They made heavy weather of it but Halloween was a night to celebrate for Rangers as they move on to the Premier Sports Cup final

Rangers 1 Aberdeen 0 (Naderi, 83)

Aberdeen gave them a bigger fright than they probably expected.

But Rangers held their nerve to book a place in the Premier Sports Cup Final.

On Halloween night at Hampden, this threatened to be an almighty shock that would have rekindled ghosts of the Ibrox club’s recent past.

But in the end, a Ryan Naderi treat did the trick for Derek McInnes' side.

The Czech striker was their hero as he stabbed home a goal on 82 minutes that stuck a dagger into Aberdeen’s hearts.

Stephen Robinson’s side had fought valiantly throughout, frustrating Rangers for large spells with some terrific defending.

But it was McInnes' men who emerged victorious - and he’ll now expect to lift his first trophy as gaffer next month.

Rangers had the better of the semi-final, with wide man Badredine Bouanani the best player on the pitch.

But Dons keeper Marius Muller excelled between the sticks until Naderi finally got the better of him late on with a deadly finish.

In the build-up, Rangers captain Dan Neil spoke about his excitement at leading the side out at Hampden for the first time.

Little did the skipper know that his manager had other ideas.

McInnes made a huge call with his line-up by leaving Neil on the bench and opting for James Penrice alongside Nico Raskin - who was given the armband - in midfield.

That meant Belgian left-back Tuur Rommens getting a start for Rangers.

Djeidi Gassama being dropped in favour of Badredine Bouanani on the flank was less of a surprise on McInnes’ team-sheet.

It’s fair to say the Rangers manager had more options than his Aberdeen counterpart, Robinson.

The Dons had been decimated by defensive injuries, with FOUR centre-backs unavailable for Hampden.

After a home defeat to Falkirk on Wednesday night, the Northern Irishman probably wanted to make 11 changes.

He settled for four, with Nicky Devlin - getting his first start of the season - Emmanuel Gyamfi, Jack Milne and Connor Ronan all drafted in.

Robinson, of course, came into the semi-final as the holder of the trophy having won it as St Mirren gaffer last term.

The Buddies were big underdogs when they beat Celtic at Hampden almost a year ago - and it was the same story for Aberdeen here.

After a bright start, Rangers took a grip of the game, possession-wise at least.

With Robinson looking to congest the middle of the pitch, McInnes needed his side to utilise their wide men, Bouanani and Minsu Kim.

The Algerian looked in the mood and whipped in a couple of dangerous left-foot crosses that forced Aberdeen to defend deep in their own box.

You know what Bouanani wants to do: cut in off the right wing, but as a defender it’s difficult to stop.

On the other side, Kim caused Gyamfi a problem when he latched on to a raking Raskin pass, which made the full-back slip and injure himself, giving Robinson another defensive headache as Stuart Armstrong came on early.

Rangers claimed a penalty when the ball struck Ayoub Mouloua's hand from a corner, but it would have been harsh on the striker.

Despite having a strong foothold in the game, they weren’t creating gilt-edged chances.

In fact, it was the Dons who threatened first.

Dujon Sterling was mugged and Nesta Guinness-Walker drove into the box.

His shot was dangerous enough to force Ivor Pandur into a decent one-handed save.

Robinson isn’t the most popular figure in the Granite City right now after Aberdeen’s poor start to the campaign.

But he’s proven over the years that he’s an excellent one-off game manager, who knows how to set a team up in big games.

As half-time approached, it was looking that way again as the Dons frustrated the favourites, while at the same time posed a threat up front.

McInnes shifted Kim into central midfield before the break and it helped Rangers.

Marius Muller had to claw away Bouanani’s long-range shot, Ryan Naderi should have done better with a header that flashed over the bar - then Kim HAD to hit the target when Kevin Kelsy teed him up but the South Korean blasted wide.

Kim stayed centrally when Rangers re-emerged but their supporters were irked by their lack of cohesion in the final third.

Bouanani was still their chief threat off the right flank. Guinness-Walker had dealt with him pretty well but the winger was constantly looking for half a yard on his left foot.

When he got it, he curled a brilliant ball goal-ward that just evaded Naderi at the far post and fizzed wide.

But all of this just gave Aberdeen, their fans and Robinson more encouragement.

On the hour, they broke and Kevin Nisbet forced Pandur into a save low down.

The jeers that greeted that from the Rangers end seemed to spark McInnes’ men into life.

Muller had to look lively to keep Kim out then Kelsy squandered Gers’ best chance.

From another Bouanani cross, the Venezuelan seemed to have the goal at his mercy six yards out - but failed to hit the target with a header.

Rangers were ramping up the pressure now.

When Bouanani turned and twisted in the box, only Muller’s right foot kept him out.

The big German also thwarted Raskin - before Bouanani went close again - as the Dons defended for their lives to keep the score goalless.

While at the other end, Nisbet had to watch in agony as a brilliant Olwethu Makhanya block deflected his shot wide.

Yet just when Aberdeen started to believe they could pull off a major Halloween surprise, Naderi denied them.

The striker was alert when Penrice blasted the ball into the box and diverted it home past Muller from close range.

And with that, McInnes and the Rangers support breathed a collective sigh of relief.