I was at Ibrox on Tuesday night to see the Under-20s play Brighton in the latest fixture of their new games schedule and there were plenty of reasons for Graeme Murty to be pleased.
I thoroughly enjoyed the game and Rangers were unlucky to lose out right at the end as Brighton scored in the last minute for a 2-1 win.
It was a young side that Rangers put out and they certainly weren’t overawed or outclassed. They created enough chances and it was a good performance against a side that had plenty of pace and a few good players.
Michael Hewitt, Lewis Mayo, Daniel Finlayson and Scott Gray came in at the back and were playing against boys a few years older than them. They held their own.
On the wings, I was impressed with Serge Atakayi and Andy Dallas. They are absolutely lightening quick and can cause teams problems and Jamie Barjonas got another goal from the middle of the park.
Up front, Ryan Hardie had a couple of chances but couldn’t get on the score sheet. He has been up and down the levels a bit in the last few seasons but his time will come.
You like winning games, of course you do, but it is the performance and what you get out of it at that level that matters most and there is no doubt that these games will stand the players in good stead this season.
People have questioned Rangers for the decision to withdraw from the Development League but I think they will get huge benefits from it and hopefully we will see the players come through to the first team.
I think there is talent there and it would be great to see the youngsters improve in the coming weeks and months and get that bit closer to Pedro Caixinha’s squad.
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