmanuel Fernandez and Nasser Djiga in the Rangers defence.A poor start from Rohl’s side got a whole lot worse when Falkirk doubled their lead on 26 minutes — and what a goal it was, too, from Finn Yeats.It was only a half-chance at most as a deflected cross broke to him at the edge of the box. Yeats met the ball first time and curled a peach of a finish beyond Butland and into the far corner.In the away end, Rangers fans were disgusted with what they were watching. A performance which lacked any urgency or quality, their title challenge was going down the drain.This felt like a repeat of when Rangers fell 2-0 behind away at Livingston in late February. They managed to salvage a point that day and their powers of recovery would once again be severely tested here.The fightback started three minutes before half-time. After Rangers had struck the post twice in the matter of a few seconds, the ball fell to Tochi Chukwuani and he thumped it high into the net.There were strong suggestions that Raskin’s cross had swirled out of play, but the Falkirk defenders totally stopped and the VAR system apparently did not have an angle to prove that conclusively.Rohl made a change at half-time, taking off Mikey Moore and replacing him with Bojan Miovski, as the Rangers manager switched to a what was effectively a flat 4-4-2.The effects were instant. Rangers drew level two minutes after the break when Youssef Chermiti applied a delicate finish to convert from good play by Jayden Meghoma.Having dominated the vast majority of the first half, Falkirk looked shell-shocked. Rangers had come storming back into it — and it was a storm which the home side could not contain.Raskin was instrumental in everything that was good about Rangers in the second half. He grabbed the game by the scruff of the neck and drove his team to victory.It was the Belgian midfielder who scored the third goal to put Rangers ahead, motoring forward and driving an excellent low finish into Scott Bain’s far corner.It was Raskin who then sent in a dangerous cross from the left, with Miovski bundling ball home off his thigh from close range to make it 4-2.Falkirk pulled a goal back when more clumsy defending from Rangers skipper Tavernier saw him tangle with Filip Lissah. It was a clear penalty and, although Butland got a hand to it, Miller’s spot-kick eventually nestled in the corner of the net.It had turned into an utterly manic game of football. There was hardly time to draw breath. After a Djeidi Gassama shot had been blocked, a loose ball broke to Chermiti and he drilled it low past Bain to put Rangers 5-3 up.Miovski doubled his tally for the afternoon, tapping in from close range after fellow substitute Oliver Antman had fizzed a low ball across the face of goal.At full-time, the Rangers fans held up a huge banner with the words: ‘keep believing’. It was a banner which very nearly didn’t see the light of day.Falkirk (4-2-3-1): Bain 6; Adams 7, Henderson 7, Donaldson 6, Lissah 7; Spencer 7, Tait 6 (Ross 81); Broggio 7, Yeats 7, Miller 8 (Cartwright 81); Stewart 6. Booked: Henderson, Donaldson, Tait. Manager: John McGlynn 8.Rangers (4-2-3-1): Butland 6; Tavernier 4, Djiga 4, Fernandez 5, Meghoma 5 (Aarons 71); RASKIN 8, Chukwuani 7 (Diomande 84); Gassama 6 (Antman 84), Moore 5 (Miovski 46), Aasgaard 5 (Barron 77); Chermiti 7. Booked: Meghoma, Tavernier, Aarons, Raskin. Manager: Danny Rohl 8.Referee: Don Robertson.Attendance: 7,750.
