Giovanni van Bronckhorst happy to take a win as Rangers game marred by stoppages

Giovanni van Bronckhorst noted the emotions of Rangers fans but made a plea for balance after the disrupted 2-1 win over Dundee at the Kilmac stadium.

Christie Elliott stunned the visitors when he headed the cinch Premiership’s bottom side into the lead in the sixth minute and, just before the break, Gers captain James Tavernier hammered a penalty over the bar.

Aaron Ramsey levelled in the 65th minute with his first Rangers goal since signing on loan from Juventus in January and, with only four minutes of normal time remaining, defender Connor Goldson forced in the dramatic winner to take the Light Blues within three points of leaders Celtic with seven fixtures remaining.

Earlier, referee Bobby Madden had to stop the game after Gers fans bombarded the pitch with toilet rolls and then tennis balls and again at the start of the second half another wave of toilet rolls required a stoppage.

Chants from the travelling supporters suggested the disruptions were a protest against the proposed Rangers versus Celtic friendly in Australia in November.

Van Bronckhorst told Sky Sports: “Of course it’s disruptive because you want to play the game.

“We had three or four breaks because of the cleaning up. So it’s a disruption but I know there are emotions.

“To show their emotions is good to see, but you need to have the balance.

“It was disruptive for us today. I understand the emotions of the fans but we will go back with three points in our bag.”

Dundee boss Mark McGhee claimed the protests stopped Rangers getting into their stride.

He said: “That helped us to an extent, rather than them.

“They’re renowned for going out fast, trying to win the game by half-time.

“But those interruptions didn’t help them, so we were quite happy. We got a breather. It worked against them”.

Van Bronckhorst admitted his side carried some luck to get the win.

The Dutchman said: “A big relief of course to go away with the three points today.

“The game was a tough game and we didn’t start really well. They were 1-0 in front and we missed a penalty.

“Second half we created more chances than the first and sometimes you have to be a little bit lucky – which we were in the end – that the ball dropped for Connor.

“Today could have cost us two big points, but we kept the belief and worked hard to win the game in difficult circumstances.”

It looked to be a soft penalty when Dundee skipper Jordan McGhee tugged Alfredo Morelos but McGhee said: “I thought it was a penalty.

“It’s a light penalty, an easy penalty but he does tug him a wee bit.

“And as soon as he tugs him the referee can give a penalty and referees are going to give a penalty.

“You’ve just got to live with that. It was a penalty.”