Glasgow Rangers: More Than A Club - An FM14 Story
A Football Manager Career by Charlie M
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Charlie M
FRIDAY, 13 SEPTEMBER 2013 14:30
Consistency Is Key
WRITTEN BY ANDREW DICKSON
ALLY McCOIST insists his Rangers side will need to be guarded against complacency in their League One fixture against Airdreoneans tomorrow afternoon.
The Light Blues are on a four-match unbeaten run so far this season with one draw and three wins.
Airdrie will not be easy opponents though, with Jim Boyle's side sitting third in the League One table with 8 points and could leapfrog the Gers to go top if they triumph tomorrow.
Extra spice has been added into the match build-up, in the form of comments from Boyle about Rangers' captain Lee McCulloch.
The Airdrie manager has suggested that 'Big Jig' is the weak link in McCoist's squad, even though the former Wigan man has made a fantastic start to the season with seven goals in just five games.
McCoist said: “We are on a good run here, unbeaten in the league and cups so far.
“Especially since the Brechin match, we have had six wins in as many games since then.
“That is a fantastic run in any league anywhere in the World.
“We need to be careful that we don't become too over-confident though, Airdrie are playing well in the league and they will fancy that top spot if they can beat us tomorrow."
When asked about Boyle's pre-match comments, McCoist said: "To be honest I can't really see where he is making sense of that one.
"You can't honestly say that Lee is our weak link when he has been arguably our best player this season so far.
"He is entitled to say what he likes, but I'd rather we let the talking be done one the pitch tomorrow".
Charlie M
13 September 2013
Last Updated at 15:25
Defender Matthew Bates has joined Rangers on a two-year contract.
The 26-year-old was with Bristol City last season and counts Middlesborough and Ipswich Town among his former clubs.
The Englishman will add to Rangers' existing options at centre-half.
He is the ninth summer addition to the Ibrox squad and can be registered as the club's signing embargo is now lifted.
Bates told Rangers' website: "This decision was a bit of a no-brainer really.
"When my agent told be of Rangers' interest, I got pretty excited.
"Rangers are a massive club with a great history, and I'm glad to now be a part of that.
"They have been through some tough times lately which is a real shame but hopefully the worst is in the past now that they are allowed to sign players again.
"The facilities at the club are great and I look forward to getting started in training and putting myself out there for selection".
Manager Ally McCoist will be able to field Bates in tomorrow's League One match against Airdrie, providing the players registration is completed in-time.
Also related to this story
Rangers release eight players 06 Sep 2013 | RANGERS
Andrew Mitchell moves on 03 Sep 2013 | RANGERS
Goram back at Rangers 27 Aug 2013 | RANGERS
Charlie M
14 September 2013
Last Updated at 17:45
By Jim Spence
BBC Scotland at Ibrox
Rangers continued their unbeaten start to the season with a dominant 4-0 win over Airdrieonians this afternoon thanks to goals from NIcky Law, Jon Daly and a brace from Andy Little.
The match started brightly for the hosts and they had an early chance to score from an Ian Black free-kick but he was unable to hit thr target with his attempt.
Lee McCulloch had two chances to silence Airdrie manager John Boyle in the 11th and 19th minutes with two headers but he was unable to keep them under the bar.
The deadlock was finally broken just after the half-hour mark, when English wide-man Nicky Law scored his first goal of the season when he pounced on a rebounded Sebastian Faure volley to side-foot the ball into the net.
Airdrie almost had an instant reply though, working the ball up to Andy Russell from the kick off but the young striker could only force a good save from Cammy Bell.
Rangers regained control of the match and McCulloch again had a chance to put the ball in the net and he may well have done that had it not been for a last-ditch tackle from midfielder Martin Hardie deflect he ball out for a corner.
Rangers' 2nd goal of the match came from the resulting corner however, a perfect ball in from Lee Wallace was met by Jon Daly and the big Irishman's header found the top corner.
The Diamonds had an opportunity to claw a goal back just before half-time when Jamie Bain got on the end of a Nathan Blockley ball into the bos but the wingers tight-angled shot hit the side netting.
The visitors continued their momentum early in the second half, left-back Paddy Boyle with a chance from an Airdrie corner but Cammy Bell did well to tip the shot onto the post.
Another free-kick within shooting range for Rangers, another attempt at goal from Black and the outcome was the same as his strike went wide.
It was on the hour mark that the match seemed to be over, Andy Little received a pass from McCulloch and tried an audacious chip which caught on-loan Rangers goalkeeper Scott Gallacher off guard and flew over his head.
His first goal only seemed to have given Little a taste for it as he scored his second goal in as many minutes, and his 8th goal of the season, with a low drive into the bottom corner.
Credit where it is due for Airdrie as they kept plugging away in the match and Russell found himself in space and fancied another crack at goal but it was more of a hopeful shot than anything else.
Sebastien Faure and Lee McCulloch both had chances in the last ten minutes to make it five but both players efforts didn't trouble Gallacher.
Things got worse for Jim Boyle when Paddy Boyle was given his marching orders in the 87th minute for an ugly two-footed challenge on David Templeton meaning that he will sit out the next game and could also be disciplined further by the SPFL board.
Charlie M
15 September 2013
Last Updated at 22:00
Defender Simon Lappin and striker Chris Beardsley have emerged as possible signings for Scottish League One leaders Rangers.
Manager Ally McCoist has confirmed he is looking into the possibility of loan deals for both the former Norwich City defender, who was on loan at Cardiff City last season, and Chris Beardsley who is currently contracted to Preston North End.
Lappin has been told by Cardiff boss Malky MacKay that he should not expect to feature much for Cardiff this campaign, leading him to look elsewhere for first-team football.
Beardsley, who joined Preston from Stevenage in August 2012, has been placed on the transfer list at Deepdale and could provide McCoist's side with added firepower in their pursuit of promotion to the Scottish Championship.
Lappin could be making his return to Scottish football after a six-year absence, as he left St. Mirren to head south of the border to Norwich City in January 2007 for a fee of around £100,000.
Also related to this story
Rangers sign up defender Matthew Bates 13 sep 2013 | RANGERS
Rangers release eight players 06 Sep 2013 | RANGERS
Andrew Mitchell moves on 03 Sep 2013 | RANGERS
Goram back at Rangers 27 Aug 2013 | RANGERS
Charlie M
EXCLUSIVE: Rangers confirm loan deals for two players.
RANGERS boss Ally McCoist has revealed that he has signed Simon Lappin and Chris Beardsley on loan for the remainder of the season.
The capture of the former St. Mirren defender and the Preston North End striker takes McCoist's total number of summer signings to eleven.
He has already brought in Cammy Bell, Nicky Clark, Jon Daly and Nicky Law, Arnold Peralta, Steve Simonsen, Stevie Smith, Richard Foster and Matthew Bates to the Ibrox club.
Beardsley (pictured) started his career at Mansfield before leaving for Doncaster in 2004 but ended up back at Field Mill in 2005.
He also had spells with Kettering, Kidderminster and Stevenage before moving to his parent club in 2012.
He will be joined at Rangers by former St. Mirren left-back Simon Lappin who makes his return to Scottish football since he had a loan spell at Scottish Premiership outfit Motherwell in 2007.
He made 29 appearances for the Canaries before returning to Scotland on-loan making 14 appearances and scoring 2 goals.
The acquisition of both players adds strength in depth to McCoist's squad as he already has Lee Wallace and Stevie Smith at his disposal for the left-back slot and Lee McCulloch, Andy Little, Barrie McKay, Jon Daly and Nicky Clark up-front.
Lappin was once an exciting prospect in Scottish football when he broke into the first team at the Buddies aged just 18 back in 2002.
The Glasgow boy established himself in the St. Mirren side in the 2003/04 season and made 151 appearances in the next five seasons before moving to England.
He also made 10 appearances or the Scotland National team at U-21 level.
Dan
Charlie M
Cheers matey. Appreciate you taking the time to read and comment
Charlie M
Walter Smith excited by in-form Rangers
FORMER Rangers gaffer Walter Smith has revealed his excitement at the way that his old club are progressing, but insists that it is not a huge shock as he always felt that Ally McCoist was the right man for the job.
The Gers have started their season off well and are unbeaten in 10 games in all competitions which includes impressive victories over Scottish Premiership side Kilmarnock in the League Cup as well as Scottish Championship teams Morton and Dumbarton in the Ramsdens Cup.
Rangers sit on top of the Scottish League One with 5 wins and 1 draw in 6 games and are sitting on 13 points.
In those 10 matches, Rangers have scored 29 goals and conceded only 7.
And the 65-year-old feels that current boss Ally McCoist is doing a good job with no scope for any complaints.
"They are back on track, playing some good football and winning games", he told Mirrorfootball.co.uk.
"The main interest for the club and everyone involved is to get them up to the Scottish Premiership and back into European competition.
"If you're looking at the job that the manager's doing at the present moment, who could complain about that?
"Ally got a fair bit of stick last season for the games that they lost or drew in the league.
"But, you also need to consider that last season the squad had to deal with a number of departures and was largely made up of youth boys.
"At Rangers you are expected to win, every match. It will always be that way.
"For me, Ally is doing a good job, I always knew he would. That's why I brought him in with me.
"I still attend as many games as I can and I enjoy that. From there I can see that the confidence is high among the fans now.
"I think the good form will continue and they will have a strong showing at the weekend against Stenhousemuir."
Charlie M
21 September 2013
Last Updated at 18:02
By Kenny Crawford
BBC Scotland at Ochilview Park
Andy Little netted a hat-trick as Rangers ran out comfortable winners away to Stenhousemuir in the Scottish League One.
Rangers opened the scoring inside the first minute of the match with Lee Wallace getting on the end of a Nicky Law ball into the penalty area and smashed a shot into the right-side of the goal.
Andy Little had a chance 6 minutes later when he intercepted a poor Ross Smith headed clearance but Ross Brash was there to make a block tackle and deny the striker.
Rangers' lead was doubled in the 7th minute however, when an Ian Black corner was flicked on by debutant Matthew Bates into the path of an unmarked Jon Daly who rifled a header beyond Chris Smith in goals for the home side.
Before long the visitors were another goal up, the third goal again coming from a corner that found Andy Little inside the box and after a scramble the Northern Irishman managed to get the ball over the line to make it 3-0.
The dominance continued for McCoist's side, Lee McCulloch having a chance to score in the 25th minute with a half volley but he dragged the shot wide.
The captain made amends for the miss though, forcing a save from Smith that the keeper was unable to hold on to, allowing the former Scotland player to side-foot the rebound into the open net.
The misery for the hosts continued when Ryan Finnie had to be stretchered off in the 34th minute after he injured his ankle landing from a headed clearance.
On the stroke of half-time, Matthew Bates had a chance to really endear himself to the Rangers support on his debut when he had a chance with a header but the ball clipped the bar and went over.
The second half kicked off and the Gers quickly regained their hold over the match, increasing the deficit to 5 goals in the 51st minute.
Another dangerous corner into the box from Black was caught sensationally by Andy Little with an overhead kick that Chris Smith had no chance of saving to bag his 10th goal of the season.
The Warriors finally created a real goal scoring chance in the 59th minute when Bryan Hodge decided to have a shot on goal from a free-kick but the ball skimmed the top of the bar and went over.
The only bad news of the game for Rangers came in the 74th minute when Lee McCulloch had to be replaced by new signing Chris Beardsley after he suffered a badly gashed leg after a challenge from Sean Dickson.
The home side had another half-chance on 78 minutes when Ross McNeil hit a hopeful looking shot from distance that was never in danger of troubling Cammy Bell.
From the resulting goal-kick Rangers rounded off their scoring in the match.
An excellent one-touch pass from Ian Black found Nicky Law who whipped a cross in from the right that was sweetly struck on the volley by Andy Little as he completed his hat-trick and surely alerted Northern Ireland manager Michael O'Neill of his presence.
Martyn Corrigan's side were blown out of the water by Rangers as they made it 11 games in all competitions unbeaten so-far this season.
Rangers Manager Ally McCoist:
"That was an absolutely superb performance, I'm really pleased with that.
"It's great to keep up our unbeaten run as well, 11 games we are at now but we won't get ahead of ourselves.
"We need to make sure that we still remain as focused on winning all of our upcoming games as they come.
"At the back we have been absolutely terrific, that is 270 minutes of football that we have played without conceding, I think.
"It's in no small part down to our defense and big Cammy [Bell].
"I was pleased that we managed to see the three new boys in action today and Matthew [Bates] laid on our first goal so I can't really ask any more than that from him in a debut.
"Of course the man who really turned it on for us was Andy Little.
"All three of his goals were brilliantly taken and that's him now on eleven goals in ten matches this season.
" I suspect I'll be receiving a call from Michael O'Neil if he keeps this kind of form up when the next Northern Ireland squad is picked."
Charlie M
SATURDAY, 21 SEPTEMBER 2013 19:00
Another Injury Setback For Lee
WRITTEN BY NEIL SMITH
Lee McCulloch has been added to Rangers' injury list for two weeks with a gashed leg.
The injury was picked up in today's match against Stenhousemuir after a challenge from Sean Dickson.
The Captain will definitely miss Wednesday's League Cup Third round meeting with his former club Motherwell.
He is also expected to miss out the following two League One matches against Ayr and East Fife on the 2nd and 5th October.
Ally McCoist will be hoping to have him back in training with the rest of the squad for the build-up to the Challenge Cup Semi Final tie against Dunfermline on October 12th.
Charlie M
25 September 2013
Last Updated at 19:00
Rangers manager Ally McCoist has confirmed that the club has rejected a bid for Sebastien Faure from FC Istres.
The French club have revealed that the central defender is one of their main transfer targets.
But McCoist insists that they are nowhere near matching the Scottish League Two champions' valuation of the player.
"We rejected a bid from Istres and I can tell you that I want Sebastien Faure to stay and continue his development here rather than go anywhere. I genuinely don't know if they will come back in," said McCoist.
"What I would say is the bid that they put in was so far away that I would be very surprised if they came back in."
Also related to this story
Rangers loan Simon Lappin and Chris Beardsley 18 Sep 2013 | RANGERS
Rangers sign up defender Matthew Bates 13 sep 2013 | RANGERS
Rangers release eight players 06 Sep 2013 | RANGERS
Andrew Mitchell moves on 03 Sep 2013 | RANGERS
Charlie M
25 September 2013
Last Updated at 21:12
By Scott Davie
BBC Scotland at Fir Park
A late Bob McHugh goal to gave Motherwell a win over Rangers and sent them through to the Fourth Round of the League Cup.
Rangers will have been frustrated that they didn't at least force a replay of the tie as they had the lions share of possession and chances during the match.
The beginning of the game didn't go well for the home side as winger Lionel Ainsworth was stretchered off with a potentially serious knee injury in the opening minutes after a coming together with Simon Lappin.
Motherwell took the lead in the 15th minute through on-loan West Brom striker Saido Berahino.
The promising youngster recieved the ball from an Iain Vigurs free-kick that was floated into the box which he controlled down well on the chest and his neat turn and finish had Cammy Bell beaten.
The Steelmen continued to probe for more with Berahino again having a chance to score along with Vigurs but Bell was able to keep the ball out of the net on both occasions.
Rangers had a chance just before half-time to level the score and it was former Well midfielder Nicky Law who beat Steven Hammell easily on the right but his shot was wide.
Ally McCoist must have given his side a half-time hairdryer treatment as they evened the game 10 minutes into the second half.
Ironically it was Law again who raced past Hammell and this time the Englishman turned inside and hit a ferocious shot
The Gers' chances of going on to win the match took a huge blow in the 62nd minute when Sebastien Faure was shown a red card for a push on James McFadden, having earlier been booked for a trip on Henri Anier.
Just eight minutes after the sending off, Motherwell super-sub Bob McHugh put the hosts back in front as he rounded off a counter attack when he was put through on goal from an Iain Vigurs pass.
The Light Blues continued to threaten as much as they could with 10-men, Simon Lappin forcing a save from Ross McGowan in the Motherwell goal on 83 minutes.
Rangers' late flurry of chances continued as Lee Wallace had the chance to score after a wonderful solo effort from the left-side of the pitch but the Scotland full-back wasn't able to find the finish that the run deserved.
A home win see's Rangers first competitive defeat this season and their League Cup journey ended, but it could have ended very differently had Faure managed to keep his temperament in check.
Dan
Shedender
Charlie M
Thanks mate. Was pleased with the amount of goals we scored.
Yeah I know. I was disappointed that Faure got sent off cause at that point we had pulled it back to 1-1 and we had the momentum but not much I can do about that!
Thanks for reading & commenting fellas!
Charlie M
SUNDAY, 24 SEPTEMBER 2013 16:45
Gers Get The Wee Gers In Scottish Cup
WRITTEN BY DAVID MELVIN
RANGERS will visit League Two side Berwick Rangers in the third round of the William Hill Scottish Cup after the draw was made this afternoon at Hampden Park.
Former Light Blues forward Nacho Novo picked his old club out of the hat to play away from home in the game, which is set to be played on Saturday, November 2 subject to live TV coverage.
Gers were winners when they met the Wee Gers in their final game of last seasons League Two campaign at Ibrox, coming out on top by a 1-0 scoreline.
This will be the first meeting of the clubs in the Scottish Cup since their third round clash at Ibrox back in 2002.
On that occasion Gers won the contest 3-0, with Lorenzo Amoruso, Bert Konterman and Shota Arveladze getting the goals.
The match with Berwick will kick off a run of three fixtures within the space of seven days.
Following the cup tie, Rangers will travel to Forfar for a league match on November 5.
Stranraer then come to Glasgow on November 9.
Ticket information for the tie against Ian Little’s team will be made available via the official website as soon as an agreement on prices is reached.
Charlie M
MONDAY, 30 SEPTEMBER 2013 13:00
Faure Joins McCulloch In Physio Room
WRITTEN BY NEIL SMITH
ALLY McCOIST has been rocked by new injury blow as he contemplates the second quarter of the League One season.
The injury was picked up in today's match against Stenhousemuir after a challenge from Sean Dickson.
Sebastien Faure is expected to miss six weeks after twisting his ankle in training today.
However, the good news is that Lee McCulloch should be back in full training on Wednesday.
McCoist told the official web site: “We seem to have a bit of a jinx on injuries, when we are getting them it's two or three players at once.
“McCulloch is due back training in a few days so that will be a wee boost for us.
“But Sebastien's injury is a wee bit of a blow.
“At this stage I think we would be lucky to have him back for selection towards the middle of November.
“He's looking to be missing about seven or eight games, including the Challenge Cup Semi final and the Scottish Cup Third Round.
“He's a bit gutted about that.
“Sebastien has been recommended to rest it up and we will monitor it further when the swelling goes down.
"It wrankles a bit but there is not much that can be done about it, we will get on with it.”
Dan
Charlie M
McCoist voted League 1 Manager of Month
________________________________________________________________________________________________
Tuesday 1st October 2013
________________________________________________________________________________________________
Rangers boss Ally McCoist has been voted Scottish League One Manager of the Month for September after guiding the Ibrox side to three wins in their three games.
Rangers kicked off September with a 3-0 win away to Stranraer and 4-0 against Airdrie at Ibrox before thumping Stenhousemuir 6-0 at Ochilview Park.
The Gers also kept clean sheets in all three of their league games last month.
This is the second consecutive month that the Light Blues boss has been given the award.
McCoist's men are three points clear of Brechin in second place with a game in-hand which is against Ayr at Ibrox and will be played on Wednesday night at 7.30pm.
view all articles >>
Charlie M
Haha I knew you'd have enjoyed that cup draw mate!
Mon the Scottish Rangers!! Lol.
Charlie M
Daly voted Player of the Month
________________________________________________________________________________________________
Tuesday 1st October 2013
________________________________________________________________________________________________
Rangers striker Jon Daly has been voted SPFL League One Player of the Month for September.
The big Irishman scored three times from the centre of defense in the League One last month and also helped his side overcome Dumbarton and progress into the Challenge Cup Semi Finals.
Daly, who turns 31 in January, joined Rangers from Dundee United during the summer and follows team-mate Lee Wallace, who was named SPFL Player of the Month for August.
view all articles >>
Charlie M
TUESDAY, 1 OCTOBER 2013 14:14
We Want To Bounce Back
WRITTEN BY ANDREW DICKSON
MANAGER Ally McCoist says that the focus this week has been put on the team bouncing back from disappointment.
The team lost 2-1 to Motherwell to exit the Scottish League cup last mid-week thanks to a late Bob McHugh strike which ended the teams run of unbeaten games on all competitions.
Rangers face Ayr this mid-week and the gaffer is hopeful that the team can show some bounce back-ability and get another win under their belt.
The Light Blues are currently top of the table by three points and a win at Ibrox tomorrow night will see them double that advantage.
Ayr haven't quite had the start that they would have wanted this season and are sitting in the relegation play-off place with just five points from a possible eighteen.
McCoist will also be without Sebastien Faure and Lee McCulloch for the match as the former misses five weeks with a twisted ankle and the latter has yet to return to full training after a gashed leg.
Other than that the manager has a full squad at his disposal for the clash.
McCoist said: "The loss last week was disappointing for us.
"Especially after we pulled it back to 1-1 because I felt that we had the momentum at that stage and looked like we could have got another.
"But the sending off hurt us and gave Motherwell the opportunity to control the game a bit and credit to them, they did that
"The best thing for us to do now is move on and focus on the competitions that we are still involved in.
"This will be a chance to get us back to winning ways and cheer the boys up a wee bit.
"It's a shame that we will be without Lee and Sebastien but there are good depth at the back and upfront in the squad so we will manage without them, although of course I'd rather we had them available.
"If we perform the way that we have been in the league so far then we can come out of this game with the right result for us."
Shedender
Please annihilate the "wee Gers".
K3V0
Charlie M
Haha cheers mate. Really appreciate that!
We ain't that bad! Lol.
Charlie M
2 October 2013
Last Updated at 21:30
By Martin Conaghan
BBC Scotland at Ibrox
An impressive hat-trick from on-loan striker Chris Beardsley was enough to give Rangers the win and stretch their lead at the top of League One to 6 points.
The match started off as a tense affair as both sides had chances to take the lead in the opening minutes, Ian Black and Jamie Doris missing for each team respectively.
It was the Ayrshire men who thought they had taken the lead in the 12th minute when Jamie Doris headed the ball into the net but was perhaps unlucky to be robbed of his first goal for his side as the referee pulled the play back and awarded Rangers a free-kick in their own box.
Two minutes later the home side took the advantage as Chris Beardsley opened his goalscoring account with his temporary club
The on-loan striker received a pass from Nicky Law and jinked past former Rangers player Alan Lithgow before driving his effort into the net.
It only took another 5 minutes of play before the Englishman doubled his tally and his side's lead.
Another cross in from Law enabled the 6ft 2in striker to out-jump his marker and power a header into the roof of the net.
Rangers could have been 3 or 4 goals up by the end of the first half but Beardsley was unable to add to his account, at least in the first half.
The second half began and it as all Rangers again, this time Richard Foster and Andy Little both having chances to score but neither player was able to keep their shot from going wide.
More chances came for McCoist's men, Beardsley again missing an opportunity to make it a hat-trick.
The Honest Men had a chance to half the deficit when Michael McGowans wayward cross nearly found the net by accident had it not been for a supern headed clearance from Matthew Bates.
Rangers' lead was completed in the 72nd minute as was the hat-trick for their man of the match.
A lung-bursting run from the left-wing from Lee Wallace resulted in a deep ball into the box and Beardsley's aerial prowess again shone as he flicked a header on that left David Hutton rooted to the spot.
That seemed to finally put the match to bed as a contest and the only real chance of the match after that was an audacious attempt from Beardsley to make it 4 goals.
Rangers boss Ally McCoist:
"We are delighted with that.
"Especially for big Chris, it's vital for a new striker at any club to get among the goals early and I don't think we could have asked for much more than that from him.
"Nicky [Law] was also instrumental for us today, always making dangerous runs and he's not afraid to take on his man, laying on two goals as well.
"Chris was the stand-out player for us though. If he keeps this up I'll need to look at the possibility of keeping him beyond the end of the season!"
Charlie M
THURSDAY, 3 OCTOBER 2013 21:30
Wallace, Bell and Aird Called Up By Scotland
WRITTEN BY DAVID MELVIN
LEE WALLACE and Cammy Bell have been included in Scotland's latest squad, named this evening by Gordon Strachan.
The Scots will face Croatia and Macedonia in their latest FIFA World Cup qualifying matches.
This will be Lee Wallace's first involvement for the National side since he was forced to pull out of the first qualifying match against Croatia in October 2012.
Cammy Bell was last part of the squad for the qualifying match Against Belgium last month when he was drafted in to replaced injured ex-Ger Allan McGregor.
Scotland face Croatia on October 11 and Macedonia on October 15.
Also, Fraser Aird has been called up to the Scotland U-19 squad by manager Ricky Sbragia ahead of their UEFA U-19 Championship qualifyer against the Netherlands which takes place on Wednesday October 9.
Charlie M
04 October 2013
Last Updated at 10:15
Former Rangers captain David Weir says the club's strong start to the season shows the club are heading in the right direction under Ally McCoist.
McCoist replaced Walter Smith in July 2012 and had a less-than-impressive first season in-charge of the club whilst competing in the bottom tier of Scottish football.
"Last season's form was a real wake-up call for the players and manager," Weir told BBC Sport Scotland.
"Ally has done well in the summer to bring in some new players and strengthen the squad, I think you saw that against Kilmarnock."
Weir, 43, who took over as manager of Sheffield United in the summer, added: "It was always going to take a bit of time after one man had been so successful over at the club for that period of time, there was always going to be a transition period."
Smith resigned at the end of the 2010/2011 season after winning 21 trophies in two spells as manager of the Glasgow club, including a domestic League Cup and SPL double in his final season.
McCoist's side have racked up 19 out of a possible 21 points in seven matches in their League One campaign so far, as well as qualifying for the Challenge Cup Semi Final and the Third Round of the Scottish League Cup at the expense of Scottish Premiership side Kilmarnock.
Their only defeat of the season so far came in the League Cup when they lost out to Motherwell thanks to a late Bob McHugh goal.
Weir also believes that McCoist is the right man to take his former side back to the pinnacle of Scottish football,
"He spent a few years working directly under Walter and there isn't many better managers in the game that you can learn from.
"Last season wasn't as good as many fans and the media had maybe expected, but this season you can see the difference.
"I think now the players are applying themselves and working hard as a unit and they need to work as a team if they want to be successful and Ally will be drilling that in to them.
"I'm confident that they will just get better and better now and hopefully be back in European football before too long".
Also related to this story
Wallace & Bell called up for Scotland 03 Oct 2013 | RANGERS
Daly & McCoist win monthly awards 01 Oct 2013 | RANGERS
Rangers reject FC Istres bid for defender Sebastien Faure 25 Sep 2013 | RANGERS
Rangers loan Simon Lappin and Chris Beardsley 18 Sep 2013 | RANGERS
Charlie M
FRIDAY, 4 OCTOBER 2013 12:15
Continuing The Good Form
WRITTEN BY ANDREW DICKSON
ALLY MCCOIST is optimistic that the squad can continue their excellent league form this weekend when they face East Fife in League One.
The Light Blues have marched to a seven match unbeaten run in the league so far this season, chalking up six wins and one draw in the process.
Rangers will be without the services of Sebastien Faure as the central defender is still recovering from a twisted ankle that he picked up during tarining.
Lee Wallace, Matthew Bates and Chris Beardsley are also expected to sit-out tomorrow's fixture after they failed to prove their fitness to the gaffer in-time.
McCoist will be boosted by the return of skipper Lee McCulloch though, who has returned to full training a week earlier than expected.
Barrie McKay, Lewis MacLeod and Ross Perry are expected to be handed starts after impressing in training through the week.
Earlier in the week, East Fife manager Willie Aitcheson aided to the build-up of the match, claiming that he is confident in his sides ability to defend and counter-attack against the manager's style.
McCoist told a packed press room: "Willie is entitled to his opinion.
"Personally I'm happy with the way we attack and if he feels that his side can cope with us then we will just wait and see how the game pans out.
"They are sitting third in the league table so we can't take them for granted.
"We are delighted to welcome big Lee back in for selection earlier than we had originally thought, he's been magnificent for us so far in this campaign.
"Some of the younger lads have really been putting the effort in in training as well so we will reward them with some game time and see how they play.
"Selection-wise we are doing really well right now, with only Sebastien our long-term casualty.
"A few of the other lads are struggling a wee bit with the recent fixture congestion but we have enough depth to field a strong enough team."
Dan