Stirling Albion head to Ibrox in the fourth round of the Scottish Cup after a four – zero win against Tranent Juniors.
The blockbuster clash is set to take place on January 22.
The game will likely be televised on BBC or Premier Sport – and with ticket sales split for cup matches, it provides a substantial financial boost for the club.
The Binos earned a place in the draw following a well-fought win at Forthbank on Saturday.
The visitors started brightly putting pressure on the Albion backline with a couple of early chances but failed to make a breakthrough.
Dylan Mackin opened the scoring on minute 20 with a close-range header across the Tranent goalkeeper.
Ten minutes later Stirling doubled their lead through Jack Leitch. After Tranent failed to clear the ball Leitch took an excellent touch over the defender from a flicked-on header before slotting home.
In the second half, Mackin scored his second and Stirling’s third from the spot following a clumsy challenge inside the box.
It didn’t get any better for the East Lothian side who conceded the fourth on minute 81.
Centre-half Jordan McGregor found himself unmarked at the back post from a corner. After a fine touch to bring the ball down he poked it into the roof of the net to seal the victory.
Following the win, Albion boss, Kevin Rutkiewicz said:
“I thought it was a deserved win. It was probably closer than 4-0 but, by the end, we could actually have scored a couple more goals, which would have been very unfair on Tranent.
We were very nervous in the first 10 minutes, particularly at the back. They came out of the traps and we struggled with that intensity but after we got the goal.
“I thought we played some excellent football.”
Kevin Rutkiewicz
There was a bit of complacency for a spell when we went two goals up but we limited the number of chances they had in the box and most of the shots Blair Currie had to deal with were from distance.
We had more quality in that final third and that made all the difference on the day.”
The last time Albion faced Rangers the game finished zero – zero in March 2013. Stirling also famously beat Rangers one – zero the same season when the Gers began their climb back through the divisions.
The match against Forfar Athletic, which was due to be played that weekend, will be rescheduled.
Albion will look to cause a major upset while local rivals Alloa Athletic host Celtic in the next round.
Last five vs Rangers.
| Date | Winner | Score |
| 23 Mar 2013 | Draw | 0-0 |
| 26 Feb 2013 | Draw | 1-1 |
| 08 Dec 2012 | Rangers | 2-0 |
| 06 Oct 2012 | Stirling | 1-0 |
| 30 Aug 1995 | Rangers | 3-2 |
Feature Image Credit: Stirling Albion FC
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