65
mins
With 47 seconds on the clock,
Steven Davis released Lafferty and the Northern
Ireland international lofted a sweet strike over
goalkeeper Cammy Bell and into the back of the net
from the edge of the penalty area.
Rangers were further ahead after 5 mins when
Gregg Wylde galloped down the left before finding
Naismith, who turned smartly before lashing home
from 18 yards.
Jelavic then rolled in an inviting pass for Lafferty to coolly side-foot past the exposed Bell with only 7 minutes played on the clock! ...... Killie 0 Rangers 3
The normally impassive Smith, who leaves Ibrox with 21 trophies to his name, joined in the jubilation, waving his arms aloft like a giddy schoolboy from his position in the stand.
Rangers threatened again when Steven Whittaker raced down the right flank to pick out Naismith and he touched on for Jelavic but his flick was deflected narrowly wide.
The pace of the match dropped markedly before Kilmarnock finally managed an attack of note on 33 minutes.
Dayton let fly with a powerful shot that Allan McGregor did well to block.
Rangers upped the pace in response and were denied by the woodwork when Davis cleverly cut inside a defender and thumped a shot against the post.
The first half drew to a close with McGregor making an impressive diving save to keep out a fizzing long-range drive from Killie skipper Craig Bryson.
Lafferty, who is becoming something of an
end-of-season specialist, drilled a shot wide soon
after the restart.
But the volume inside the ground reached deafening levels again when Jelavic curled in a ferocious free kick from 20 yards.
And Lafferty was soon celebrating his third goal as he stroked home to finish off a surging run from Naismith on 53 minutes.
Kilmarnock gamely plugged away and were rewarded when a Dayton free kick from distance took a deflection to leave McGregor flat-footed as the ball zipped into the net, via the base of a post.
McGregor and Bell traded smart saves to thwart Garry Hay and Sasa Papac, respectively, before Naismith crashed an angled strike against the crossbar after running on to a neat headed pass from Jelavic. Lafferty blazed the rebound high into the crowd.
Sandy's Match Pic's are HERE
