Manager Alex McLeish made two changes to the side that beat Hearts 2-1 at Tynecastle on Wednesday night with Gregory Vignal moving to left back and Bojan Djordjic replacing Micheal Ball who had to settle for a place on the bench.
Steven Thompson, as expected, also replaced the suspended Dado Prso after the Croatian received two yellow cards at Tynecastle.
Thommo admitted in Friday’s pre-match press conference that he would love to add to the nine goals he has scored already this season and that he had great respect for Caley Thistle who have now edged themselves away from the relegation zone.
The Gers’ boss echoed the strikers views and the Highland club travelled to Ibrox high in confidence having recorded a fantastic 3-0 midweek victory over third place Hibernian.
The opening five minutes of today’s game proved to be rather dull with the Light Blues keeping possession well without troubling Mark Brown’s goal.
This, however, changed on seven minutes when Buffel picked the ball up on the right and whipped in a low, dangerous cross that was missed by Novo, Thompson, Andrews and the entire Caley Thistle defence.
Vignal and Djordjic then combined well five minutes later when the Frenchman found the Swedish under-21 star on the left wing but his excellent cross was headed clear by Darren Dods who rose high above Thompson.
The home side were given a scare on 17 minutes when Caley’s in-form striker Juanjo received a pass from Barry Wilson on the edge of the 18-yard box. With his back to goal, the Spaniard’s lightning quick turn took him by Andrews but his delicate chip went wide of goal.
This seemed to spark Rangers in to life and Nacho Novo had his first real chance to net his 24th goal of the season on 27 minutes. Marvin Andrew picked the ball up in midfield and tried to find a pass to Buffel.
The ball, however, deflected off a Caley defender and somehow found it’s way through to keeper Brown who, with the Belgian charging at him at pace, spilled the ball. It fell to Novo who ballooned his effort over the bar with an empty net in front of him.
Frustration started to creep in to the home side’s play and Kyriakos picked up the first booking of the match on 41 minutes for a tackle on Juanjo 25 yards from Rangers goal. The yellow card seemed harsh but Caley were unable to capitalise from the resulting free-kick.
Neither side were able to create any further clear cut chances in what could only be described as a largely uninspiring opening 45 minutes.
In fact, it seemed that most of the 49,345 supporters in Ibrox were relieved to get the opportunity to go for their half-time pies and bovrils on what was a bitterly cold afternoon.
Rangers, predictably, showed a lot of determination in the opening stages of the second period and Novo created an opening after only one minute when he played an intricate one-two with Buffel but failed to get power on his shot which hit the side netting.
Fernando Ricksen then tried his luck from 30 yards four minutes later but his shot almost hit the Copland Road’s electronic scoreboard and had fans ducking for cover.
Alex McLeish elected to make his first substitution by replacing Djordjic with Bob Malcolm after 52 minutes and the impact was immediate as Barry Ferguson gave Rangers the lead five minutes later.
Fernando Ricksen found his midfield partner with a searching pass over the Caley defence and the Scotland captain looked up before finding the net with a beautiful lob over Brown.
It was Barry’s first goal since his return from Blackburn Rovers and he savoured the moment in front of his adoring fans.
With victory now in sight, Rangers seemed intent on keeping possession with the superb Marvin Andrews and Kyrgiakos soaking up every Caley Thistle attack.
The Trinidad and Tobago star was inspirational again for Alex McLeish’s side and he almost helped to set up goal number two on 71 minutes.
The defender sprinted past two Caley midfielders before playing an inch perfect pass to Buffel but his shot did not have the power or conviction to beat Brown.
Caley did, however, have a great opportunity to equalise when Thompson was dispossessed on the half-way line and this sparked a counter-acttack.
The ball eventually fell to Richard Hart and his powerful right-foot shot flew just wide of Waterreus’ post with the keeper well beaten.
In what was proving to be a very dramatic end to the game Caley, who were starting to show the fighting spirit that has helped them move away from the relegation zone, had yet another chance when the ball was launched in to the box and several Caley players, including Gers’ on-loan striker Bajram Fetai, tried their luck.
A combination of bad finishing and superb goalkeeping by Waterreus kept the Gers’ advantage intact.
Richard Hart then found himself in the referee’s book for a poor challenge on Novo. The Gers’ top scorer then had a chance to get revenge on 86 minutes when he stole the ball from Stuart Golabek before bearing down on goal.
Brown, however, managed to stick a leg out and save the day for the visitors.
The miss was to prove crucial as Caley Thistle punted the ball in to the Rangers box with only a minute remaining. In what seemed to take an eternity, the ball hit off Gregory Vignal’s back, fell to Caley substitute Bryan Prunty and his shot bounced over Waterreus and in to the net.
It was a disasterous ending to a disappointing game for Alex McLeish’s side and one which could prove very costly in weeks to come.
RANGERS: Waterreus, Ricksen, Buffel, Andrews, Ferguson, Novo, Kyrgiakos, Thompson, Ross, Vignal, Djordjic (Malcolm 52)
Subs Not Used: McGregor, Ball, Rae, Namouchi, Burke, McCormack
Bookings: Kyrgiakos
INVERNESS CT: Brown, Tokely, Golabek, Dods, McBain, Wilson (Fetai 69), Bayne (Prunty 73), Hart, Garricondo, Duncan, Munro
Subs Not Used: Fraser, McCaffrey, Hastings, Proctor, Black
Bookings: Hart
Referee: Mike Ritchie
Attendance: 49, 345
Man of the Match: Marvin Andrews