The Gers had to patient and were frustrated throughout before Brogan Hay’s first half delivery was unfortunately diverted into her own net by Eillie Macdonald. The New Zealand international Blake doubled the lead after the break with a chipped finish and Wilkinson’s penalty in stoppage time claimed the points.
Leanne Crichton made six changes to the side that overcame Hearts in the capital last time out, with Kirsty Smith, Lily Boyce, Fallon Connolly-Jackson, Sophie Black, Hannah Blake and Brogan Hay all in from off as the Gers looked for a fourth league success on the spin at the start of the new season.
The visitors targeted a quick start in East Kilbride against the side who had suffered a mix bag of results to begin the season, with Iain Robinson’s team earning three points from their first three outings and the Gers looking to keep up their perfect start to the campaign.
There was little in the way of clear openings inside the opening 10 minutes, with both keepers going untested in the early parts of the game. As Rangers looked to build on their free scoring start which has saw them find the back of the net on 14 occasions heading into their fourth SWPL encounter.
Motherwell had made a steady start to the game themselves as they looked to pose a threat when they could on the counter-attack. The Light Blues hadn’t quite got into their early rhythm which has saw them be ever so impressive in the early parts of the 26/27 season.
Calliste Brookshire, who was the player of the match in their capital matchup seven days prior registered the first effort of the game just shy of the 20 minute-mark. Successfully defending a corner, the Gers countered with the Greece international carrying her team forward, after combining with Brogan Hay in the second phase after the attack initially broke down, she cut in on her left from the opposite right flank but her shot went straight down the throat of the goalkeeper.
Frustrations continued towards the half-hour mark for the away side as they looked to try something different to produce the opener. Hay got in down the side and stood a cross up to the back post, it was flicked away from Brookshire’s head before midfielder Gry Boe Thrysøe was on the follow up and produced a save at the near post from Jennifer Currie between the Motherwell posts.
Edging towards the interval it remained goalless as Connolly-Jackson went close from a header to finding her first Rangers goal. Brookshire’s set piece delivery from the left was met by the defender at the back post, but her effort went straight into the hands of the goalkeeper at the angle.
After large parts of the first half rarely threatening it was the Gers who found the breakthrough via an own goal. The ball was switched across to Hay who looked for a teammate inside the box as it hit the unfortunate Ellie Macdonald and looped over her own goalkeeper and into the back of the net.
A half time switch gave the Gers a boost as they doubled their advantage five minutes after the restart. Working the ball from the left summer signing Hannah Blake was found inside the box as she chipped the goalkeeper Currie to add a second and register her first goal for the club since her move from English side Durham.
Motherwell looked for a response to try and find a way back into the game. Substitute Kodie Hay worked a shooting angle just outside the area, but her effort was comfortably gathered by Shu Ohba.
The away side continued to threaten and did look the more likely to pull further ahead. Top goalscorer Katie Wilkinson was introduced onto proceedings and looked to get involved straight away, she skipped by multiple defenders on the touchline, but couldn’t find strike partner Laura Berry with the cutback.
Captain Nicola Docherty, who regained the armband off Berry, looked to put clear daylight between the teams by stealing the ball high inside the final 15 minutes, but her effort from the angle hit the side netting.
Lily Boyce had some defending to do to preserve the team’s third clean sheet in a row as she matched sub Justine Strain all the way. Matching her run well towards the latter part of the game she did well to block her shot at the angle and keep her team’s two-goal lead intact.
There was still time for Wilkinson to get in on the scoring as she dispatched a spot kick following a foul on fellow sub Bailley Collins inside the area and finished it well into the bottom left hand corner.
Far from their best, the Gers went on to claim the points for a fourth league success on the spin as they now gear up for a two week break between games and next take on Aberdeen on September 20 due to not being involved in next week’s Sky Sports Cup matches due to coming in at the quarter-final stage after their European commitments in early August.
MOTHERWELL: Currie, Leishman, Watson, Ronald, Sidey, Macdonald, Clark, Thomson, Stanic-Floody (Mcstay, 61), Anderson (Strain, 78), Sinclair (Hay, 45)
SUBS: Scott, Browning, Boyce
RANGERS: Ohba, Smith, Boyce, Roelfsema (Austin, 73), Connolly-Jackson (Docherty, 73), Thrysøe, Black, Blake (Wilkinson, 61), Hay (McLeary, 45), Brookshire, Berry (Collins, 73)
SUBS: Rarity, Miller