Hibernian 1-2 Rangers

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Rangers came from a goal down to stun profligate Hibernian at Easter Road, and win their fourth Scottish Premiership match in a row.

Two goals in five first-half minutes from Josh Windass and Alfredo Morelos cancelled out Lewis Stevenson's deflected ninth-minute opener.

Morelos, at one end, and Simon Murray, at the other, should have scored from close range soon after the break.

Brandon Barker twice struck the post, as Hibs toiled in vain to level.

The hosts had a penalty appeal turned down when Gers substitute David Bates controlled a cross with his left arm inside the box.

Second-placed Rangers remain level on points with Aberdeen, five behind leaders Celtic and six ahead of Hibs, who sit fourth.

This game seemed to have been seized by the throat by Neil Lennon's team. They were ahead after just nine minutes when Murray scampered down the left before picking out Stevenson. The Rangers defence became frozen, Bruno Alves taking on the role of a bystander. Stevenson had time to measure a shot and beat Wes Foderingham.

Rangers then had Kenny Miller taken off on a stretcher to add to their woes before Morelos missed an easy chance at the back post. Instead of heading unobstructed into the goal, he nodded it wide.

Image source, SNS
Image caption,

Lewis Stevenson's right-foot shot was deflected into the net by Bruno Alves

Earlier, Rangers were denied a penalty when Ross McCrorie was dragged b ack in the box by Oli Shaw. McCrorie, surprisingly, made no claim and the moment passed.

That one Morelos chance was followed by two from Hibs. Good ones, too. The hosts were causing problems out wide and Graeme Murty's side looked vulnerable every time Hibs went at them.

Paul Hanlon got in behind and only a save from Foderingham denied him. Then it was Martin Boyle's turn to ask a question of the Rangers goalkeeper and once again Foderingham came up with the answer.

There was precious little to suggest that the night was about to be turned on its head in five devastating minutes at the end of the first half. Jason Holt played in Windass and running free on the left side of the Hibs penalty area, Windass drilled his shot across Ofir Marciano. It was a terrific finish but Marciano wasn't too clever in trying to deal with it.

The Rangers support had barely stopped roaring when Morelos put Rangers ahead. The striker utterly bamboozled Hanlon on the right of the Hibs box and then smashed a venomous shot past the befuddled Marciano.

Lennon would have been a frustrated man at the break and the angst would only have continued in the early minutes of the new half when Murray had a fresh-air shot four yards out when even a minimum of contact would surely have brought Hibs level.

Image source, SNS
Image caption,

Morelos caught out Ofir Marciano at his near post in a five-minute spell that stunned Hibs

Morelos had a chance to put Rangers two ahead soon after but he messed up with a close-range header. By now, Lennon had made a move, bringing on Barker for Oli Shaw. Barker wasted no time in having an impact, curling a shot on to Foderingham's left-hand post.

Barker, with his pace and devilment, was a real menace to Rangers. Having hit one post he then hit another, although this time Foderingham did well to get fingertips to it to push it on to the woodwork. The loose ball spun across goal with Anthony Stokes in pursuit. When he got there and turned to get his shot away, Foderingham denied him, too.

This was frenetic stuff and the longer it went on the more the traffic flowed towards the Rangers goal. Murty brought on Bates in an attempt to keep hold of what he had, extra ballast amid an onslaught.

Rangers' next escape was possibly their most fortunate. Bates leaned into a crossed ball and used his arm to control it. It looked a cast-iron penalty, a straightforward call for referee Kevin Clancy, but, to the astonishment and gall of the home support, he didn't give it.

It was an enormous break for Rangers who held on gamely for a remarkable victory. Four in a row now for them under Murty, who continues to do a fine job in the caretaker role. Having seen off Aberdeen twice and now Hibs, in their own place, in recent weeks, there's real momentum at Ibrox.

Murty's counterpart in the Hibs dugout will, of course, have cause to curse some profligacy in front of goal, some bad luck with the woodwork and a penalty decision that went against him. Dramatic stuff again at Easter Road.

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