Rangers U19s 4-0 Hearts: Two standouts, first-team tactics

Goals from Alex Smith, Aiden McCallion, Callum Burnside and Chris Eadie earned a win for Stevie Smith's side, with the visitors unfortunate not to find the net on the day.

Here's what the Rangers Review took away from the game

A tight affair until Rangers turn clinical

On what turned out to be a sun-kissed afternoon at Auchenhowie, Rangers and Hearts cancelled each other out early. 4-0 slightly flattered the hosts on the basis of chances, but they made Hearts pay with a clinical edge in attack.

The best chance early on fell to captain Taylor Hogarth who was presented with an excellent opening after the visitors sprung a pressing trap to capitalise on a rare error in possession from Aiden McCallion, but the No.11 dallied and hit the crossbar from close range. Hogarth would find the target on the half-hour mark, although his corner-bound effort was tipped wide brilliantly by Rydnn McGuire.

At the other end, Stevie Smith’s side went closest when Blaine McClure hit the side netting from an angle, with a few neat moves just lacking the final pass. That was until Smith’s side went back to front quickly, McCallion and Lyle Wark combining well centrally to free up space that Rangers could attack into. Blaine McClure crossed for Alexander Smith to head home at the back post and the deadlock was broken.

Wark made an important interception soon after the restart to prevent a counterattack from hurting his side before McCallion would extend Rangers' lead from the spot on the hour mark, after Max Cameron’s run over the top was well found by McClure and stopped illegally by the hosts.

Calum Adamson and Callum Burnside both had efforts go close from the bench before the duo combined to make it three, with the former sliding through a ball that allowed the latter to round the keeper and score. It was four when McCallion slid in Adamson and Eadie converted from close range.

Alex Smith impressed for the hosts (Image: SNS Group)

A new format for youth development 

The first game of this new age bracket, in line with the club's Loan Cooperation Agreement with Raith Rovers, Alloa and Stirling Albion, in line with SFA changes, should mark the start of a smoother development pathway at Ibrox, which has at times become confused in recent years.

The jump from an Under-18 to Under-19 league suits Rangers, who disbanded their B team last season in their attempt to expose talent earlier to first-team football, a gap rarely bridged well in recent years.

With the Coop agreements enabling clubs to send up to five players eligible for Scotland teams at various age groups alongside featuring for their parent club, the hope is that more games at both levels, and an extra year of development enabled by the move to an Under-19 league, should finally provide some consistency in a key age bracket. A number of those on show today - including McCallion, McClure, Adamsom, Eedie and Burnside and McGuire - will surely be beneficiaries of the new system.

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What did we notice?

Rangers started this game slowly, like in midweek against Stenhousemuir, with their goal before the break well-taken, but Hearts’ lack of one themselves was harsh on the visitors.

What stood out, perhaps predictably, was the attempt to play in similar patterns and with similar principles to the first team. Again, this modelling of what’s done at the top level in the club arguably hasn’t always helped the youth academy. Yes, they’ve been brought up to play different styles, but altering game models year after year is hardly conducive to a sustainable effort to break into the first team.

Some of the issues experienced early on under Russell Martin also reared their heads. The move that worked well for the goal, with a full-back inverting to aid playing out under pressure, also should’ve seen Hogarth establish an early lead for Hearts.

However, a stronger second half with well-worked attacks established a healthy lead to start this league season in a confident fashion.

Who stood out on the day?

Before the break, the hosts had a few nice passes and nearly moved, but Rydnn McGuire, the highly-rated 16-year-old who was part of a number of matchday squads towards the tail end of last season, was always on hand, and the woodwork saved him otherwise. The goalkeeper has had consistent interest from England in his services and is highly regarded inside the building.

McCallion, another who was a regular feature in Barry Ferguson’s squads towards the end of last season, had to take the ball in tricky areas and, barring his early error, anchored the team really well, creating the fourth and scoring the second. He, like McGuire, is viewed as a player with a proper chance of making it proper in these parts and given his comfort on the ball, you can see why.

Smith’s trickery from the right also had an end product in the form of his first-half header, and McClure played an integral part in creating the first goal before creating the move that earned a penalty before the second. Both Burnside and Adamson brought some experience, relative to this level, from the bench that put the game out of Hearts' reach.