Humble pie is such a part of the football scene you almost expect Peter Frampton to pitch up at a post-match press conference.

Ropey references to 1970s rock bands aside, the munching of the aforementioned pie is a process that occurs on a regular basis as players and managers from opposing teams are forced to eat their own words. It's probably more palatable than some of the pastry-encased slop that's dished out in grounds around the country, mind you.

Darren McGregor knows what it tastes like, of course. Back in November, when Rangers were on a run of eight straight wins and breathing down the neck of table-topping Hearts, he questioned whether the Edinburgh team could handle the pressure of being title pacesetters. Those words were swiftly pounced upon by a salivating media and, not long after, Rangers drew with Alloa, Hearts beat Falkirk and then beat Rangers the following week as they disappeared into the distance on their triumphant journey to the SPFL Championship.

"Listen, I need to take my hat off to them," conceded McGregor, whose searing drive with seven minutes left helped a recovering Rangers to a 4-1 victory over spirited Cowdenbeath on Saturday as they hoisted themselves into a share of second place with Hibernian. "I'm not going to sit here and say I didn't say that. My point was that it would have been interesting to me to see how they would have coped had we got to within a point of them. Obviously, that never happened and now I've eaten my words because we drew against Alloa and they kicked on so fair play to them. Sometimes these things come back to bite you but I've got nothing but praise for the way Hearts have carried themselves this season. Unfortunately, we've been poor, we know that, but we've still got a chance to right the wrongs of the season."

Those wrongs continued to be put right at the weekend although Cowdenbeath gave Rangers some more heebie-jeebies at home with an equaliser from Kudus Oyenuga in 76 minutes. McGregor's rasping drive from the edge of the box, which restored Rangers' lead with seven minutes left, was as crisp as a pint of lager in the Louden Tavern and just as gratefully received by the supporters in the stands. Haris Vuckic, the on loan Newcastle United player who continues to make his mark north of the border, stepped off the bench and scored two delightful goals to bolster the tally in the last knockings. Given the chances they had, and spurned, this was a deserved victory although Cowdenbeath, dogged and disciplined until it all went belly-up in the final seven minutes, gave them a fright and capitalised on the flaws that still linger in the Rangers ranks . On another week, the hosts may have wilted and withered as heads drooped amid the din of the disgruntled voices but they ploughed on and repaired the damage. "I think a lot of people are under that impression, that a couple of weeks ago the game would have fizzled out as a 1-1 draw," added McGregor, who began his career with Cowdenbeath. "When their goal went in, it was one of their first shots on target and, to be fair, you do think 'oh no' again, but we showed the resilience that has been missing in weeks gone by."

The next test of this mettle will be against newly crowned champions Hearts, who have beaten Rangers twice this season in the league. The resurgent Tynecastle team have swatted aside all and sundry during their imperious march to the title and have left the rest coughing and spluttering in their wake. "They (Hearts) have been great and are deserved champions but we need to get up behind them," said McGregor. "In an ideal world, we would have loved to have won the league but that has gone now. If can get up via the play-offs, the fans will probably forgive us. But we won't get carried away. We've won two games and although we've been poor to this point, we're slowly building in confidence and momentum."

For Cowdenbeath, meanwhile, the slog at the foot of the table continues. They remain in the relegation play-off place but are just one point behind third-bottom Alloa with a game in hand. The goals against column continues to make for grim reading, though. In their last 10 games they have shipped 34. "It's been our problem all season and when we concede one we concede too many," said midfielder, Jon Robertson. "It looks like we have been battered again but I was proud of the way the lads carried themselves. We just need to show a bit more character in the last 15 minutes of games."