KEEP calm and carry on. The blue print is in place, and Mark Warburton will not be going back to the drawing board.

His approach has been tried and tested, he has belief in his players and he stands by his principles. One game, one defeat, will not change that.

After eleven successive wins in the opening weeks of the campaign, Warburton tasted defeat for the first time on Tuesday evening as St Johnstone ran out 3-1 winners at Ibrox.

The disappointment and frustration on the night was followed by an internal post-mortem to find out exactly what went wrong, and why.

But, away from Ibrox and outside of Murray Park, there were inquests being conducted by fans and observers as they poured over Rangers’ first test against Premiership opposition this term.

Plenty of people had plenty to say. But Warburton will listen to his players, and they will listen to him, as they look to regroup and recover ahead of the Championship fixture with Morton tomorrow.

“The media is the media in Scotland,” Warburton said.

“When you get a good result you take all the praise so you also have to accept the bad stuff.

“I’ve been asked whether I can restore our confidence and belief.

“We’d won 11 out of 11 before Tuesday and we’re now top of the league so I don’t think that confidence is something that needs to be restored.

“We have to deal with that. I was pre-warned about it but the most important thing is that we learn the lessons.

“We prepared well, we were in good shape and our data was good – 64% possession and more shots on target etc.

“But individual errors cost us and we’ll be better for it in the long run so I don’t think that anyone in their right mind could look at our squad and say that they lack belief.

“It’s been suggested that I change our formation but we’ve played 12 games and won 11 so I’m not going to change. I just find some of the questions interesting.”

It was to prove an opportunity missed for Rangers on Tuesday as, with the spotlight on them, they couldn’t shine on the big stage and St Johnstone emerged deserved winners.

The manner in which the goals – a finish from close range after a cutback inside the box, a strike from the edge of the area from a corner and a bursting run through the heart of the Gers’ defence – were shipped was concerning for the Light Blues boss, and the Ibrox crowd.

It was the first time Rangers had conceded three times in a match this term. Indeed, they had done so on just six occasions in their eleven previous outings.

And Warburton is confident the lessons will be learned to ensure the same mistakes don’t halt his side in their tracks in the future.

He said: “We looked at the game again together on Wednesday, going through the footage to look at the goals.

“But the people involved and the ones who had the fingers pointed at them have conceded very few goals this season.

“Words were said after the game but that happens at every level. Players are competitive and they don’t want to lose at tiddlywinks, never mind a game of football.

“The thing is that we need to work on the things we learned from the St Johnstone game and practise them so that – touch wood – they won’t happen again.”

Having suffered their first defeat on Warburton’s watch, Rangers will now look to ensure the League Cup blip doesn’t turn into a Championship slip.

The Light Blues are already seven points clear in the second tier title race as they have made a hugely impressive start to the campaign.

And Warburton insists the disappointment of midweek won’t take the shine off of what has been achieved so far as he continues to strive for success.

He said: “If someone said to us at the start of the season that we would’ve played 12 and won 11, I don’t think anyone would have turned that down.

“We are in good shape right now. But we have got to learn.

“If we now play on Sunday and the following week and the following week and make the same errors then it is a different discussion that is for sure. But that can’t be allowed to happen.

“That is our job as a squad of players and a group of staff. We’ve got to make sure we learn from it.”

The Saints clash may have been an interesting barometer as to where Rangers are at present, but it will matter little come the end of the campaign as they set their sights on a Premiership return.

Significant progress has been made in the three months Warburton has been at the helm, and the Ibrox boss is confident the disappointment will be short-lived.

He said: “It’s important that we gel as a group of players and as a staff but I also think we are in good shape right now. We are not a bad team. We’re a decent team.

“I still think that the gap from Championship to Premiership is way tighter up north than down the road purely because of the money.

“I stick by that. I think it’s very hard to disagree with that.

“I just don’t think the gap is as vast as some people are making out. If I’m wrong I’ll hold my hand up.

“You had Hibs beating Aberdeen, Morton beating Motherwell.

“It was one game for us the other night and I think we’ll be better for is even though you never want to lose a game of football.”