Rangers sack Russell Martin hours after Falkirk draw as Ibrox chiefs issue statement

Russell Martin has been sacked by Rangers just hours after a costly draw away at Falkirk. Martin leaves Rangers having won just five of 17 matches in charge across all competitions, and the draw at Falkirk Stadium proved the final straw for the club's hierarchy as they finally listened to their fans.

The Gers had won only once in seven Scottish Premiership games under former Swansea and Southampton boss Martin. That leaves them 11 points adrift of league leaders Hearts and nine behind arch rivals Celtic. The Glasgow giants led 1-0 at Falkirk through Bojan Miovski's first-half goal but were denied three points by a 73rd-minute Henry Cartwright equaliser.

A group of frustrated fans blocked the team bus outside the stadium and Martin had to be given a police escort to his car. Fans made their anger clear with chants and boos against the manager while there were banners in the away end making it clear they wanted the head coach dismissed.

The 39-year-old had long retained the backing of the board but the Light Blues were also winless from three games in the Europa League, and those in the boardroom have decided to pull the trigger. That means Martin becomes the manager with the shortest tenure of any permanent Rangers boss in the club's 153-history having lasted only four months in charge.

An official statement on Sunday night read: "Rangers Football Club confirms that it has parted company with Head Coach, Russell Martin. While all transition periods require some time, results have not met the club's expectations.

"Assistant Head Coach, Matt Gill, and First-Team Coach, Mike Williamson, will also be departing. Russell and his staff have worked exceptionally hard throughout their time at the club. We thank them for their efforts and wish them well for the future. Further updates from the club will follow in due course."

Hours before he was sacked, Martin made it clear he would not resign from his job and told Sky Sports: "There has been improvement. Maybe not in results but performance a lot, but I know everyone just wants to win games. I hear everyone saying it all the time, you just have to win.

"You also have to have a way to learn and grow and develop. You can't just win sustainably, in my opinion. You can't just win. Also, you can't just win if you don't have a team of seasoned men with thousands of games under their belt collectively that no-one understands.

"We haven't got that. We've got a lot of young players that are growing into it and they need a lot of help. My job is to keep trying to help them and I'll do it until I'm told not to."

Martin added of the pressure he was facing: "We're building without the results we currently want, so I understand it. It's part of this job of any football club. More scrutiny and intensity here than most places, I'd argue but it's something you have to deal with.

"And I'll do that to the best of my ability until I'm told not to, like I said. I don't have any control of that. I felt really well supported from everyone, including today, this morning. So I'll just keep focusing on what I can control, which is the players for work."