BROGAN Hay played her full 90 minutes since returning from injury this afternoon and says she was pleased to help Rangers into another Scottish Cup final.
The winger played her part in a 2-0 win over Montrose for Leanne Crichton’s side as a second-half brace from Katie Wilkinson propelled the side into a fourth successive final in the competition.
It has been a turbulent campaign for the 27-year-old through injury, but she has returned to full fitness at exactly the right juncture of the campaign with Rangers in the hunt for silverware in the league and Scottish Cup.
Speaking to RangersTV after the victory, Hay commented: “Today was the first full game since the injury. I probably felt it a bit towards the end, but I’m glad to be back in training and around the squad.
“I want to help drive the competitiveness in the team, and to get back at this important time of the season when we have really big games coming up is a massive achievement for me coming back from injury.
“We have a great squad and good strength in the team. We challenge ourselves week in, week out.
“It’s important that we keep driving the standards with each other and create that competitive environment.
“The substitutes made a real difference today, and it’s a positive we can take away from the game.”
An inspired half-time triple substitution helped Rangers motor in the second period as Wilkinson’s double was supplemented by impressive showings from Kim Shin Ji and Leah Eddie.
Hay admits the most important aspect is that her side sealed their place in the final, but she says Rangers must improve their performance levels between now and the end of the season.
He added: “Ultimately we’re into a cup final and that’s what we came to do. We would have liked the performance to go with the result, but I don’t think we gave that today for ourselves or our fans.
"We hold a higher standard of performance and I don’t think we really got that going.
“I need to give credit to Montrose because they’re a hard team to play against and it’s difficult to break them down, but we’re into another cup final and that’s what we wanted to achieve.
“We just weren’t helping each other out. We were giving the ball away too easy. We were recognising that the space was there, but we weren’t utilising it as such.
“We needed to be better teammates to help the people who are on the ball. We needed to up the levels, and in the second half we done that.
"I still think we’ve got another level in us, but we’re into another cup final.”
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