Rangers duo inspire unconvincing win at St Mirren but performances must improve to keep title hopes alive

How the match unfolded as Rangers claim vital 2-1 victory in Paisley

Cyriel Dessers celebrates after putting Rangers 2-1 ahead at St Mirren. (Photo by Alan Harvey / SNS Group)

Needing a victory to keep alive their fading prospects in this championship chase, Rangers dug deep to see off a spirited St Mirren side and give their supporters renewed hope.

Three league matches without a win had left Philippe Clement’s side with no margin for error and they duly did what was required, a second-half strike from Cyriel Dessers proving the difference as they moved level on points with Celtic at the top of the table prior to their rivals’ match with Dundee.

It wasn’t vintage stuff by any stretch against a St Mirren side pushing for European football but at this juncture of the campaign it is results that matter rather than the manner in which they are achieved.

Rangers will likely need to lift their standards for their remaining four matches – especially the trip to Celtic Park – but they will take some solace from the purposeful manner in which they continued to push for a winning goal on a day when there were no guarantees that it was ever going to come.

Dessers has been often criticised for needing five chances to score one but he was a picture in efficiency here as he buried a 74th-minute header for what proved to be the winning goal after the impressive Mika Mandron had cancelled out a James Bolton own goal in the first half.

Lunchtime kick-offs can sometimes be a bit of a slow burner as the sides adjust to the earlier start but that certainly wasn’t the case here. A St Mirren chance after 50 seconds set the tone for a rollocking contest in which the pace rarely dropped, with even referee Nick Walsh at one point clattering into Todd Cantwell as he tried to get out the way of another attack. Little wonder the match balls kept needing replaced given the battering they were taking.

Not for the first time the Ibrox side had cause to give thanks for Jack Butland, the goalkeeper getting his defence out of numerous holes with two smart saves from Mandron and a jaw-dropping tip over the crossbar to deny Bolton a goal in the final minute of the final half.

The defender had already found his way onto the scoresheet by that point. Alas, for him it was at the wrong end of the pitch as Rangers claimed a first-half lead. It was a needless concession from St Mirren’s point of view. Borna Barisic’s cross from a short corner looked to be drifting out of play but Zach Hemming elected to reach for it anyway, the goalkeeper only steering the ball towards Mohamed Diomande whose smart header across goal was inadvertently turned in by Bolton.

Rangers’ joy, though, was short-lived, as St Mirren claimed the equaliser their endeavour undoubtedly deserved. Mark O’Hara was the creator, sending over a cross for Mandron to nod beyond Butland thanks to a kiss off the post. Leon Balogun, again preferred to Connor Goldson in the Rangers defence, had been cleverly nudged out the way to create the space for the header.

Dessers hadn’t been hugely prominent throughout the contest but made his mark when his team needed him most. Diomande played an astute ball wide to James Tavernier whose cross was inch-perfect for Dessers to claim his 20th club goal of the season. Few have been more important.