Rangers stand-in keeper Alnwick insists confidence high
Ibrox deputy 'buzzing and ready to go' ahead of his first Old Firm appearance.
Rangers' goalkeeper Jak Alnwick insists confidence is high in the Ibrox dressing room ahead of Sunday's latest meeting with Celtic, despite a 4-0 defeat in the Scottish Cup semi-final.
Alnwick, 24, is expecting to start the derby, with regular number one Wes Foderingham sidelined with a shoulder injury.
"We know we weren't good enough on the day," he said of the 4-0 defeat. "We had prepared right, but then on the day we just didn't turn up.
"It was a hard defeat in the semi-finals but it's about reacting and what you do next, if we go out on Sunday positively then we've got a chance.
"We don't want to look in the past, we want to give the fans something from us. We are concentrated on winning the game - there are no issues with confidence."
Spats between players broke out in the Rangers dressing room after the semi-final, leading to club suspensions for Kenny Miller and Lee Wallace.
But Alnwick believes the squad is united and behind manager Graeme Murty, despite speculation over his future.
"There's a lot of experience in there," he said. "Graham Dorrans - he's played Premier League, he knows what this is all about.
"We've got Jamie Murphy, Russell Martin and Bruno Alves - who has won trophies.
"As well, a lot of the younger lads like James Tavernier have had experience and been at this club for a long time. We're all together.
"We have just got to get behind the gaffer that's in charge and have respect for him.
"He's the man in charge just now - we're going to give everything for him."
Alnwick has only made two appearances since joining Rangers on a three-year contract in January 2017.
He stepped in last week and helped his side to a 2-1 win over Hearts and insists he's not daunted by the prospect of facing Celtic.
"You come up here to a big club like Rangers to play in these sort of games, it's what you dream of and everyone would love to play in these games," he said.
"So, if I get that chance then I'll be buzzing and ready to go.
"I've played in a lot of big games when I was at Newcastle. I played against Chelsea, Arsenal and Manchester United.
"But, across the whole, this is the biggest one in terms of how much fans want to really win the game and I think it is right up there for me personally."