A late David Robertson strike gave Dundee United a dramatic 1-0 win over Rangers and ended their treble hopes.
Gers team selection backfires as Terrors pick up deserved victory
Rangers' dreams of winning the treble were sent crashing by a late winner from David Robertson, whose late strike gave Dundee Untied a 1-0 victory and a place in the Scottish Cup semi-finals.
The two teams reconvened at Tannadice for a replay following the 3-3 draw at Ibrox 10 days ago and a much-changed Rangers side came unstuck as Robertson stole in on the 90th minute to secure a final four date with Raith Rovers.
The game had looked to be heading for extra time as both teams slugged it out in a game of few chances, although the home side felt aggrieved going into the interval as they had three penalty claims turned down by referee Dougie McDonald.
Rangers were much improved after the break but the decision to leave Kenny Miller and Kris Boyd on the bench appeared to backfire as they lacked the guile and quality needed to unlock the Terrors' backline.
And the Glasgow giants saw their trophy dreams go up in smoke in the final minute when Robertson latched onto a loose ball ahead of Gers keeper Allan McGregor to force it into the net and send the crowd into raptures.
Rangers were dealt a blow before kick off as Kevin Thomson's late, dramatic bid to have his suspension quashed were rejected by the SFA.
The holders lodged an appeal against the red card he picked up in Sunday's Co-operative Insurance Cup final just a few minutes before the Scottish Football Association's deadline tonight but it was dismissed in under an hour after referee Craig Thomson opted to stand by his decision.
With Lee McCulloch also banned and Steven Davis suffering from a virus, Maurice Edu and Steven Naismith were given the nod in central midfield, with support from Kyle Lafferty and DaMarcus Beasley in the wide areas.
The front pairing also raised eyebrows, with youngsters Andrew Little and John Fleck starting and regular strike duo Kris Boyd and Kenny Miller both on the bench, as Rangers made seven changes from the side who clinched the silverware at the weekend.
Tense moments
United made two changes from their draw at Aberdeen, with Darren Dods and Robertson added to the side. Danny Swanson was on the bench and Andy Webster ineligible under the terms of his loan deal.
The home side started well and Jon Daly's 20-yard strike called Allan McGregor into action early on, before Craig Conway drilled narrowly wide of the Rangers goalkeeper's right-hand post.
At the other end, Fleck was allowed to embark on a surging run past several United players into the box but the end product was weak and Sean Dillon was able to clear the danger.
United were threatening again when Mihael Kovacevic - who grabbed the equaliser in the last game at Ibrox - tried his luck with an ambitious curling effort which drifted narrowly past the far upright with a full-stretch McGregor unable to get a touch.
There was another tense moment for Rangers when David Goodwillie's cut-back was cleared by Naismith and the ball trickled inches wide of his own goal.
Garry Kenneth then claimed he was held at the resultant corner by Steven Whittaker but no penalty was forthcoming from referee McDonald.
United claimed for another spot-kick just moments later - this time for Lafferty handball - but the pleas succeeded only in earning Kenneth a yellow card for his complaints.
Lafferty and Beasley were deployed up front in the second half, while Little and Fleck dropped back to midfield.
Dramatic victory
Again, United looked more dangerous in front of goal and were not too far away when a Conway shot fell into the path of Robertson whose effort appeared goal-bound until McGregor pawed to safety.
With the tie still goalless with 20 minutes to go, Rangers made their first change of the night when Fleck was withdrawn for the introduction of Nacho Novo. Lafferty then rifled just over the crossbar as the holders searched for the winner.
Rangers squandered another decent chance when Beasley whipped in a cross from the left but Little connected awkwardly in front of goal and his soft effort was comfortably gathered by goalkeeper Dusan Pernis.
Lafferty limped out of the action with 15 minutes remaining and was replaced by Miller, who grabbed the only goal of the game in Sunday's League Cup final.
The striker could have made the difference again when he released Novo out on the right before collecting the cut-back and seeing his firm shot held by Pernis.
Goodwillie had the ball in the back of the net with 87 minutes on the clock but the assistant referee had flagged for offside well before the effort crossed the line, before McGregor pulled off a great save to deny Daly.
But the Rangers goalkeeper was helpless to prevent United snatching a dramatic victory in the final minute when he raced off his line to block only for Robertson to slot past him and into the gaping net.
