Falkirk show up Rangers as latest Russell Martin failure tests resolve of American owners to limits

Questions were asked over what it would take for Martin to win over the Rangers support after the last gasp winner at Livingston last weekend was immediately greeted by chants for him to be sacked.

What it will take for the Rangers board to put their besieged head coach out of his misery might be the more pertinent question after this latest setback at the Falkirk Stadium where the level of animosity reached new levels with police required to disperse angry crowds which surrounded the team bus and Martin being ushered out a side door by security.

The chance to secure back-to-back Premiership victories was spurned as Bojan Miovski's 40th minute opener was cancelled out by a first Falkirk goal for on-loan Leicester City man Henry Cartwright on 73 minutes.

And it was no less than the Bairns deserved from a match where they were largely the better side, created the best chances, and appeared the more structured unit with John McGlynn's system and style clear for all to see while Rangers still appear a side struggling to get to grips with Martin's methods.

Midway through the second half, Rangers were heading up to fourth in the table and within four points of Celtic, who trailed at home to Motherwell. Even then, the chants for Martin to 'get to f***' from the 750 away fans refused to go away.

They only grew louder and more vociferous at full-time before the angry scenes spilled into car park as Rangers' fifth draw of the campaign left them languishing eighth in the table, with eight points gained from seven matches. They sit 11 points behind leaders Hearts and nine adrift of second-placed Celtic, who came from behind to win. An untenable position for any Rangers manager.

Martin has carried support from the men who hired him throughout the club's worst start to a season in 47 years. Whether he survives the international break - always a vulnerable time for any underpeforming manager - remains to be seen with the resolve of the new American owners being tested to the limits.

Expensive signings benched

Martin made four changes from the midweek defeat in Austria, leaving a combined £15.5million worth of summer signings on the bench in the shape of Youseff Chermiti, Thelo Aasgaard and Oliver Antman. Squad rotation perhaps, but the trio could just has easily have been benched based on performances to date.

A win for the Bairns would have taken them above their visitors and they started like a team intent on doing just that. The hosts were dominant throughout the opening exchanges helped by lacklustre Rangers play which included Nico Raskin tripping over his own feet under no pressure to concede a corner, Joe Rothwell running a ball straight out of play, and John Souttar dithering long enough to have his pass out of defence charged down. And this was all inside three minutes.

Despite their inauspicious start, Rangers did have the ball in the net after four minutes but Djeidi Gassama's effort was ruled out for an offside against Mikey Moore in the build-up.

Jack Butland - as he has often this season - saved Rangers from going one down with a close range block from Ross McIver with Kyrell Wilson sending the rebound inches wide.

Rangers were rocking but they recovered to take the lead with their only moment of quality as Derek Cornelius sent a teasing ball into the box where Miovski touched home from six yards.

It was harsh on Falkirk but they were not to be downhearted as they pressed for an equaliser after the break. McIver should have provided it but headed wide with the goal gaping, but substitute Cartwright, just three minutes after coming in, lifted the roof off the stadium by blasting past Butland from 20 yards, aided by a slight deflection via Souttar.

Rangers brought on their expensive bench in an attempt to salvage a winner, but it says everything that the man who came closest to a winner was 37-year-old substitute Brian Graham at the other end with Butland sparing Rangers an even more damaging outcome with a smart low save from the veteran frontman.