Rangers 3
Dundee 1 (AET)
League Cup (Quarter Final)

Match Report

Newspaper extract from Steve Bruce - The Courier .

Dundee's bid for a Skol Cup semi final spot ended in failure at Ibrox last night and they can have no complaints. The Dark Blues were extremely fortunate to take this quarter final tie to extra time but Rangers' complete dominance of the evening was finally rewarded with goals from Graeme Souness and man of the match Ted McMinn (writes STEVE BRUCE).

They would, however, have some justification in feeling aggrieved with referee Alan Ferguson who reduced them to 10 men with less than a quarter of the game gone when he ordered off defender Jim Smith for a second bookable offence.

It seemed like complete over reaction on the part of Ferguson who also booked another seven players in what was never dirty.

Dundee boss Jocky Scott refused to comment on the referee's handling of the game but admitted, "I feel sick for all 13 players."

The Dark Blues defender was given his marching orders in 21 minutes for a second foul on McMinn. He had correctly been cautioned earlier for a challenge on the same player.

With John Brown withdrawn from midfield to replace Smith, Dundee had to weather intense pressure.

Outstanding in their rear- guard action were keeper Bobby Geddes and defenders Duffy and McKinlay and stand-in centre half John Brown.

Rangers had been on the offensive from the start with Bobby Geddes having to rescue his side with just two minutes gone, turning a McMinn effort round the post.

He did, however, enjoy a bit of good fortune shortly afterwards when McCoist headed over after he had failed to deal properly with a Cooper free kick.

A couple of minutes after the ordering off, Geddes bravely denied Rangers the opener, div. ing at the feet of McMinn after his defence had been caught out by a Fraser cross.

Best chance of the half fell to who else but McMinn. Fortunately for Dundee the lanky attacker's header from another Fraser cross flew wide of the target.

In a first half that also saw booked for incidents with Duffy and Rafferty, the best Dundee could offer were long-range. efforts from Brown, Rafferty and Shannon which failed to seriously threaten Woods.

Rangers turned the screw straight from the restart. McMinn squandered a great chance, blasting over a Cooper cross then McCoist headed wide from Fraser's centre.

Fraser was next up himself shaving the outside of a post with a blazing drive, before Geddes did well to scramble away Nicholl's volley.

The overworked keeper once more saved his side in denying McMinn. Dundee's only glim mer of hope coming on the hour mark when Raffery-playing his first game of the season and with a protective bandage over his left wrist-tested Woods from 20 yards.

The drama continued. McCoist hit the outside of the post, Butchar was booked for a foul on Stephen thus ensuring his first suspension in Scotland and Cooper shot straight into the arms of Geddes.

A goal simply had to come for Rangers and it finally did in 74 minutes, when Butcher slipped the ball to the former Dundee player Cammy Fraser who dis- patched it past Geddes from eight yards.

But incredibly, with the seconds ticking away to their well-deserved victory, Rangers got the jitters. A bad pass from Nicholl allowed Stephen to set up Jack whose shot unfortunately didn't trouble Woods.

However, the England inter- national had more trouble deal ing with McKinlay's cross from ing of calling time up.

Woods weakly punched the ball out as far as Stewart Forsyth who from 20 yards dispatched it back past the keeper and into the net.

Into, extra time the pattern remained unchanged with Rangers pressing and Dundee somehow keeping them at bay

In the first period of extra time more heroics from Geddes thwarted Butcher and Cooper, but with 108 minutes on the clock he was beaten by Souness, who finished off a fine move with a cracking 25-yard drive.

Seven minutes later McMinn completed the scoring, nodding home a Fraser cross.