As those in the stands lost their heads, Jack Butland maintained his cool. Amid the whirlwind of emotions, he will keep calm and carry on.
The immediate aftermath of the defeat to Kilmarnock on Saturday was raw for Rangers but it was a time for Butland to assess where it went wrong and where Michael Beale's side are heading.
In time, the full ramifications will become clearer. Rangers are already three points adrift in the Premiership title race and the optimism built over the course of a significant summer has been eroded amongst a support that demanded and expected better at Rugby Park.
Valid concerns were raised regarding a performance and a result that has increased the pressure on the Ibrox squad after just 90 minutes of the term. No panic buttons were pushed, however.
"No, absolutely not," Butland said. "Like I said, it is still in our control. We have still got to play them four times.
"It is not going to be plain sailing for them either and that is how we have got to look at it. Nothing is won or lost at this point.
READ MORE: Five talking points as wretched Rangers lose opener to Kilmarnock
"We are confident with what we have got in the building. Performance wise, we were lacking a little bit and could have been more clinical in the final third.
"Teams against us are going to make it difficult, there is no getting away from that. If people didn’t realise that before they know now.
"It is going to be tough for us because playing against Rangers is a cup final for everybody. You can see that with the way that they reacted and the way the fans reacted for them.
"We know what it is about. We are not happy going home but we have got to focus on Wednesday and get that first win of the season and we go from there."
Butland was one of the summer arrivals that made his competitive debut against Killie. The failure to keep a clean sheet wasn't his fault and he fared better overall than some of his fellow signings.
It will take time for Beale's side to get up to speed but they were deservedly beaten by an Ayrshire outfit that has undergone their own extensive rebuild under the guidance of Derek McInnes in recent weeks.
"Yes and no," Butland said when asked about Rangers still being a work in progress. "But like I said, we are not looking for excuses. There is nothing to blame.
READ MORE: Rangers' James Bisgrove makes Old Firm ticket call amid Celtic stance
"We are here in the building, we believe in what we have got. I think you can see that in the way the fans reacted after the game, there is huge expectation because of the excitement around what we have done in the summer and the players that are in and that remain from last year.
"It is an exciting team for the club. We believe that, we are excited about that and rightly so the fans are disappointed because they feel the same.
"For us, nothing changes. We take it a game at a time and we look forward to Wednesday now and get over this as quickly as possible."
That next fixture carries huge significance for Rangers in both football and financial terms as they return to the European arena.
READ MORE: Kilmarnock set the standard as Robbie Deas savours Rangers victory
The visit of Servette was always going to be a tough challenge. Events at the weekend have only served to heighten the senses of a support that will want to see an immediate reaction.
Butland said: "I don’t necessarily think it was a wake up call. It is just an understanding that these games will be tough.
"These teams aren’t going to make it easy for us. I don’t think there were any illusions of that and that we came here and expected to turn teams over. It is tough at times.
"But we bury it, look forward to Wednesday and getting a win and then we go back to Ibrox at the weekend and look to get our first league win of the season. It is as simple as that."
Why are you making commenting on The Herald only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel