Dunfermline Athletic at Ibrox this afternoon in a game
where the goals were shared amongst five players.
Manager Alex McLeish made one change from Milan with
Chris Burke returning after an absence of some two
months to replace Hamed Namouchi against a visiting
side that had not won at Ibrox for all of 33 years,
when a certain Jim Leishman scored the winner in a 4-3
win.
Burke almost made an immediate impact when he volleyed
wide of the target from an Olivier Bernard cross in
nine minutes.
The opening goal duly arrived six minutes later -
another Bernard cross being missed altogether by
Lovenkrands at the near post but was converted by
Thomas Buffel at the far post.
There was a definite lull in the atmosphere as the
half developed, perhaps due to the lack of challenge
from the visitors, but Dado Prso made it 2-0 in 37
minutes when he worked an opening from a Burke cross
before rifling the ball into the roof of the net.
Rangers were in such complete control that there was a
distinct danger of the 48,374 spectators falling
asleep as the game went on - but the Light Blues got a
wake-up call eight minutes after the restart when
Pars' substitute Noel Hunt headed home a Greg Ross
cross, before then gesturing to the 'Gers fans behind
the goal.
Ross McCormack immediately replaced Burke, the
winger's substitution being loudly jeered by the
crowd, although in fact it was almost certainly due to
his lack of games in the past eight weeks.
There was yet more dissent from the Ibrox legions in
69 minutes when Thomas Buffel was replaced by Federico
Nieto - yet with his first touch of the ball the
Argentinian made it 3-1 when he stabbed home a Prso
head-flick from a Ferguson cross.
Rangers had clearly received a wake-up call with the
loss of that goal, for Lovenkrands added a fourth goal
in 74 minutes when he volleyed home a McCormack cross.
Ross McCormack made it 5-1 in 85 minutes, turning home
a Bernard cross from close range following a
penetrating run from Lovenkrands - and indeed the
youngster might have made it six in the dying seconds,
firing over from a Prso back-heel.
Alex McLeish afterwards summarised:
"The result was pleasing after a tough week. It was
good to share the goals around. It was great to see
Chris Burke back - we always planned to give him an
hour, but he was knackered when I took him off."
RANGERS Waterreus; Ricksen, Kyrgiakos, Rodriguez,
Bernard; Burke (McCormack 54), Ferguson (Lowing 76),
Murray, Lovenkrands; Buffel (Nieto 69), Prso
UNUSED SUBS Klos, Andrews, Jeffers, Namouchi
DUNFERMLINE ATHLETIC Halliwell; Labonte, S. Wilson,
Thomson, Zambernardi; Derek Young, Makel, Ross,
McCunnie, Horsted (Burchill 69); Tarachulski (Hunt 51)
UNUSED SUBS Shaw, Campbell, C. Wilson, Tod, Muir
REFEREE John Underhill
Attendance 48,374