Alloa Athletic 3-2 Rangers

  • Published
Alloa's Ryan McCord (8) side foots into the back of the net to equalise for his sideImage source, SNS Group
Image caption,

Alloa are unbeaten in three games against Rangers this season

  • Alloa reach final with first ever win over Rangers

  • Rangers were 2-0 up after 64 minutes

  • Greig Spence nets his second to win it on 89 minutes

Alloa hit back from two goals down to beat Rangers and set up a Petrofac Training Cup final with Livingston.

It looked like the hosts would regret first-half misses from Greig Spence and Liam Buchanan when Kenny Miller fired Rangers in front on 49 minutes.

Dean Shiels doubled the visitors' lead but Alloa levelled with Spence and Ryan McCord netting in a three-minute spell.

And Spence found the winner on 89 minutes, finishing off a fine flowing move with a first-time shot.

Alloa had never beaten Rangers before but they had proved tough opposition already this season with two draws in the Championship.

And the part-timers created the best chances in the first half, with Spence prodding tamely at Steve Simonsen from close range and Buchanan dragging a shot wide from 12 yards.

Rangers, who had Lewis MacLeod carried off on a stretcher early on, struggled to find any fluency and were a shadow of the side that swept Kilmarnock aside in the Scottish Cup on Sunday.

It took until after the interval for the visitors to register a shot on target and it resulted in a goal.

Kris Boyd, reinstated to the starting line-up, hammered in a free-kick from 25 yards and keeper Craig McDowall could only claw the ball out where Miller was waiting to calmly steer home.

Image source, SNS Group
Image caption,

Alloa now have the chance to add to their 1999 Challenge Cup success

McDowall then did well to get a hand to Darren McGregor's low strike but Bilel Mohsni nearly handed Alloa a leveller when he diverted Buchanan's cut-back towards his own net, with Simonsen making a smart near-post save.

Rangers had a strong penalty claim when a prone Ben Gordon appeared to block Fraser Aird's shot with an arm.

But the visitors were soon celebrating their second goal when Shiels gathered a pass from Miller to cut past a defender and slip a composed shot into the bottom corner.

Progress looked certain for Rangers, who lost in the final to Raith Rovers last season, but Alloa had other ideas and were aided by some shoddy defending.

Spence was unmarked to head home from Mark Docherty's cross to breathe new life into the hosts.

And, soon after, Edward Ferns drilled in a low delivery from the right, which travelled through a cluster of players for McCord to finish off.

McDowall kept Alloa in it with a point-blank range save from substitute Jon Daly, setting up Spence to make himself the hero as he slotted home a fine finish from Steven Hetherington's perfectly weighted pass from the left.

Sorry, we can't display this part of the article any more.