ALLY McCOIST believes that with a "bit of luck" Rangers could win their own version of a domestic treble this season.
The Ibrox side are 23 points clear at the top of League One, face Raith Rovers in the Ramsdens Cup final in April and Dunfermline Athletic at home tonight in the last 16 of the William Hill Scottish Cup. McCoist agrees with Owen Coyle's assertion earlier in the week that Rangers are not among the favourites for the latter trophy, but did not write off his side's chances, especially with both semi-finals taking place at Ibrox.
"We'd need a bit of luck [to complete the treble] but we're in the Ramsdens final which gives us a really good chance," he said. "We've got a very good chance of winning the league. So the Scottish Cup is the one that isn't just as clear cut.
"Most teams, if not all, need to carry that bit of luck to win a cup competition. I don't think we're at the stage yet where we're one of the teams everybody would fear. Celtic would be everybody's favourite to win it so they would be the team most people would want to avoid. "
McCoist dismissed the suggestion that Rangers should at least be reaching the Scottish Cup final, given they have the second biggest wage budget in the country. "I don't think that's the way it works. You just have to look at the cup competitions this season. They throw up surprises like Morton knocking out Celtic and Albion Rovers knocking out Motherwell. In cup competitions, budgets, form, everything gets thrown out of the window. I don't totally agree with that philosophy in the league, but I agree with it less in the cup. The whole beauty of the cup is that underdogs can win."
The Rangers manager also spoke cryptically of the decision to award the League Cup final to Celtic Park. "Call me an old cynic but I didn't fancy our chances of getting the final. I did say to [chief executive] Graham Wallace that, if we were allowed to bet, to get a few quid on the final not being at Ibrox. Neil [Doncaster], or indeed whoever is running the SPFL, made the decision. That's something they'll have to live with."
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