THIS match had only just kicked off when the most beautiful rainbow stretched across the sky above the Bet Butler Stadium.

The prevailing topic of the day, though, had left the mood of a number of visiting supporters blacker than the foreboding clouds that served as its backdrop.

Mike Ashley's increasing influence at Rangers, confirmed by the acceptance of a £2 million loan and predictions he will install a couple of new faces on the board at Ibrox in addition to underwriting a share issue, does not appear to have many of the diehards fantasising about pots of gold.

"Ashley, Ashley, get to f***", chanted a handful after just five minutes of the play. True, it was hardly a majority of those who had made the trip to Dumbarton. For most, the outbreak of football was blessed relief from another chaotic week in the never-ending story of who may or may not be in charge of their club.

Yet it seems Ashley - regarded as the devil incarnate by the followers of his chief interest, Newcastle United - is hardly likely to be carried shoulder-high along Edmiston Drive any time soon after stepping in to keep the lights on at a club still in the most incredible state of disarray two years and eight months after being driven into administration by the dastardly Craig Whyte.

It is difficult to know quite what to believe in the ferocious game of spin and counter-spin that goes on in the shadows around Rangers, of course. Some claim the club was just 48 hours away from going into administration again before Ashley's proposal was accepted ahead of rival offers from Dave King and Brian Kennedy.

Certainly, the club was rapidly running out of money, with most observers accepting that meeting the wage bill was going to be a major problem next month if not this.

Hanging on to the coat-tails of Hearts in the SPFL Championship is a major issue as well, though, make no mistake about that. Goals from Kenny Miller, Lee Wallace and Kris Boyd produced one result, at least, that will be universally accepted by what is unquestionably a confused and divided fanbase.

Rangers, as usual, had one or two uncomfortable moments to contend with over the course of the match. It would be disingenuous, however, to paint this victory as anything other than straightforward and deserved.

Garry Fleming did shoot wide from a decent position for the home side on 14 minutes after being given too much space and Lee McCulloch almost sold the jerseys a little later when being robbed in his own area by Mark Gilhaney. Fortunately for the Rangers captain, the attacking midfielder failed to find Colin Nish, in plenty of space in front of goal, with the cutback.

It was not a vintage afternoon for McCulloch. He also saw a poor penalty saved by Danny Rogers on 24 minutes after David van Zanten was judged to have pulled down Wallace in the box, but Miller saved his blushes and eased any anxiety shortly afterwards.

Stevie Smith, operating on the left of a midfield rejigged because of an injury to Ian Black, whipped in a lovely low cross. Boyd failed to get his toe on the end of it, but Miller had timed his run splendidly and saw his first-time effort soar into the roof of the net. Boyd and Miller both missed glorious opportunities early in the second period when failing to beat Rogers in one-on-one situations and it took Wallace - a left-back, no less - to deliver a masterclass in finishing.

After surging deep into opposition territory with a galloping run, he played a clever one-two with Miller and his low effort past Rogers and into the net was calmness personified.

Boyd remains in search of confidence and form and was the target of some frustration during the course of yesterday's events, but he did get his name on the scoresheet with 18 minutes remaining when heading home a Smith cross from six yards or so.

There was even room for a little levity among the Rangers fans as the match played out. Richard Foster, who had become involved in a spat with some supporters during a Petrofac Training Cup win over East Fife last midweek, was invited by his team's followers to kiss and make up by singing The Sash.

Come to think of it, more of them chanted about that than contributed to the earlier ditty about Ashley. Should we read something into that?

Probably not. Given everything they have had to put up with, Rangers fans clearly just want something, anything, to laugh about.