James de Bear
Jul 11 2006, 04:39 PM
CHARLIE ADAM was a hat-trick hero in Boksburg tonight as Rangers opened up their South African match tour with a comfortable win over Jomo Select.
The young midfielder, who was on loan at St Mirren last season, scored twice in a two-minute period and it was Nacho Novo who set him up on both occasions.
Adam, operating on the left side of a four-man midfield, took a great pass from Novo on his chest in 10 minutes after a driving run into the box and fired a right foot shot in off the post.
Then in 12 minutes he was sent clear by Novo and rounded the keeper before slotting a left foot shot which actually went through the rather dodgy looking net at the scrappy Boksburg Stadium.
And 15 minutes into the second half, the 20-year-old completed a terffic hat-trick when he latched onto a clever Ian Murray back heel and drove a left foot shot into the right corner.
Rangers were largely untroubled by the African select side, so it was not the best of games for Paul Le Guen to analyse his back four of Antoine Ponroy, Jose Pierre-Fanfan, Karl Svensson and skipper for the night Ian Murray.
The pitch certainly was not the best. There were potholes which Rangers backroom men tried to fill in before kick-off and weeds on the right wing as Rangers attacked in the firsts half.
However, it was a decent workout for the likes of Makhtar N'Diaye who is trying to win a contract and played in central midfield beside Jeremy Clement.
Le Guen made three changes at half-time, bringing on Thomas Buffel, Gavin Rae and Alan Hutton with Clement, Sionko and Svensson all being rested.
And he shook things up again just after Adam grabbed his hat-trick brining on Kris Boyd, Brahim Hemdani and Stevie Smith for Ponroy, Stanger and N'Diaye.
Almost inveitably, Boyd got in on the the goal action when he took a pass from Gavin Rae in 68 minutes and hammered a right foot shot high into the net to put Rangers four ahead.
Novo should have added a fifth 13 minutes when he was played in perfectly by Adam from the right side but blasted over the bar from only four yards out.
All in all it was a satisfacatory night's work, watched by a small band of travelling Rangers fans, but Rangers will clearly have tougher testss when they face Jomo Cosmos on Friday night and then South African champions Sundowns on Sunday afternoon.
TEAM:McGregor; Ponroy (Smith 60), Pierre-Fanfan, Svensson (Hutton 45), Murray; Sionko (Rae 45), N'Diaye (Hemdani 60), Clement (Buffel 45), Adam; Stanger (Boyd 60), Novo.
The young midfielder, who was on loan at St Mirren last season, scored twice in a two-minute period and it was Nacho Novo who set him up on both occasions.
Adam, operating on the left side of a four-man midfield, took a great pass from Novo on his chest in 10 minutes after a driving run into the box and fired a right foot shot in off the post.
Then in 12 minutes he was sent clear by Novo and rounded the keeper before slotting a left foot shot which actually went through the rather dodgy looking net at the scrappy Boksburg Stadium.
And 15 minutes into the second half, the 20-year-old completed a terffic hat-trick when he latched onto a clever Ian Murray back heel and drove a left foot shot into the right corner.
Rangers were largely untroubled by the African select side, so it was not the best of games for Paul Le Guen to analyse his back four of Antoine Ponroy, Jose Pierre-Fanfan, Karl Svensson and skipper for the night Ian Murray.
The pitch certainly was not the best. There were potholes which Rangers backroom men tried to fill in before kick-off and weeds on the right wing as Rangers attacked in the firsts half.
However, it was a decent workout for the likes of Makhtar N'Diaye who is trying to win a contract and played in central midfield beside Jeremy Clement.
Le Guen made three changes at half-time, bringing on Thomas Buffel, Gavin Rae and Alan Hutton with Clement, Sionko and Svensson all being rested.
And he shook things up again just after Adam grabbed his hat-trick brining on Kris Boyd, Brahim Hemdani and Stevie Smith for Ponroy, Stanger and N'Diaye.
Almost inveitably, Boyd got in on the the goal action when he took a pass from Gavin Rae in 68 minutes and hammered a right foot shot high into the net to put Rangers four ahead.
Novo should have added a fifth 13 minutes when he was played in perfectly by Adam from the right side but blasted over the bar from only four yards out.
All in all it was a satisfacatory night's work, watched by a small band of travelling Rangers fans, but Rangers will clearly have tougher testss when they face Jomo Cosmos on Friday night and then South African champions Sundowns on Sunday afternoon.
TEAM:McGregor; Ponroy (Smith 60), Pierre-Fanfan, Svensson (Hutton 45), Murray; Sionko (Rae 45), N'Diaye (Hemdani 60), Clement (Buffel 45), Adam; Stanger (Boyd 60), Novo.