After four years in the Scottish lower leagues on a journey that has taken them as far north as Elgin and as south as Berwick, Rangers can clinch a return to the Scottish Premiership by defeating Dumbarton on Tuesday.

The Light Blues have fought off stiff competition from Hibernian during the season, but have ultimately left the Easter Road side in their wake by wrapping up the Scottish Championship title with some ease.

Tasked with picking up the pieces after the Ibrox side's humiliating Play-Off final defeat to Motherwell at the end of last season, boss Mark Warburton has not only restored the Glasgow giants' pride but has done so playing football that has been pleasing on the eye.  

Indeed if Rangers fans were worried about Warburton's ability to take on Alan Stubbs' Hibs, then those fears were allayed in his first game as the Ibrox side ran out 6-2 winners at Easter Road when the two sides clashed in the Petrofac Cup.

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A series of shrewd signings in the transfer market saw Warburton make use of his knowledge of the English lower leagues to bolster Rangers' squad. Key additions such as Martyn Waghorn and James Tavernier from Wigan Athletic freshened up the team, whilst the likes of Danny Wilson and Jason Holt also made the switch to Ibrox as Rangers looked to gain automatic promotion to the Premiership.

After comfortably negotiating their passage to the second round of the Scottish League Cup as a result of a 3-0 win against Peterhead, Warburton's men set their sights on a strong start to their Championship title bid. 

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A double from left-back Lee Wallace was enough for Rangers to see off St Mirren in their opening league fixture and put together an incredible run of eleven consecutive victories to start the season. 

Warburton appeared to be working wonders since taking over from former manager Stuart McCall, but Rangers' measurement against Premiership opposition was still unclear.

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Scintillating league form had given Rangers supporters reason for optimism when top-flight St Johnstone visited in the League Cup in late September, but soon-to-be signing Michael O'Halloran was on the scoresheet as the Perth side ran out 3-1 winners as Warburton experienced his first taste of defeat in the Ibrox hotseat.

League Cup blues were not enough to crush supporters' enthusiasm as the Ibrox side continued to notch up victories in the Championship. 

On the back of a run that saw them amass 34 goals before Halloween, Warburton's side headed to Easter Road looking to extend their lead over Hibs to 11 points and effectively kill the title race dead before it had even got going.

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However, Alan Stubbs' Hibernian weren't ready to give up on their own title ambitions without a fight and managed to stop Rangers in their tracks with a 2-1 defeat, condemning Warburton to his first league loss since taking over the Light Blues.

With the gap reduced to just five points, it was important for Rangers to finish 2015 strongly to remain firmly in the driving seat for a return to the top-flight.

But a run of just two wins in their five games following their slip-up at Easter Road meant that Rangers had allowed Stubbs' side to whittle down their lead to just goal-difference ahead of a mouth-watering clash at Ibrox at the end of December. 

The Leith side knew that a victory would send them three points clear at the league summit and could be psychologically devastating to their opponents given they had lead by as much as eight points before the sides' previous clash at Easter Road.

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A double from former Hearts star Jason Holt was enough to see Rangers ease past Stubbs' men as the Light Blues ran out 4-2 winners to end the year on a high. 

The win over the Hibees was arguably the turning point in the Championship title race as Warburton's side went onto rediscover their great early-season form.

The season got even better for Rangers in February as they continued to notch up win after win in the league, whilst they again had the chance to prove their mettle against Premiership opposition after being drawn against Kilmarnock in the Scottish Cup.

After a stalemate at Ibrox, the Light Blues managed to overcome Killie courtesy of Nicky Clark's last minute winner sent them through to the quarter-finals.

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As Rangers continued their momentum, title rivals Hibernian were on the brink of imploding. Despite promising football throughout much of the season, Stubbs' side failed to maintain their threat and incredibly lost 3-0 at Easter Road to Morton just days after they had claimed a famous victory over Edinburgh rivals Hearts in the Scottish Cup.

The shock defeat at the hands of the Ton was followed up by three away defeats on the spin as the Hibees lost on the road to Dumbarton, Queen of the South and Raith Rovers, again failing to capitalise on the Light Blues' own slip-up again at the hands of Falkirk.

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Casting their eye away from league duties, the Scottish Cup victory over Kilmarnock set-up another home tie for the Light Blues, this time against Paul Hartley's Dundee.

Amid the furore over the jibe from the Dens Park side's Gary Harkins about recognising Rangers as a "new club" the incentive for both sides to reach the semi-finals took on added significance.

A first minute goal from Harry Forrester sent Warburton's side well on their way for a return to Hampden as Rangers swept past the Dees 4-0 to remain in contention for a first Scottish Cup win in seven years.

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When the draw for the semi-finals was made the following day Rangers had to brace themselves for their most formiddable task so far: an eagerly awaited derby against bitter Old Firm rivals Celtic. 

Beating Dumbarton on Tuesday will clinch Rangers the title and more importantly a return to the Premiership next season.

The champagne is on ice, but Warburton will have to rally his troops for further battles with Rangers still involved in another two competitions. 

The Light Blues boss will be keen to ensure that if his side can make it past Dumbarton, that there is no title hangover when more silverware can be claimed in the Petrofac Cup final against Peterhead next Saturday.

Many Rangers supporters will savour their title win, but know that their return to the Premiership will mean a return to the expectations of further success.

The mouthwatering clash against Celtic in less than a fortnight's time will be the true barometer of how far Warburton's side have come.