BARRY FERGUSON praised the ‘brilliant character’ from his side as a dramatic second-half comeback saw them defeat Dundee 4-3 at Dens Park this evening.
The head coach says he was frustrated by the first-half, which saw his side 2-1 down at the break, but second-half goals from James Tavernier, Tom Lawrence and a 93rd minute Cyriel Dessers winner completed the comeback.
Speaking to RangersTV at full-time, Ferguson said: “It is a brilliant three points overall, but it was off the standards I expect, certainly in the first-half and they were told that at half-time.
“They are a group of players that will sit down and listen and take a bit of criticism but one thing about them is that they have brilliant character, they dug deep for one another and in the end, we got the three points.
“I knew when Tav got that goal to come back at 3-2 I just sensed it we were on the front foot and certainly that was the case, but we have to be better.
“I saw old, bad habits creep in and I can't allow that to happen. I have said to them after the game, and it is a case of we need to really sit down and go through things and work on things because I wasn't happy with certain scenarios within the game.
“That is my job as manager, that is my job with the staff to go and sort them.
“Since I have come in, they have shown they have got heart, they'll go right to the end and certainly they did that and that was the reason we got the three points.”
With impact from the bench this evening, including Tom Lawrence who netted a fine finish from distance, Ferguson said the substitutes showed their worth and will give him a selection headache ahead of Hibernian next weekend.
He said: “At half-time I could’ve made seven or eight changes but that is impossible, but I have got to make big decisions. I had to make some changes to try, and kick start us, I had to change the formation as well.
“That has given me problems now because the guys that have come off the bench even during the second half have made a difference and that is what I need. I need players to make me think and I need competition, and they made me think and they certainly made a difference, and the guys came on and showed their worth.”
On winning hero Cyriel Dessers, Ferguson continued: “He is a brilliant worker, he is brilliant to work with. He is willing to try and improve his game even at his age which I love to see.
“I thought his chances you have got to give the goalkeeper credit, and the keeper made some brilliant saves but at least he is getting in those positions but one thing about the big man is he keeps going right until the end and he got his reward with the winning goal.”