Source: Team_Talk
Smith praise for battling Rangers
Walter Smith praised the battling spirit of his Rangers players after they emerged from a tough week with their 100% record in the SPL intact.[LNB] The Scottish champions battled from behind to snatch a late win against Hearts, having defeated Bursaspor in the Champions League midweek and staged a similar comeback at Aberdeen last Sunday.[LNB]Rudi Skacel provided Hearts with a first half opener, before Kyle Lafferty came off the bench to level late on and Steven Naismith - who netted the only goal against the Turks - bagged the winner deep into injury time.[LNB]"It was a big week for everyone having the three games in six days," said Smith.[LNB]"We've had two away games at Pittodrie and Tynecastle, which are not the easiest places for any team. I'm delighted we managed to get the win, albeit a late one.[LNB]"The players did extremely well today and they got what they deserved in the end. We controlled most of the game territorially and had by far the most attempts at goal.[LNB]"A team doesn't win the championship without an element of pride, they are not going to sit back and accept defeat and there was no acceptance of that today.[LNB]"I felt we dictated most of the play, we had most of the possession and most of the attempts on goal. Hearts defended very well for the first hour of the game and we had to work hard to break them down."[LNB]Rangers may have been forced to show their mettle in the last two SPL games in particular, but Smith says their fighting mentality has been evident for much longer.[LNB]He added: "I don't think it's just the last two results, I think we have shown a determination over the last few seasons to make sure we are competing for tournaments that we're playing in.[LNB]"We have had some success, we've had some failures but the team has always endeavoured to do as well as they can in any games they play.[LNB]"They have a really good attitude that's come from playing together over the last few seasons."[LNB]Rangers were without Kirk Broadfoot and Lee McCulloch for the trip to Edinburgh and both players will be assessed by Scotland's medics when they report for international duty, while Nikica Jelavic limped out of the action with a knee injury.[LNB]Naismith's winner came in the fourth minute of injury time and Hearts boss Jim Jefferies was unhappy with both the amount of time added on and the free-kick which led to the goal.[LNB]He said: "I've got no complaints about the efforts of my players. We got the goal and it was so frustrating that their first goal came from a wall that didn't do its job properly.[LNB]"I was a little bit aggrieved at a couple of things, we didn't think there should have been five minutes and then the free-kick that was given that allowed Rangers to break for their second goal, both players' legs were at the same height and we were the ones pulled up for it.[LNB]"I feel gutted for the players because I didn't think they deserved to lose."[LNB]Meanwhile, Hearts could face an investigation after missiles were thrown on to the pitch after Naismith's strike.[LNB]Assistant referee Willie Conquer is believed to have been struck by a coin, while several other items, including lighters, were thrown and given to match delegate Willie McDougall.[LNB]Jefferies, watching from the stand today, was unaware of the incident, admitting: "I didn't see that. That's something for the delegate to sort out."
