Paul Sheerin gives his reaction after the development side defeated Rangers 1-0 at the Balmoral Stadium this afternoon in a friendly.

“I thought that it was a good game in the first half. They probably passed the ball better than us, but I thought that we carried more of a threat.

“We got them in at half time, we had a good chat, we took the positives and we looked to right the wrongs.

“At the start of the second half I thought that we lost our way. We were a wee bit in between with the press, we didn’t get close enough to them, and they enjoyed the game too much for the first 25 minutes of the second half.

“The changes gave us a bit more impetus and a bit more energy.

“Frank Ross is not long back from injury, he was probably feeling the pitch and the dimensions at Cove can be a bit unforgiving at times. Calvin will be involved with the U18’s on Friday so we took him off to add a bit more energy which is what Max and Duncan gave us. We also had the enforced change with Dangana coming on.

“That freshness seemed to give us the impetus and from that we dominated the last spell of the game.

“Even in the early part of the second half, where we weren’t playing well, we still had some good opportunities.

“Overall, we probably created more chances, but I would have liked that period of the second half that I have mentioned to have been better.

“It is going to take time with Mark Gallagher. He had a spell out where he wasn’t playing. Sometimes it helps that you need a flow of games. He is not getting that at the moment because he is cup tied in the Reserve Cup.

“He is a wonderful footballer. He passes the ball well; he has a good range of passing. He could maybe move it quicker at times but again that will come with time and he starts to learn the way that we play.

“I thought that as a group, we got through that period that we struggled in and when we came through that it was pleasing to see our strength and fitness.

“I thought Lyall Booth came in and done well. The younger ones are all doing great at their level and the next step is the reserve squad and when they get those opportunities, they have got to take them. In the main when they have come in, they have done well.

“Calvin Ramsey was great and Luke Turner throughout the season has been steady enough. The U18’s are given a platform at their level but they know their progression has to be up to his squad.

“I thought Tom Ritchie was a calming influence in goal. He came for a couple of crucial crosses. It was quite a mature performance from him.

“The reserve cup final against Celtic will be an exciting game. It will be a tough game. We played them recently and struggled a wee bit. We will prepare as best as we can.

“It is a game that we all look forward to.

“I have spoken often enough about how it is our competition and we want to win it.

“We fell at the semi-final stage last year. We are one stage further and hopefully we can lift the cup.

“For Seb it would be brilliant as captain. Bruce Anderson has obviously been on the fringes. Luke Bollan, Luke Turner, Lloyd Robertson have been with us throughout the season. These are the type of players who will be desperate to go on and win it.”

Aberdeen v Hearts fixture selected for TV coverage

Match details