JOHN BEATON said sorry to Steven Gerrard for not awarding a penalty on Wednesday night but it wasn't an apology that the Rangers boss wanted.

He needed John to give the penalty for the challenge that Lewis Ferguson made on Alfredo Morelos that was inside the box. Saying sorry for not doing so once the final whistle has gone is no consolation to Rangers.

I know that people make mistakes and there is nothing that can be done now. But I am sure the last thing Steven wanted to hear was 'I am sorry, it should have been a penalty' because that just rubs salt in the wounds.

It is not as if there were bodies in front of him and he couldn't see. He was two yards away from it and misses it.

If you can't see that is inside the box and should be a penalty then there is something wrong.

Even if John had given it, Rangers would still have had to score it. We have missed a couple this season, of course.

But with Rangers right up there with Celtic, it would have given them a chance to potentially win the game and they could be sitting here two points better off and level at the top of the table.

Aberdeen could have come back after that and might still have got their draw, we don't know. But Rangers should have had the chance to go ahead at a crucial time and the match could have swung back in their favour.

Unfortunately, it didn't happen and the referee has made a real blunder. He held his hands up, but Rangers would have preferred it if he had just made the right call.

People talk about the decisions that Rangers get from referees. Well, keep this one in your book because it was a huge moment in and important game and it could prove costly for Steven Gerrard.