It didn’t quite have the glamour of a packed Ibrox Stadium against a star-studded Tottenham Hotspur side 24 hours earlier but Giovanni van Bronckhorst’s side played their final pre-season friendly before their big Scottish Premiership kick at Livingston in a closed doors game against a Queen’s Park XI.
And it was a good workout for the Light Blues with a double from new signing Zak Lovelace - who also won a penalty - and goal from returning Niko Katic in a 3-2 win. Owen Coyle’s Spiders didn’t have England captain Harry Kane in his ranks but it was still a decent workout for the Light Blues at Auchenhowie and the match also saw Ben Davies make his first appearance in a Rangers shirt since his £4 million move from Liverpool and he was replaced by scorer Katic at the break.
The lunchtime clash also allowed Malik Tillman to get more minutes in his legs after coming on in the 2-1 defeat to Antonio Conte’s Spurs. And experienced Scotland midfielder Ryan Jack was also named in the starting XI alongside first team regulars Fashion Sakala, Scott Arfield, Scott Wright and James Sands with veteran midfielder Steven Davis, who signed a contract extension in the summer, handed the captain’s armband but he missed a penalty for Gers.
The fixture also gave some youngsters a chance to show what they can do with Leon King and Adam Devine both starting and Robby McCrorie taking his place between the sticks as speculation continues over a possible loan move following Allan McGregor’s decision to extend his contract and Jon McLaughlin fighting him for the No. 1 spot.
Former Millwall youngster Lovelace, who joined this summer, netted a brace with Katic also on the scoresheet after the pair came off the bench.
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