Stuart McCall insisted Rangers had earned a vital psychological boost in the battle to follow Hearts into the Premiership after recording a breakthrough 2-0 win over Hibs. The Ibrox outfit had lost all three previous Championship meetings with Alan Stubbs’ men by a crushing 9-1 aggregate scoreline, but turned the tables at Easter Road in a result which also meant the Tynecastle club were officially promoted as second-tier champions. Goals from Lee Wallace and Kenny Miller — the latter strongly disputed by Hibs — gave McCall a first win in charge and hoisted the Rangers to within three points of their second-placed hosts with a game in hand. Stuart McCall celebrates watching his side beat Hibernian 2-0 at Easter Road on Sunday . There is a fair chance the two sides could meet again in the play-offs and McCall admitted it was essential his side stopped the rot against their Leith rivals. ‘First and foremost I would like to congratulate Hearts on an outstanding season and winning the title,’ said the Ibrox boss, who drew his first two matches in charge. ‘Robbie Neilson and his team have been outstanding all season, so fair play to them. ‘I am delighted with our performance and the result but it’s only one game, we won’t get carried away. But it will restore a bit of confidence that has been severely lacking. ‘It’s a stepping stone. But if we are to hopefully get back into the top league at the end of the season then we’re likely going to have to play Hibs in a decider. ‘If we had come here and got beat today then psychologically it wouldn’t have been good, so this will help. But we have a long way to go. ‘We want to go into the play-offs with momentum, with a bit of spirit and confidence and players playing at the level they can play.’ Rangers had drawn their five previous games and travelled to Easter Road on the back of just one win in nine. Lee Wallace (centre) is congratulated by his team-mates after giving Rangers the lead away to Hibernian . Wallace slams home the opener just before half-time to put the away side in control at Easter Road . That dire run had left Ibrox fans despairing about their promotion hopes but McCall, who earned joy from switching to a 3-5-2 shape, feels his team have now shown they are good enough to go up. ‘Yes, that’s all we want from them,’ he said. ‘Whatever is past has now gone — even today has now gone. There are players in there who need a bit of belief and confidence. A performance like today can only help. ‘I said to the players, there is only one thing better than winning and that is winning as an underdog, when people don’t expect it of you. There is a long way to go and we won’t be getting carried away but it helps with the confidence, morale and belief.’ Rangers fans chanted McCall’s name as the minutes ticked away at Easter Road but he played down the formation rejig that drew a radically improved display. ‘Listen I am no master tactician or anything like that,’ he said. ‘We played a shape and it worked but that was down to the players who carried out what we wanted them to do. ‘You can talk about formations and tactics, whatever, but the bottom line is if the players show the desire and the willingness and the ability like they did today, then it’s about players and them doing the jobs they are asked to do. To a man, they did that today.’ Kenny Miller slots home to put the game beyond doubt for Rangers and close the gap on Hibernian .
Rangers closed the gap on Hibs to just three points in the Championship . Lee Wallace scored the opening goal for Rangers after 44 minutes . Kenny Miller sealed the tie in the closing minutes with a tidy finish . Click here for all the latest Rangers news .