Rangers fans are rejecting the narrative Kemar Roofe’s challenge on Murray Davidson caused the injury which could keep him out of the Betfred Cup Final on February 28th.
Gers striker Roofe has been lambasted by several media outlets and rival fans over the challenge which certainly could’ve seen red but which was talked down by St. Johnstone manager Callum Davidson come the final whistle.
Reports in the likes of the Daily Record would claim that it was Roofe’s challenge which caused the injury – for which Murray Davidson was substituted in the first half – and these initially appeared to be backed up by the St. Johnstone manager.
“It’s one of those, I don’t think there was any malice in the challenge, but it doesn’t look great,” said Callum Davidson [Glasgow Times].
“TV pictures will slow it down and make it look worse than it is.
“The only thing I know is that I have lost my player from the resulting challenge. It’s not great.
“It’s a concern with the cup final coming up. I don’t know if he needs a scan, I will know more in the morning.”
However, images on social media appear to show Davidson receiving treatment from St. Johnstone physios on a the opposite leg from the one caught by Roofe.
Here’s the Roofe incident, where the Gers striker appears to catch his left leg:
But images after the fact appear to show Davidson getting treatment on his right leg before coming off, with some showing his own player also accidentally catching the midfielder:
https://twitter.com/brotton_john/status/1357283927044546561
There are also clips of Davidson pulling up just before his substitution after an innocuous challenge on Ryan Kent in the St. Johnstone half midway through the first period.
https://twitter.com/gregwm85/status/1357316316068216834
Whatever the case, Rangers fans are well aware the striker was lucky here but the situation doesn’t quite merit the monumental fall-out we’ve seen in the press.
However, according to reports, the Rangers star is set to evade any retrospective action for the challenge from the SFA.
