Rangers trail Celtic by two points after the opening day of the season following a 1-1 draw at Rugby Park in a game the Ibrox men should have had wrapped up in the first-half.
Rangers took the field in their new orange jerseys, many fans reflecting the kit in the stands against a Kilmarnock side containing three former Ibrox players, namely Gordon Marshall, Greg Shields and Gary McSwegan.
There was no Kevin Muscat in the visitors’ squad, and it was Killie who were first to threaten when McSwegan’s 25-yard drive was fisted out by Stefan Klos.
The first yellow card of the afternoon arrived in eighteen minutes when Alan Mahood fouled Ronald De Boer, and within three minutes the Killie midfielder – once upon a time a Rangers’ target – was extremely fortunate to stay on the park when he committed an appalling over-the-top tackle on Arthur Numan, but Referee Kenny Clark opted to merely award a free-kick to Rangers.
Peter Lovenkrands came close to opening the scoring in 25 minutes when his volley from a Mikel Arteta corner was held by Gordon Marshall, but within four minutes another Arteta corner gave Rangers the lead when the home defence could only half-clear the Spaniard’s kick, enabling Lovenkrands to hook the ball back across goal where De Boer headed on to Arveladze who guided the ball wide of Marshall.
Kilmarnock were far from despondent however – within two minutes McSwegan’s twenty-yard drive flew inches over.
Rangers however were imposing themselves on the opposition. In 39 minutes Marshall fisted Ferguson’s curling 25-yard effort out.
The Light Blues should have wrapped up the points four minutes after the interval when a brilliant Arteta through ball dissected the Kilmarnock defence and was met on the volley by Lovenkrands, only for Marshall to again defy the Dane.
Eight minutes later a Lorenzo Amoruso header from a Neil McCann corner struck the post as Rangers chased a second goal.
There were loud shouts for a penalty in 62 minutes when Ferguson’s cross seemed to strike a hand, but Kenny Clark turned a blind eye to the appeal, then five minutes on Arveladze saw his left-foot angled drive from a De Boer pass strike the goalkeeper’s legs.
The feeling was growing with every passing minute that Rangers would pay dearly for their failure to finish the opposition off, and sure enough Kilmarnock snatched an equaliser with ten minutes remaining when substitute Andy McLaren – mercilessly taunted by the Rangers’ fans following his introduction – provided the perfect answer when his volley from a Garry Hay corner found the net.
Within sixty seconds the Ibrox men should have regained the lead when Arveladze headed over a Ricksen cross, then with the very next attack it was Lovenkrands’ turn to head wide from a Russell Latapy cross.
Desperation was creeping into Rangers’ play – yet in 86 minutes a mazy Lovenkrands run almost did the trick when he found Latapy, only for Marshall to produce a one-handed save from the substitute’s stabbed effort.
A draw it was – leaving Rangers to reflect on their second successive share of the points at Rugby Park, and to the realisation that even this early in the season they are trailing behind Celtic.
Questions must also remain over the Ibrox side’s fitness, as for the second successive week they seemed to flag during the second-half.
KILMARNOCK Marshall; Shields, Dindeleaux, Sanjuan, Hay; Hessey, Fulton, Mitchell (Boyd 72), Mahood; Dargo (McLaren 63), McSwegan (McLaughlin 89)
UNUSED SUBS. Meldrum, McDonald
RANGERS Klos; Ricksen, Moore, Amoruso, Numan; De Boer (Latapy 70), Ferguson, Arteta (Konterman 76), McCann (Flo 82); Arveladze, Lovenkrands
UNUSED SUBS. McGregor, Ross
REFEREE Kenny Clark