Jack Ross proud of Hibs' display against Rangers - but also frustrated

Hibs boss has mixed emotions

Jack Ross makes a change

Jack Ross declared himself proud but hugely frustrated after a battling Hibs performance at Ibrox ended in defeat.

The Easter Road outfit had taken the lead through Paul Hanlon only for George Edmundson to haul Rangers level with the last kick of the first half.

And although Hibs had to withstand tremendous pressure from Steven Gerrard’s side after the interval they looked as if they were about to hold out for a point only for Ianis Hagi to claim the winner just six minutes from time.

Ross had urged his players to be far more competitive than they had been in their previous two encounters with Rangers this season, a 6-1 defeat on their last visit to Ibrox and a 3-0 loss in Edinburgh.

He got exactly what he asked for in that regard but was left to reflect on what might have been.

“I was proud of what my players gave me,” he said. “It was hard work out of possession playing against a good team whose record at home is terrific.

“You have to be resolute and hard working and we were all those things so I am hugely frustrated that we did not take anything from the game but there were a lot of pluses for us.”

The timing of Edmundson’s goal, he insisted, had changed the game only in that Rangers then needed just one goal rather than two to win the match in the second half although he and his players were aware of the pressure they were going to come under.

He said: “For that latter part of the first half I felt we were in a good position within the game and to concede with virtually the last kick of the half was frustrating.

“It was fine margins for us but, as I have said, there was a huge amount of positives for us to take from the game given how our performances have been in the previous two matches.”

Ross admitted he felt his players had weathered the second half storm and were on course for a point until Hagi struck saying: “I thought at the start of the second half Rangers were good.

“We had to be resilient and carry a bit of fortune in that period but I did feel in that latter part of the second half we were starting to carry more of a threat. Our decision making could, perhaps, have been a little bit better in the final third.

“We had opportunities to counter and you are starting to feel a little bit more comfortable. The frustrating thing is it’s a second phase set-piece and we could probably have done better with it.

“There are a lot of mixed emotions, pride at their performance but frustration that performance didn’t lead to us getting something from the match.”