GRAEME MURTY saw the substitutes board go up and knew what Myles Beerman would have been thinking. It was a tough task and a harsh lesson, but one that will undoubtedly stand him in good stead.
The left-back was handed his Old Firm debut against Celtic on Sunday and tasked with shackling one of Brendan Rodgers’ most potent attacking threats in the shape of Patrick Roberts. In just his fourth appearance for the Gers, it was a valuable experience for the 18-year-old as he stuck to the job in hand.
With the game all but gone, life didn’t get any easier for Beerman when James Forrest replaced Roberts for the final eight minutes. But Murty believes a day of disappointment will prove worthwhile in the long run.
Read more: Danny Wilson dismayed by 'timid' Rangers as he concedes flaws in gameplan for Celtic
“Myles is currently doing the things our boys’ dream of doing,” he said. “I’ve got no doubt I have a group of players who are inordinately jealous of him and wish to be where he was on Sunday. We’ll just use it as a catalyst to say ‘There you go fellas, change up what you’re doing, stretch yourself, because the opportunities are there’. The manager has already shown he’s not afraid to put young players in.
“Myles is a natural left-back. He is quick, pacy and deals with the ball really well. There are obviously areas for him to develop. But he will develop fastest playing against people like Patrick Roberts. My hamstrings had a twinge of sympathy for Myles when Celtic took Patrick off and put James Forrest on! That used to happen to me fairly regularly in my playing career. When you are dying at 80 minutes, the opposition put an absolute whippet on against you.
“Myles will have to get used to it, these things happen. When he manages to come down off the ceiling, he will look at playing against someone like Patrick, the pace and technical ability he has, and will never have experienced that before. I can’t buy that experience for him and it’s something he has to use in his career going forward.”
Read more: Danny Wilson dismayed by 'timid' Rangers as he concedes flaws in gameplan for Celtic
The Old Firm will return to Hampden tomorrow evening for their third meeting at a third different level within the space of a few days. After Glasgow Cup and Scottish Cup successes for Celtic, it is the Youth Cup that is at stake this time around.
Murty bowed out as interim boss with a deserved draw at Parkhead last month before he handed the reigns over to Pedro Caixinha. The circumstances and the sense of occasion is far different but the pressure remains as his Under-20 side look to take a valuable step forward and learn their own Hampden lessons.
“It would be nice, but I don’t want to put any more pressure on the players than they are already feeling,” he said. “They are not carrying all the hopes of Rangers supporters worldwide.
“They are a young group of players going out to experience a Youth Cup Final. They will be wanting to win it for their personal reasons and if we do win it, then it would be fantastic for the club as a whole.
“But this group have to realise it’s about them first in this game, and making sure they do their job. Hopefully the result will take care of itself and we can go back to Ibrox a happy group.”
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