Amy McDonald never thought she would see the day when a female coach was placed in charge of a men's first team squad.

But she admits the manner in which Rangers have sought to lead the way in women's football could not have been envisaged, either, as she looks at the strides taken in a short space of time.

The Ibrox board have invested significant sums in the Auchenhowie setup as Rangers strive for success in the Women's game, both domestically and in Europe.

McDonald has overseen that drive in her role as Women’s and Girls’ Football Manager and was at the forefront of the recruitment of Jo Potter as head coach last month.

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And she is confident the ethos that runs throughout the club will pay dividends in the future as chairman John Bennett and James Bisgrove, the chief executive officer, take a keen interest in the fortunes of the women's side.

"When you ask about Rangers and Scottish football, it has historically been seen as a male dominated world," McDonald said. "I think for Rangers to be at the forefront of this and to be innovative and to try and capture that and be really diverse in their thinking is great.

"James has been really big on that as well. When he came in he began to look at the commercial opportunities and how do we split them up and what do we do rather than before it was all in together.

"I think, personally, it is huge. If you speak to any female player, coach or anyone in the game, the lack of access of that, there is still very much a belief that clubs are saying ‘we are one club’ and then you get into the club and it is not and it doesn’t feel like that.

"Even down to the amount of guys we have looking after us from a media perspective, it is across the full club and it is invaluable for us.

"It saves me a lot of convincing and hassle because they are there and they believe in us. They are willing to give up their time and they are invested in it, which is huge."

Rangers finished third in the SWPL last term as Malky Thomson's side failed to retain their title and missed out on European football on a dramatic final day of the campaign at Ibrox.

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The focus on the women's side has steadily increased in recent seasons and the upcoming World Cup could see interest levels take a steep rise once again.

The appointment of Hannah Dingley as caretaker boss at Forest Green Rovers has shone the spotlight on female coaches and could become the next platform for the game to build on in the coming years.

"No," McDonald said when asked if she ever thought she would see such an appointment. "But I didn’t think we would be where we are at Rangers either when you think of the journey we have been on in Women’s football and look at where we were five, six years ago and the evolution we have gone through as a club.

"I don’t think anyone expected Women’s football to be where we are and now we are struggling to keep up. I think something that really excites me is that we are here in the training centre and it is not a thing for Rangers.

"They are not afraid to have female coaches, physios, anything. They are just appointing the best people for the jobs and the more clubs that do that, the more diversity of thought you have within the Scottish game, it is only going to enhance it longer term.

"Collaborative working is the best way to work for everyone. I am scared but super excited about what the World Cup will do to kick Women’s football on again. We have seen the growth, seen where it can go and seen how quickly it accelerated after the Euros."