THE wait to return to top spot in the Premiership was a long one for Rangers. Their time at the summit of the standings has been brief, though.

The point from their 1-1 draw at Tynecastle was enough to move Steven Gerrard’s side level with Celtic but the Light Blues are behind on goals scored as their Old Firm rivals regained pole position in the title race courtesy of their 6-0 win over Ross County on Saturday.

Alfredo Morelos cancelled out the opener from Ryo Meshino as both sides had to settle for a share of the spoils. It was what each deserved from a frustrating afternoon for Gerrard and Tynecastle counterpart Craig Levein.

Rangers have been notoriously slow starters on the road this term and it was Hearts that burst out of the traps as they looked to end their barren Tynecastle run.

Uche Ikpeazu saw a glancing header come back off the crossbar after just two minutes but it didn’t take the Jambos long to break the deadlock.

James Tavernier failed to clear his lines as a weak header gave Jake Mulraney a chance and Allan McGregor made a smart stop to deny him.

The ball fell to Meshino, though, and the midfielder produced a lovely finish to dink it into the net from the edge of the area.

Rangers were reeling at that stage and chances were hard to come by. It took until the 35th minute for Gerrard’s side to really threaten as Steven Davis headed a Tavernier corner wide from distance.

The goal did come for the Gers, though. A Borna Barisic corner was met by Nikola Katic and when the ball dropped to Morelos at the back post, he made no mistake as he fired an effort beyond Joel Pereira to pull the visitors level.

Having finished the first half in the ascendancy, Rangers started the second on the front foot and it was Gerrard’s side that twice came close. A Davis strike was deflected just wide, while a Morelos shot met the same fate after a couple of corners.

Rangers had to capitalise on a positive period and Ryan Kent was introduced just after the hour mark as he replaced the ineffective Sheyi Ojo. The winger was injured on his return to Ibrox from Liverpool last month and he came close with an effort that was just wide of target within minutes of taking to the park.

Rangers had appeals for a penalty dismissed by referee Kevin Clancy after Scott Arfield appeared to be fouled at the end of a neat attacking move. Just seconds later, Greg Stewart replaced the Canada international as Rangers entered a huge final 15 minutes of a scrappy, low-quality encounter.

There was to be no late winner for either side. It was a game where both deserved something, but neither warranted all three points.