Gers crush Forfar

Billy Dodds has seen his Ibrox chances improve by the arrival of Alex McLeish and he took just 39 seconds to repay the faith shown by his manager, latching onto a Shota Arveladze pass to fire home.

That was the start of a fine day for Dodds, who went on to complete a hat-trick, while there was also a brace for Arveladze and a strike by Andrei Kanchelskis.

Arveladze was not to be overshadowed by his strike partner Dodds, and he netted the second on 30 minutes. A flowing move saw the Georgian exchange passes with Dodds before confidently slotting home.

Rangers increased the pressure before the break, with Arthur Numan, Fernando Ricksen and Andrei Kanchelskis all going close.

The Rangers pressure eventually told, as Arveladze lobbed Brown to make it 3-0 and Kanchelskis blasted home to make it four.

Dodds got his second of the game shortly after the hour, combining well with Russell Latapy before finishing well.

Dodds was looking for a hat-trick, but missed a fine opportunity when Brown saved his penalty with 15 minutes remaining.

The striker was not to be denied and he did net his third as time ran out.

Rangers may be some way adrift of Celtic in the SPL, but this form could see them lift two domestic trophies as they are set to face Ayr in the Scottish Challenge Cup.