James Tavernier vents Rangers rage as Auston Trusty red card let off stuns skipper
The Light Blues captain couldn't believe Nick Walsh let Trusty off with a caution after kicking Jack Butland in the head
Seething Rangers skipper James Tavernier admits he was stunned when referee Nick Walsh failed to balance up the red card count at Hampden.
The Ibrox side found themselves a goal and a man down at half-time when Johnny Kenny’s opener was followed up by Thelo Aasgaard’s straight sending off just moments before the break.
The Norwegian ace could have little complaints about his dismissal after planting his studs into Tony Ralston’s thigh.
But Tavernier felt Hoops defender Auston Trusty should have followed Aasgaard down the tunnel when his stray boot made contact with keeper Jack Butland’s head just as Walsh was preparing to blow for the change of ends.
The official decided the kick didn’t involve the force needed for a red.
But that didn’t wash with Tavernier, who also blasted the decision to let Daizen Maeda off with another high boot on Mohamed Diomande.
He raged: “With Thelo, the ref said it’s the force of how he's gone into the challenge. You know, he's not really seen Ralston come for the ball. He's just gone for the ball. But then Jack's diving on the floor, he's already got the ball and he gets kicked in the head.
"No matter what the intent is, it's still intent and you can't kick a goalkeeper in the head. So you'd expect the same level of approach. And then obviously further into the game, Dio gets kicked in the stomach area just where you'd say the same place and nothing's done.
“But that's no excuse. We have to as a team be more clinical in that game. It's disappointing, but you know, it's up to us to react to these moments. You know, things are going to get thrown at us, nothing's always going to go your way. So, it's down to us to react.
“I thought we reacted quite well, but it's just the small margins in these big games - it's the details you have to be really good at.”
Tavernier was all smiles as he dragged Danny Rohl’s Gers level with a nerveless spot-kick to push the game into extra-time.
But he looked furious while storming down the tunnel at the end after watching Rangers blow their big chance to reach this season’s first showpiece event.
New £8million striker Youssef Chermiti had two golden first-half opportunities to start paying off his huge transfer fee but took neither.
Nico Raskin also blew a huge chance when through on Kasper Schmeichel’s goal, while substitute Djeidi Gassama choked on a couple of occasions too as he twice raced in behind the Celtic defence - including one in extra-time when he had his heels clipped by Trusty.
He said: "It's obviously raw straight after the game, you never want to lose, you know how much effort everyone's putting in. Obviously, I've lost my head at the end. It’s sore. I felt the team put real fighting spirit into the game.
“After going down to 10 men but then obviously getting back into the game, we felt that we could win the game. But it's the small details in the final third, in our box and their box, that let us down. We created some great chances and we weren't clinical enough.
“I think, if we're a little bit more streetwise as well, that could have helped. Gass gets himself into the box, or maybe it was just a little bit outside.
“He gets tripped but [if he goes down] obviously, they get down to 10 men, we can maybe create an advantage in that. But the fighting spirit was there. Obviously we fell short of getting ourselves into it final.”
Rohl doesn’t have time for his team to sulk with Serie A giants Roma next up in the Europa League on Thursday.
But Tavernier admits his side will have to sharpen up if Rangers are to finally pick up their first league phase win after three straight defeats.
He said: “It’s a massive game on Thursday and we have to respond. You've seen obviously in the past two games against Kilmarnock and Hibs that we've really shown we’re a better team, shown a better togetherness, a better way of playing.
“Obviously, it changes when you go down to 10 men, but we have to be more clinical in each box. As simple as that, in big games like this, you have to be clinical in each box, and we fell short on that.”