Source: Team_Talk
Smith calm as Gers stutter to title
Walter Smith says Rangers are taking longer than he would have hoped to wrap up the SPL title after being held to a 0-0 draw at Dundee United.[LNB] But the Light Blues boss is confident his side will soon secure the silverware after emerging from the clash at Tannadice with an 11-point lead over rivals Celtic.[LNB]A win in Tayside would have allowed the champions to retain their crown with another victory against Hearts at Ibrox on Sunday but they now need the Hoops to drop points to Hibernian 24 hours earlier for that to be the case.[LNB]United found themselves down to 10 men following the dismissal of Mihael Kovacevic with 20 minutes to go but held firm to earn a point against the champions-elect.[LNB]Smith said: "That's us another step towards the championship - albeit maybe a slower one than we would have hoped for.[LNB]"It's a natural thing [that the players want to win it] but, just because we have had a consistency this season that maybe a lot of the others teams haven't had, doesn't mean to say that we don't get difficult matches.[LNB]"Tonight was a difficult one and we were maybe unfortunate not to shade it at the end. We are getting there."[LNB]Smith did not feel nerves had a part to play against United now that the finishing line is in sight for his players.[LNB]"No, I don't think so," he said.[LNB]"Dundee United are on an excellent run at the moment and they're not losing many games. They changed their team around tonight and they have a freshness and a good spirit around them.[LNB]"They are having an excellent second half to the season. I felt we more than matched that throughout the game so I don't think it's a sense of nervousness. It was just a difficult game at a difficult place to win."[LNB]Kovacevic was shown a straight red card for kicking out at Kyle Lafferty, who appeared to provoke the full-back with his initial challenge, which earned him a caution.[LNB]Rangers were unable to make the most of their numerical advantage but Smith insisted: "As we have shown ourselves this season, that's never an easy situation.[LNB]"The game doesn't change that much when you go to 10 men, the fact that they revert to just one forward means that you still have to work as hard to get a goal.[LNB]"From our point of view, we had the ascendancy prior to to the sending-off."[LNB]United boss Peter Houston felt referee Brian Winter had no option but to produce the red card and warned Kovacevic he may have cost himself his place in the team ahead of the Scottish Cup final.[LNB]He said: "I think that Mihael got himself involved rather stupidly. I didn't see what went on before it but my backroom staff saw him flicking his leg out and, as soon as you do that, you get a straight red card.[LNB]"That's his problem because Keith Watson has been a good player and Sean Dillon can play there. I gave him an opportunity to try and claim his place back and he has got himself sent off.[LNB]"He will be the sorry one because if someone comes in and does well at right-back, he is the one who has to try and get his jersey back with a lot of big games coming up."[LNB]Houston believes the dismissal wrecked United's hopes of snatching victory but admitted he was more than happy with a share of the points.[LNB]He added: "He gave the referee no option and was so stupid. And he put us up against it because any hopes that we had of winning the game diminished a bit. I hoped we could have pinched it but to be honest I'm delighted with a point."
