Rangers 2-0 Stranraer: Hosts ease into Scottish Cup last 16
- Published
Goals: Rangers 2-0 Stranraer
Rangers began their Scottish Cup campaign with a routine victory over Stranraer at Ibrox to ease into the fifth round.
Scottish League One's bottom club held out until Scott Arfield poked home on the cusp of half-time.
Jermain Defoe doubled the lead from the spot as Rangers, showing seven changes from their Old Firm derby triumph, made a winning return from the winter break.
Steven Gerrard's side are the first club into Sunday's last-16 draw.
Stranraer, with former Scottish Premiership players Jamie Hamill and Ryan Stevenson in their side, defended bravely to keep the scoreline respectable but offered virtually nothing in attack.
Patterson sparkles on debut
After an impeccably observed minute's silence for former Rangers goalkeeper and Scotland manager Bobby Brown, who died this week aged 96, Stranraer set about trying to keep the hosts quiet.
It was a thankless and exhausting task that came with a cruel twist as League One's bottom club looked set to make it to half-time unscathed.
Rangers had an unfamiliar look as Gerrard fielded a host of fringe men. Few, though, will have convinced the manager they deserve more regular inclusion.
Jordan Jones, Andy Halliday and goalkeeper Wes Foderingham were making their first start in months, while right-back Nathan Patterson impressed on his debut.
The rangy 18-year-old, given the freedom of the flank as Stranraer packed the middle of the pitch, supplied a series of excellent deliveries. And he came close to marking his big night with a goal, his second-half snapshot bringing out the best in former Ibrox youth goalkeeper Max Currie.
Stranraer were hemmed in by a barrage of pressure as Rangers chipped away at their massed ranks. Defoe sent a couple of efforts whistling just past the post before the break, while Jones, Nikola Katic and Joe Aribo tried their luck with no success.
Ryan Jack almost prised open the stubborn visitors when he played a one-two with Defoe and saw his drive deflected on to the post by Currie.
When Stranraer were finally undone it was a scruffy opener from a corner that should have been a goal-kick for the visitors. Regardless, the set-piece was floated into the box, George Edmundson took a swing and a miss and Arfield pounced to fire home.
Currie clawed a Katic header away from the top corner to prevent further damage and pulled off eye-catching saves from Defoe's close-range blast and a Davis drive after the restart as Stranraer kept throwing their knackered bodies on the line.
The result was never really in doubt but Defoe made sure when his smart turn coaxed Adam Cummins into clipping the striker's heels.
Defoe tucked the penalty into the bottom left-hand corner for his 15th goal of the season and was substituted shortly after, with Gerrard keen not to over-exert the striker who will lead the line in Rangers' next two league games in place of suspended Alfredo Morelos.
Aribo threatened a third on a couple of occasions, and 17-year-old midfielder Kai Kennedy came off the bench for his Rangers debut, but the match petered out as Stranraer departed with heads held high.
Man of the match - Nathan Patterson
The 18-year-old is highly regarded at Ibrox and showed why with an assured debut. Comfortable and unfussy in possession, his eye for an accurate cross is a real asset.
With first-choice right-back James Tavernier sidelined for at least a couple of weeks, Patterson could have a bigger role to play in the upcoming games and will take confidence from his first taste of action.
'I don't think Rangers carved us open' - reaction
Rangers manager Steven Gerrard: "It was a dominant performance in-terms of possession and really only one team trying to find the answers and create.
"The priority was to get in the next round and it was a chance to give people an opportunity and knock a bit of rust off from the break. But, in terms of the performance, I did want to see more."
Stranraer manager Steven Farrell: "We worked all week trying to invite Rangers into wider areas rather than the centre of the park where they are so dangerous. I thought we did that. I don't think Rangers carved us open.
"Ultimately, we've lost two goals - one from a second phase on a corner kick and the other from a penalty. Over the piece, I thought we were excellent. There have been better teams than Stranraer who come here this season and suffered much heavier defeats."