The Light Blues opened the scoring in the contest just moments prior to the interval as Arron Lyall curled home from distance, before an authoritative second half display was rounded off with goals from Thompson Ishaka and Ross McCausland.
David McCallum named three changes to his side from Saturday’s clash against OH Leuven’s first-team, with Kieran Wright, Zander Hutton and Josh McPake coming into the team.
The Toffees threatened inside 90 seconds when they looked to cut through the heart of the Gers backline, although the move quickly petered out when a cut-back trickled all the way through the penalty area.
McPake was first to trouble Billy Crellin in the Everton goal, reversing a free-kick from the left-hand side which had the Toffees goalkeeper scrambling as it dipped into the side netting.
The young Gers were beginning to get a foothold in the contest around the 10th minute mark, underlined by a piece of neat link-up play between McPake and Robbie Fraser before the latter’s cross-cum-shot skimmed the top of the crossbar.
Connor Allan then headed wide from a corner moments later, proving the precursor to the best piece of play from the Light Blues in the early exchanges. Cole McKinnon dovetailed effectively with Zak Lovelace in midfield, moving play swiftly inside to Alex Lowry. The captain for the day swivelled neatly on the edge of the penalty area, firing inches wide of the Everton goal with a rasping effort.
Rangers continued to create the higher quality of opportunities as the half wore on. Fraser was providing a consistent threat down the left-hand side from deep, picking out Lowry inside the penalty area on 29 minutes which forced Crellin into a smart diving stop.
Lowry was at the heart of the creative threat once again eight minutes later. The midfielder rode his luck in midfield before feeding a pass into Arron Lyall who advanced into the final third. Lowry continued his run in parallel to his midfield partner, although he could not get a clean connection on his resulting strike as the ball trickled into the grateful arms of Crellin.
The pressure from the home side eventually told with two minutes remaining of the first half. Ross McCausland had only moments prior fired off target after a promising jinking run inside, and it was Lyall who made no mistake in breaking the deadlock.
Lovelace showed tremendous patience to hold the ball up, bringing Lyall into play in a central area on the edge of the penalty area. The midfielder fed the ball into McPake, playing a neat give-and-go before he curled a sumptuous effort into the top corner which left the Everton goalkeeper with no chance.
The young Gers emerged for the second half with Thompson Ishaka replacing Lovelace at the tip of the attack, and the substitute almost made an immediate impact when he stole possession in the final third and drew an impressive stop from the Everton goalkeeper with a low driven effort.
The hosts had certainly picked up where they left off to open the second period. Lowry showed nimble footwork in midfield to create separation, advancing towards goal and watching his stabbed effort tipped onto the crossbar by the Toffees goalkeeper.
McPake was next to test Everton’s resolve after shimmying inside and firing towards goal, before the young Gers deservedly doubled their advantage with a sweeping move in transition.
Zander Hutton was alert to intercept the Everton danger on the flank, retrieving possession before feeding Ishaka into space down the right-hand side. The substitute danced his way into the penalty area before lifting his head and curling an unstoppable finish into the far corner.
The 18-year-old could have doubled his tally on the afternoon when he jinked menacingly through a crowd of Everton bodies inside the danger area, although he was unfortunate that Ryan Astley was on hand to thwart the danger on the goalline.
However, the home side didn’t have to wait too long to add their third of the afternoon, this time through the persistent Ross McCausland. The Northern Irishman had two bites at the cherry when his attempted pass through the heart of the Everton backline bounced straight back to him, rifling a thunderous effort off the underside of the crossbar and over the goalline to rubber stamp his side’s authority.
Substitute James Graham appeared to have added a fourth of the contest when he dispatched from close range, but his celebrations were quickly thwarted by the linesman’s offside flag.
The frame of the goal was rattled moments later when Jamie Newton chopped inside onto his right foot and cracked the outside of the post with his driven effort.
There was a further chance in the contest when Hutton fired straight at the Toffees goalkeeper from a tight angle, before the referee drew the game to a close with the sound of his whistle.
The young Gers will now shift their attention to the visit of Burnley Under-21s to Glasgow on Saturday afternoon as the Best v Best games programme continues.
RANGERS B: Wright, Hutton, Allen (Webster, 66), Allan, Fraser (Newton, 66), Lyall (Nsio, 69), McKinnon (Strachan, 30), McCausland, McPake (Graham, 57), Lowry, Lovelace (Ishaka, 45)
Subs not used: Munn
EVERTON UNDER-21s: Crellin, Dixon, Butler, Astley, Moonan, Metcalfe, Beaumont-Clarke, Bates, Sherif, Apter, Heath
REFEREE: James McCluskey
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