Rangers won comfortably against Raith Rovers but the familiar issue of inconsistency was evident at Ibrox on Sunday in the Scottish Cup quarter-final tie.
Michael Beale’s men will now return to Hampden for a last-four meeting with either Inverness Caley, Celtic or the winner of the Ayr United v Falkirk tie.
A first half Connor Goldson bullet header from a corner was followed after the break by a fortuitous own goal before substitute Scott Arfield rounded off the afternoon in the final minutes.
It provided an expected conclusion to the game on a day when matters off the pitch dominated headlines with the high profile confrontation between the Union Bears and the club.
Pattern
Whilst there was an expectation for Rangers to continue on from Wednesday night in terms of the high quality that was shown, very few would have been waiting on such an open game like the one at Easter Road with the Championship team doing their utmost to keep the back door shut.
Most of the first half was a sloppy affair with a lack of urgency and pace – quite the opposite of midweek.
Toward the end of the half, things picked up including that opener from Goldson. Into the second half and Rangers dominance came through but why such a drop off, again?
That is what Beale will be looking to identify. Yes, the team put a lot into Wednesday night but the joined-up approach, passing, movement, pressing, running. The purpose and intensity. There wasn’t much to shout about, regardless of the lesser atmosphere and profile of the game compared to the previous outing.
If this Rangers team is to prosper, the manager needs to find a way past the up and down nature of the performances. As has generally been the case through Beale’s tenure, they came good and the result was secured but there should have been more displayed on the pitch.
As it is, 3-0, progression and a date for the diary with the semi-final ties to be played on 29/30 April.