Smith looking for improvement

2nd December 2008

Rangers boss Walter Smith has called on his players to deliver an improved performance when Hamilton visit Ibrox this weekend.

The 2-1 defeat to Hearts last Saturday saw Rangers fall seven points behind rivals Celtic at the top of the SPL and Smith knows they can ill afford to fall further behind.

He told Rangers World: "It was a disappointment for us. We didn't start the game well at Tynecastle. It was very similar to the game we had there at the start of last season. That should have been warning enough for everybody who was here.

"But we didn't start well and gave away two goals from set plays and we ended up putting ourselves under pressure by giving away fouls easily.

"That allowed Hearts to get the ball into dangerous areas, not just at the goals, but on another four or five occasions afterwards as well. We gave away cheap fouls and, in the end, we paid for that.

"Even after an hour of the match when we controlled the game and Hearts were pinned back in their own half, we didn't really create a worthwhile opportunity in that period. It was a disappointing performance on a couple of levels."