A defensive clanger loud enough to be heard back in Glasgow cost Rangers two points at Dundee.

Skipper Lorenzo Amoruso was the man who dropped it, committing the cardinal sin of being dispossessed in front of his own goal.

Amoruso tried to be too clever on the edge of his own penalty area and was embarrassed to be robbed of the ball by Juan Sara.

Sara, the Argentinian who had come on as a substitute only minutes earlier, managed to poke the ball past Stefan Klos and ensure that an entertaining and occasionally bad-tempered game finished all square.

Until then it had looked likely that Neil McCann's 56th minute strike might be the decider.

The left winger, who last week had notched Scotland's late and undeserved winner in Latvia, smashed a 20-yard drive past his international colleague Robert Douglas after being set up by Tugay Kerimoglu.

The loud away following had given Michael Mols a warm reception on seeing him in a Rangers shirt for the first time in almost a year.

It was a first competitive start in 10 months for Mols, who suffered a serious knee injury in a collision with Bayern Munich goalkeeper Oliver Khan.

That had been in a Champions League match of course and his return after two operations and only a few minutes of friendly action, was perfect timing for Rangers boss Dick Advocaat's preparations for this season's European adventure, which begins at home to the Austrians Sturm Graz on Tuesday night.

But it was not a fruitful afternoon for him as he had few sights of goal and spent much of the game on his backside claiming fouls that were never given.

Still, he lasted the whole game and that will be a bonus in itself for the Ibrox outfit.

The Dutchman, who had come in for hamstring injury victim Rod Wallace, was one of three changes to the starting line-up that beat Aberdeen - eventually - in the CIS League Cup in midweek.

Fernando Ricksen was relegated to the bench to make way for Claudio Reyna and the Turk Tugay came in for Barry Ferguson, now paying the price for his sending off at Celtic.

Dundee player-manager Ivano Bonetti, who has agreed to meet Scottish Football Association officials next week to discuss his team's amazing indiscipline problems, also made three changes following his side's cup exit at St Mirren on Tuesday.

In came Marco di Marchi, Gavin Rae and Georgi Nemsadze in place of Lee Wilkie, hero-to-be Sara and the suspended Patrizio Billio.

Rangers dominated the opening exchanges as Dundee opted to defend in numbers, leaving the Argentinian Fabien Caballero as a lone front man.

It took Mols 20 minutes to get a sight of goal and when he did Steven Tweed was in the way but from the resulting corner Rangers almost went ahead.

Scott Wilson, the subject of some, as yet, unclear transfer interest from Sturm Graz, retrieved the ball at the far post and when Lorenzo Amoruso headed goalwards Billy Dodds latched on to shoot on the turn inches wide.

Dodds was soon to plant a header wide and hit a post, albeit after a linesman had adjudged him offside before Tugay's through ball.

As you might expect from a game involving Dundee, who had clocked up six red cards and 21 yellows before kick-off, the referee was busy.

Wilson was booked for bringing down Caballero, di Marchi for fouling Neil McCann and Tugay, in for the suspended Barry Ferguson, received a similar punishment for fouling Bonetti.

The player-boss was at the heart of most of his side's most pleasing moments and from his cross Alessandro Romano headed just over.

Gavin Rae did the same after losing his marker from Georgi Nemsadze's corner and Bonetti saw a free kick beat the wall but end up in Klos' arms as thefirst half ended scoreless.