TWO second-half goals from Raith Rovers halted Rangers progress in the Scottish Cup – as they went down 2-1 at Ibrox.
A Ryan Conroy free kick and a close range effort from Christian Nade, either side of a Haris Vuckic strike, put the Fife side into the quarter-finals.
The goal from the Slovenian was one of the only impressive moments from a Light Blues side, who struggled against the same team they had beaten handsomely twice this season
New signing Vuckic showed his class early on when he curled a pin point ball to Richard Foster out on the right flank with six minutes gone. Sadly his creative play wasn’t to be a marker of what was to come in a trying 90 minutes for Gers.
Raith showed some attacking force on 13 minutes when Conroy battled his way down the right and cut inside. The midfielder showed too much of it to Lee McCulloch though, who had looked to be backing off, and the Rangers skipper blocked his attempted cross.
Three minutes later Nicky Law shrugged his defender off as he skipped into the box and squared a sweet ball into the path of Kenny Miller. The striker mistimed his kick and Lee Wallace could only fire the loose ball into a wall of Rovers defenders. Rangers were finding it hard to make a real opening in the game and the visitors nearly punished them with immediate force – Nade heading just wide.
The Light Blues looked to react quickly and almost did so. Ian Black sprayed a ball out to Foster on the right and the full-back curled it straight into the six yard box for Jon Daly. The Irishman rose well but, like Nade had done three minute earlier, he nodded his effort off target.
As 20 minutes ticked by Remie Streete, making his debut, looked to be growing into his defensive birth. The Newcastle United loanee came out nearly as far as the half way line to slide a perfect tackle in, snubbing out Raith’s attack. Foster and Daly profited from the attacking centre-back’s actions as they linked up again, the right-back’s cross found Daly’s head but this time David McGurn was forced to palm his header away to deny the striker.
Rangers were very nearly a goal behind with just under half an hour played. Conroy whipped a corner in and Paul Watson flicked his header towards Steve Simonsen’s goal. Gers had just the post to thank as the ball bounced agonisingly off the inside of the upright and out again, skimming the wrong side of the goal line and somehow keeping the tie goalless.
The Light Blues looked shaken and pushed up the park to try and create an effort of their own. From a throw in Black found himself running into space on the edge of the area and the diminutive midfielder tried his luck with a long range effort but it sailed over McGurn’s bar.
On 33 minutes Vuckic won the ball in the centre and turned to slot the ball through to Daly but Watson’s was there to block his effort. Miller found himself running onto the clearance and tried a first time strike at goal – McGurn diving to his right to save from the striker.
With half-time nearing Vuckic had a chance to make it 1-0 but he put Foster’s looping cross into the ground and Raith cleared their lines. And then play had to stop as his fellow debutant Streete called to the bench, looking like he’d gone to ground with a pulled groin. The new boy limped off and Darren McGregor replaced him as a frustrated Gers side trudged off at the break.
Just under ten minutes of the second-half had gone when Raith opened the scoring with a sweet free-kick from Conroy. Hutton had conceded it on the edge of the area and the winger stepped up with assurance to curl the ball around the wall and past Simonsen’s outstretched palm into the bottom corner.
With a place in the quarter final of the Scottish Cup up for grabs Rangers were going to have to fight to claw their way back into the tie. They struggled though, feeding off scraps in midfield as Law and Vuckic struggled to get time on the ball. Foster tried his best to create down the right but Kenny McDowall’s men were seeing anything they created thwarted by Rovers defence.
But a moment of class on 62 minutes from the newly arrived Vuckic brought the sides back equal. Hutton fed a perfect through pass into the path of the Slovenian, who took one touch before dispatching a strike past McGurn into the bottom corner. The debutant was mobbed by his new teammates and McDowall immediately freshened up the attacking force by bringing on Kris Boyd in place of Daly.
The striker had the chance to make an impact straight away when Law played him in. The 31-year old shot straight at the keeper though as he shielded the ball at Boyd’s feet.
The waste of that chance, amongst others was to punish Rangers, when Raith went ahead again on 75 minutes. They broke to the by-line and the ball that scorched across the box looked to have been held when Simonsen threw himself over it. But it broke free in a melee on the goal line and Nade was the most alive to it, tapping home from inches out.
Gers goal came under fire again five minutes later with Simonsen having to get low to parry an Anderson strike. And Rangers afternoon was summed up when Boyd put his header well wide of an open goal in the 90th minute. The fourth official indicated there would be five more minutes of added time for McDowall’s side to try and rescue the tie but the couldn’t muster a reply.
RANGERS: Simonsen, Foster, Streete (McGregor 43”), McCulloch, Wallace, Hutton, Black (Murdoch 74”), Law, Miller, Vuckic, Daly (Boyd 65”)Subs not used: Robinson, Shiels, Clark, Aird
Goals: Vuckic 62”Yellows: Foster 69”
RAITH ROVERS: McGurn, Thomson, Watson, Hill, Anderson, Moon, Callachan, Conroy, Carrick (Stewart 50”), McKeown, Nade (Scott 86”)Subs not used: Cuthbert, Fox, Vaughan, Matthews, BarrGoals: Conroy 53”, Nade 75”