RANGERS avenged their humiliating Ramsdens Cup exit to Queen of the South last season with a comfortable 3-0 quarter-final triumph.

But Ally McCoist's men were made to work, and then some, for their place in the last four of the competition by their rivals at Palmerston.

The Third Division champions, who lost on penalties at the same stage to the same opponents at Ibrox last year, edged in front early on through a Bilel Mohsni goal.

But after that Jim McIntyre's team controlled large spells of the game and if they had taken their chances then they could easily have pulled off another upset.

It took until 15 minutes from the end, when Jon Daly headed home his third goal for his new club, for Rangers to kill off the challenge of the SPFL First Division club.

Not surprisingly, given the defeat his team suffered 12 months ago, McCoist picked probably the strongest side that was available to him.

Lee Wallace, who had played for Scotland in Macedonia in a World Cup qualifier exactly seven days earlier, returned to the starting line-up at left back.

Steven Smith, who had deputised for Wallace so effectively in the 5-1 victory over Arbroath at the weekend, moved forward into left midfield.

Richard Foster, meanwhile, took over from Sebastien Faure at right-back to make his first competitive appearance since returning to Rangers in the summer.

Elsewhere, Robbie Crawford came in on the right-hand side of midfield as Arnold Peralta moved inside in the absence of the injured Lewis Macleod.

Andy Little transformed the game against Arbroath when he was moved up front next to Daly in the second half and he retained that position.

The changes to the team clearly worked as Rangers took the lead - very much against the run of play it must be said - in the seventh minute. Derek Young gifted the visitors a corner when he badly skewed a clearance kick and Peralta curled a superb delivery into the opposition six-yard box. Lee McCulloch met the ball with a powerful header in the seventh minute and it looked as if he was going to score his seventh goal - and his sixth with his head - in three games.

His fellow centre-half Mohsni, though, turned the ball over the line from barely a yard out.

Peralta tried his luck from fully 25 yards out in the 16th minute and Queens goalkeeper Callum Antell did extremely well to palm his powerful shot wide.

Daly then volleyed inches over the crossbar in the 20th minute after being picked out in space by a diagonal ball from Smith.

Yet, Jim McIntrye's well- organised side were arguably the better team in the first half. They would have drawn level if their finishing had been more clinical.

Cammy Bell's clearance kick in the 26th minute was blocked by Iain Russell and the ball spun wide to Derek Lyle in a perfect scoring position in the Rangers area.

Only a well-timed block from the outstretched Mohsni prevented the home team from restoring parity with an empty net beckoning invitingly.

Lyle had another chance three minutes later after some good work by Michael Paton down the left flank. His header, though, was saved by Bell.

Nicky Law came close to grabbing another for Rangers just before half-time after being teed up by Daly on the edge of the Dumfries club's penalty box. The Englishman's curling shot eluded the clutches of Antell only to whistle narrowly past the right post.

However, the second half started with Rangers once again on the back foot and Ian McShane was unlucky not to net from an acute angle after being sent clear by Paton.

Peralta appeared to relish being moved into a new role in the centre of the park beside Law and was involved in most of his team's best play.

The Honduran internationalist, who had been back home in Central America on World Cup duty last week, tired and was replaced by Faure in the 67th minute.

Rangers sewed up the match after Chris Higgins was ordered off by referee Calum Murray in the 74th minute for a second bookable offence. Higgins had scythed down Smith on the left flank and the Ibrox club were awarded a free-kick in a dangerous area.

Law did not waste the chance. He picked out Daly unmarked on the edge of the Queens six-yard box and the Irishman headed into the top corner.

McCulloch got in on the goals shortly after that. He connected with a Crawford corner and drilled the ball low into the net to the delight of the travelling support in the 6155 crowd.