Old Firm pair edge opening wins

GLASGOW (AFP) – Rangers got the defence of their Scottish Premier League title off to a winning start with a narrow 2-1 home victory over Kilmarnock on Saturday.

Chairman Alastair Johnston had sent the home fans wild when he unfurled the championship flag before kick-off and they were soon cheering again when Kenny Miller gave them a 16th minute lead.

James Beattie, the club’s first signing in two years, was handed a debut just a day after joining from Stoke City and came close to doubling the lead with an acrobatic volley.

Steven Naismith looked to have secured victory with a second-half strike but Killie pulled one back through a Jamie Hamill penalty on the hour mark after Sasa Papac pushed James Dayton in the box.

Old Firm rivals Celtic kicked off their campaign with a 1-0 victory away to Inverness. After an evenly balanced first-half, Neil Lennon’s side dominated after the break but it took a superb goal from Paddy McCourt to separate the sides.

At Ibrox all the attention may have been on Beattie but it was his striker partner Miller who had all the early chances, seeing an early header fly inches wide and a goalward bound low drive deflected out for a corner before he opened the scoring in the 16th minute.

Kirk Broadfoot’s shot was blocked on the line by Hamill but his attempted clearance ricocheted off Miller and into the back of the net.

This seemed to spark Killie into life and Allan McGregor confidently claimed a strong header from Manuel Pascali before Madjid Bougherra bravely blocked Jamie Fowler’s fiercely struck shot.

The Rangers strike force linked up well in the 25th minute when Miller headed Kyle Lafferty’s cross into the path of Beattie but his acrobatic volley was saved at point-blank range by Cameron Bell.

As the break approached the momentum seemed to have swung to Killie and Danny Invincible was inches away from getting on the end of Hamill’s low cross which had the Rangers defence beaten.

A slip by Frazer Wright just after the break allowed Beattie to rob him of possession but the striker let the ball run too far ahead of him as he bore down on goal and Bell got out to snub out the danger.

Wright was then relieved to see a Lafferty shot crash off the post after it had taken a wicked deflection off the defender.

Naismith doubled the lead in the 57th minute with his first goal against his former club.

The Scotland international collected a pass in the six-yard box on his chest before sending a low angled shot across goal and into the bottom left-hand corner of the net.

The three points looked secure for Rangers but Killie pulled one back within three minutes from the penalty spot. Papac was adjudged to have pushed Dayton in the box and Hamill confidently sent McGregor the wrong way as he swept his kick into the net.

Beattie was replaced by youngster Kyle Hutton with ten minutes to go as Rangers held on for the three points.

Elsewhere new Aberdeen captain Paul Hartley scored a hat-trick of penalties on his competitive debut as the Dons defeated Hamilton 4-0 at Pittodrie, Jon Daly scrambled home a last minute equaliser as Dundee United were held to a 1-1 draw with St Mirren and Hearts and St Johnstone shared the points in a 1-1 draw at Tynecastle.