Ross County delivered a body blow to Rangers’ Scottish Premiership title hopes in Dingwall with their first ever win over the Ibrox side.
When Jack Baldwin scored an own goal after 15 minutes it already looked a long way back for the home side, but two goals in three minutes soon after the break from Simon Murray and George Harmon turned the game on its head before Josh Sims added a third after 69 minutes. James Tavernier, the Rangers captain, netted a penalty in the 89th minute following a VAR intervention, but the spirited home side held on for a momentous 3-2 win which also boosts their efforts to avoid relegation.
After 20 defeats and four draws in 24 games against Rangers, County had at last registered a long-awaited win over their opponents. Its ramifications affect both ends of the table as second-bottom County moved to within a point of 10th-placed St Johnstone. With six fixtures remaining Philippe Clement’s side are four points behind Celtic, the league leaders, with a game in hand against Dundee at Dens Park on Wednesday night, but it is Celtic who now look to be in command.
Once again Rangers, with Borna Barisic, Kieran Dowell, Todd Cantwell and Abdallah Sima back in the side, found themselves under the pressure of trying to reduce the gap to their Old Firm rivals. Ross Laidlaw, Yan Dhanda, Sims, Victor Loturi and Harmon were restored to Don Cowie’s side who started the game nine points ahead of bottom-placed Livingston.
County had the first attempt on goal within minutes when Michee Efete’s cross from the right found Harmon at the back post but, under pressure from Sima, he scooped the ball over the bar. Rangers struggled to get into their rhythm but they were gifted the lead following Tavernier’s corner from the right.
Fábio Silva headed on and, in his attempt to clear while facing his own net and challenging John Souttar, Baldwin succeeded only in knocking the ball over the line as Laidlaw failed to keep it out.
The game opened up further and Laidlaw saved a decent shot from Cantwell before Jack Butland kept out a low drive from Sims with Laidlaw saving further efforts from Sima and Cyriel Dessers. In the 38th minute, amid a spell of County pressing, Harmon lifted a shot high over the bar from close range as did Dessers at the other end before the break.
The game took an unexpected twist at the start of the second half when Murray levelled at the second attempt, driving in after Butland had blocked his first shot with his foot. Rangers were still coming to terms with that setback when Murray found himself with space again before unleashing a drive which Butland spilled. Harmon was on hand to drive into the net.
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Rangers shook themselves and Dessers and Sima had efforts of varying quality, before Sima used his hand to knock the ball into the County net with the goal quickly ruled out. The home side ran up the pitch moments later and scored a third, Murray breaking into the box and setting up Sims to beat Butland from close range.
Cantwell struck the bar with a terrific effort six minutes later and then Andrew Dallas, on VAR duty, flagged up a possible handball from the County substitute Brandon Khela inside the box. Matthew MacDermid, the referee, awarded a penalty after a monitor check which Tavernier converted, but there was to be no comeback. Rangers slipped up against the unlikeliest of opponents and it may prove decisive.