GOALS from David Templeton, Kenny Miller and James Tavernier ensured Mark Warburton won his first competitive match in charge of Rangers at Ibrox this afternoon.
Part-time League 1 rivals Peterhead put up a good fight in the League Cup first round match at the Glasgow stadium.
But there was no repeat of the shock win Jim McInally’s side pulled off when they last visited Govan back in 2013 when both clubs were in the Third Division.
Warburton made one change from the side which defeated Hibs 6-2 in the first round of the Petrofac Training Cup at Easter Road eight days earlier.
Jason Holt, who had made his competitive debut in Edinburgh after signing a few days before, dropped to the bench and Dean Shiels came in.
The Glasgow club dominated the first 45 minutes of the match but struggled to find a way past their former keeper Graeme Smith.
But the home team eventually edged ahead, much to the relief of the Rangers fans in the 25,608 crowd, in the 41st minute after some good work by Barrie McKay.
Martyn Waghorn diverted McKay's pass into the path of Templeton who turned it into the net with a left foot shot.
The Blue Toon successfully frustrated their opponents in the early exchanges of the second half and Warburton made changes in an attempt to kill off the tie.
Miller, Holt, and Nicky Clark came on for Templeton, Nicky Law and Barrie McKay respectively. The changes made a definite difference.
Tavernier set up Miller for the second goal of the game in the 76th minute after storming into the Peterhead box and squaring the ball. His team mate volleyed home from close range.
Provider turned scorer five minutes after that when the right back ran onto a beautifully weighted through ball Clark and whipped a shot past Smith.
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