Attendance 50,276
Rangers drew on reserves of character and resolve to defeat Celtic 2-1 at Ibrox this afternoon with two Kenny Miller goals - a remarkable, but thoroughly merited victory given that this was a side ravaged by illness and injury that the Champions were obliged to field.
Manager Walter Smith made four changes from Tuesday with Andrew Little, Steven Smith, Kris Boyd and Kenny Miller replacing Madjid Bougherra, Lee McCulloch, Kevin Thomson and Jerome Rothen as the Ibrox men fielded a half-strength team.
Celtic were first to threaten - Shaun Maloney's effort being blocked by Allan McGregor from a Mark Wilson cross inside two minutes.
Five minutes later however Rangers made a dream start when Miller, released through the middle by a Boyd pass, placed the ball wide of Artur Boruc.
As if the Light Blues did not have enough injury worries, they were obliged to replace the limping Little with Nacho Novo in thirteen minutes - a great shame for the Ulster youngster who was making his first start.
Sixty seconds later Shaun Maloney was yellow carded for diving when challenged by David Weir.
Ibrox was rocking when Rangers went two up in fifteen minutes - Miller outpacing Glenn Loovens as they chased a long McGregor kick-out before forcing the ball past Boruc.
This was unbelievable given the Champions' pre-match problems - but the deficit was reduced nine minutes later when Aidan McGeady netted from the penalty spot after Sasa Papac had upended Chinese striker Zheng Zhi.
The Celtic fans in the Broomloan Road Stand as is their custom polluted the air with songs glorifying terrorists and sickening chants about individual Rangers players. One wonders what the SPL delegate made of it all…
The game threatened to boil over in 34 minutes when Novo was fouled by Mark Wilson and McGeady shamefully booted the ball against the grounded Ranger. Incredibly Referee Craig Thomson took no action whatsoever.
The Ibrox men were obliged to make another enforced substitution eight minutes later when Kyle Lafferty replaced Boyd, who appeared to have suffered a head knock.
Rangers restarted on the offensive with Weir heading over from Smith's corner in the opening minute.
Miller might have notched his hat-trick in 54 minutes when he curled the ball wide from a Steven Naismith cutback.
Sixty seconds later Scott McDonald's volley from a Zhi cross was held by McGregor.
Shamefully a second Celtic player was yellow-carded for diving in the box in 65 minutes when Wilson was the culprit - but should we really expect anything else from the very club who invented simulation in the form of Kenny Dalglish, followed by Henrik Larsson, Chris Sutton, Stilian Petrov, Neil Lennon, Aidan McGeady and Shaun Maloney - to name but a few…
Three minutes later McGeady cut in from the right to test McGregor with a low 25-yarder that the 'keeper held.
Maloney shot wide from a Wilson cutback as the visitors pressed for an equaliser - but Rangers looked by far the more dangerous.
David Weir twice rose to Pedro Mendes corners in the closing stages - the first held by Boruc, the second too high.
Novo should have sealed the win in 83 minutes when, through on a Miller pass, his chip was turned wide by Boruc.
Rangers nevertheless were worthy winners to move within one point of their great rivals in the title race.
Afterwards a delighted Walter Smith observed:
"We're delighted to win, considering the team we were forced to field. We showed great determination and Kenny Miller scored two excellent goals."
RANGERS McGregor; Little (Novo 13), Weir, Papac, Whittaker; Naismith, Mendes, Davis, Smith; Miller, Boyd (Lafferty 42)
UNUSED SUBS Alexander, Rothen, Fleck, Loy, Wilson
CELTIC Boruc; Wilson, McManus, Loovens, Naylor (Caddis 76); McGeady, N'Guemo (Samaras 61), Brown, Maloney; McDonald, Zhi (McCourt 69)
UNUSED SUBS Zaluska, Caldwell, Crosas, Forrest
REFEREE Craig Thomson