SEETHING Stephen Robinson insists referee Andrew Dallas cost Motherwell in their 2-1 loss against Rangers at Ibrox yesterday.
The Fir Park boss reckons a “dubious decision” from the match official turned the game after they had led through a strike from Devante Cole.
Robinson felt Liam Donnelly had been fouled in the build-up to Jermain Defoe’s equaliser after the pair collided as they chased Allan McGregor’s long kick out.
Dallas, however, saw nothing wrong with the clash and waved play on. The ball moved to Steven Davis who had a shot from outside the penalty box which flew straight at keeper Mark Gillespie.
The shotstopper punched the ball straight to Defoe who quickly thumped the rebound low into the net.
Robinson, speaking to the Daily Record, said: “The frustration for me is we’ve got beat by a set-play. Brilliant delivery and you have to give credit. Tavernier’s deliveries are excellent, but we get beat by a set-play and a very very dubious decision for the first goal.
“They come together and if they come together and he falls over and it’s accidental it doesn’t matter. It’s a foul. It leads to the first goal and if we had got in at half-time then perhaps it’s a little bit different. Sometimes these things go against you.
“It was a 93-minute performance, I thought Rangers were hanging on at the end. They hit us on the counter, but, listen, they are a quality side. Steven Gerrard has done an amazing job here.
We caused Rangers a lot of problems, I have to give credit to the players. We showed a lot of quality. We have no right to come here with that kind of quality and we did – it shows the strides we’ve made.
“I’m really proud of the players, but I’m really disappointed we’ve lost to a set-play and a decision that probably needs looked at again.”
The Ibrox men claimed the winner 10 minutes from the end when James Tavernier, who had missed a first-half penalty-kick, fired over a right-wing corner-kick that was headed home by Swedish central defender Filip Helander.
