TWO down, four to go.

 

Rangers edged a step closer to the top flight of Scottish football with this nerve-jangling victory over Queen of the South in the SPFL Premiership play-off quarter-final.

Yet, if this outing at Ibrox yesterday is anything to go by, their quest to win promotion promises to be every bit as problematic as their progress through the lower leagues has been during the last three seasons.

Leading 2-1 from the first leg at Palmerston Park eight days earlier, Rangers made matters far more complicated than they should have been by conceding against the run of play in the first half to Derek Lyle.

A Lee Wallace strike levelled the match in the second half and handed Rangers the overall advantage in the fixture once again to the considerable relief of their followers in the 48,035-strong crowd.

However, Stuart McCall's side still needed to withstand relentless pressure from James Fowler's side in the closing stages of the match before they triumphed 3-2 on aggregate. On several occasions, it looked as if they would fail in their objective.

Rangers will now face a Hibs side they have lost to three times in the 2014/15 campaign in the play-off semi-final at Ibrox on Wednesday night and Easter Road on Saturday afternoon. They promise to be well-attended and memorable occasions.

Awaiting the victors of that double header in the two-legged final will be Motherwell whose admirable bid to avoid finishing second-bottom of the Premiership finally came to an abrupt end at the weekend with defeat to relegated St. Mirren.

McCall pulled Haris Vuckic in from the right flank, where his considerable talents are so often wasted, and given a more central role in attack alongside Nicky Clark and Kenny Miller yesterday in what proved to be an inspired decision. The Slovenian internationalist was heavily involved in all of his side's best attacking forays.

He played a one two with Wallace in the eighth minute before the left back cut the ball back to Clark. The forward was unmarked on the edge of the six yard box and should have converted the opportunity. He volleyed wide with his left foot to set the tone for what would be a frustrating 45 minutes for his side.

Vuckic supplied Law as he advanced into the Queens penalty area six minutes later. His fellow midfielder's shot was destined for the bottom right corner before it was pushed wide for a corner by keeper Zander Clark.

In the 28th minute the Newcastle United loanee tried his luck himself after receiving possession from Dean Shiels and transferring the ball onto his favoured left foot. Once again, Clark prevented the host club from taking the lead with a fine save.

Having subjected their opponents to such a torrid spell without converting any of their scoring chances, it was almost inevitable when Rangers fell behind. Queens took the lead in 35th minute on the counter attack.

Danny Carmichael was afforded time and space on the right flank to compose himself and curl a cross in to Lyle. The striker rose well and headed beyond Cammy Bell and into the net to level the tie.

Rangers almost reclaimed the advantage with a virtual carbon copy of that attack in 55 minutes. Richard Foster picked out Miller whose downward header was brilliantly denied from close range by the outstanding Clark.

Just five minutes later, though, the home team had netted. Vuckic lofted the ball to Clark who chested it into the path of Wallace. The captain made no mistake. His strike produced the biggest roar

McCall's side had several opportunities to kill off their after that. Miller should have done far better after being sent clear by Vuckic. Their lack of ruthlessness is a concern heading into the games against Hibs on Wednesday and Saturday.

There was a definite tendency to be overly elaborate at times. A change of personnel up front could be the solution. Kris Boyd, an unused substitute yesterday, has hardly featured in the second half of the season. But he could provide the cutting edge the team is currently lacking.

Queens threw everything at their opponents and laid siege to their goal. The tension among the Rangers supporters inside the stadium was palpable as the home defence toiled to deal with a succession of corners and goal attempts.

Scorer Lyle had the best chance. His shot in the 81st minute eluded the clutches of Bell and was sailing for the top corner. Vuckic was well positioned on the line and headed it clear.

Then came the cameo appearance by the one and only Bilel Mohsni. Once, that is, he had managed to get stripped for action. The centre half appeared not to have donned the correct socks or jersey and took several minutes to locate them and then get changed in the technical area.

Once he finally replaced Clark, McCall must have been cursing himself for making change. The Tunisian internationalist burst upfield during the three minutes of injury-time. Instead of taking it in to the corner flag and running down the clock he shot at goal from just inside the Queens half. Clark gathered the ball easily and moments later his side was bearing down on the Rangers goal.

It was completely unnecessary. As was the free-kick Mohsni gifted for a foul on Aidan Smith. Fortunately for him, Ian McShane shot straight into the defensive wall in the final act of a pulsating encounter.