LONDON, May 28 (Reuters) - Rangers' hopes of returning to the Scottish Premier League (SPL) for the first time since 2012 were dealt a severe blow when they were beaten 3-1 by Motherwell in the first leg of their playoff final at Ibrox on Thursday.
Lee Erwin's heavily deflected shot gave the visitors a 27th minute lead and Stephen McManus' header 13 minutes later doubled their advantage.
Lionel Ainsworth fired home an emphatic third in the 47th minute as Motherwell continued to dominate the match.
Rangers' Darren McGregor pulled a goal back for the 54-times Scottish champions in the 82nd minute before team mate Kris Boyd had an effort ruled out for offside.