Dundee 0
Rangers 4
League (Premier Division)

Match Report

Newspaper extract from The Courier.

Dumdee's unbeaten run came to an abrupt end at Dens Park last night.

Rangers fully harnessed the near gale which swept Dundee's ground, establishing a commanding first half advantage that the home side never appeared capable of retrieving. Dundee, although showing just one change from the side which won so convincingly at Clydebank at the weekend, with Jack replacing Wright, looked a shadow of the cup team.

Rangers, in contrast, impressed, and having increased their lead at the top of the table to four points with this win, will take a bit of catching in the Premier title race. Rangers, with the wind at their back, made almost all the first-half running.

The pattern of that opening period was set within 60 seconds when Souness fired in a 30 yarder which Geddes needed two attempts to gather.

Dundee responded with a fine run down the left and deep cross to the back post from Jack, which Coyne was unable to direct into the net.

In 16 minutes, however, Rangers went in front. Geddes did well to parry a powerful Cooper effort, but as the ball ran loose Ally McCoist pounced.

A couple of minutes later McCoist almost collected a second. His neat flick from a Robert Fleck cross beat the keeper, but the ball rebounded from a post.

That let off was merely a stay of execution for the home side, who went further behind in 28 minutes.

Seconds after Geddes had done well to touch over a Roberts chip, Dave McPherson headed a Souness cross beyond the keepe'rs reach.

And worse was to follow seven minutes later. The Ibrox side went three up when Fleck blasted home the rebound after a Butcher 35-yarder had come crashing back off the bar.

With the break approaching it took a brilliant save from Geddes to deny Rangers further reward, the keeper turning over a Butcher header from another Souness centre.

Dundee's hopes of an elements assisted comeback were dashed within 44 seconds of the re-start when Ally McCoist netted with a low, angled drive.

Mennie tried to create an opening, back-heading a McKinlay corner across the face of Rangers goal, but Woods held well, and when Butcher gave away possession to Jack in midfield he immediately atoned, cutting out the striker's dangerous looking pass to partner Coyne at the expense of a corner.

Dundee committed both substitutes with half an hour remaining, Rafferty and Wright replacing Brown and Mennie, but to no avail.

The nearest they came to gaining some consolation was when a Forsyth free-kick just failed to run kindly for Coyne, and near the end when Wright poked the ball wide after Woods had hesitated in leaving his line to gather.

There were two bookings, Duffy for a foul on Fleck and Brown for a challenge on McPherson.

Dundee manager Jocky Scott commented afterwards, "We didn't play and failed to compete, which was the really annoying thing.

"Rangers did to us what we did to Clydebank, but even better."

Attendance-18,723.

Dundee: Geddes; Shannon. McKin lay, Glennie. Smith. Duffy, Forsyth. Brown (Rafferty), Mennie (Wright), Coyne, Jack.

Rangers: Woods; Roberts, Munro. Souness, McPherson, Butcher, Nicholl. Fleck, McCoist, Durrant, Cooper. Subs: Ferguson and West.

Referee-A. Huett, Edinburgh.