Departing Rangers boss Ally McCoist made an emotional farewell speech to his players and told them to make him proud by pipping Hearts to the Championship title.

The club's record scorer has been put on garden leave from the remainder of 12-month notice period after handing in his resignation 11 days ago.

McCoist's former number two Kenny McDowall has now been placed in temporary charge until the end of the season.

The manager met his squad for the final time at Murray Park on Monday morning, just as the club's directors were being booed and heckled at a stormy Ibrox AGM.

But the 52-year-old used his final words to fire up the Light Blues for the title run-in as they try to rein in Hearts' nine-point lead.

McDowall, speaking to the media for the first time since he was put in charge on Sunday night, said: "We need to give the fans something back.

"That's what the boys are desperate to do. We set out to win this title and that is still the aim. Nothing would make Ally McCoist more happy than the boys doing that.

"Yesterday was a sad day. Ally came in to say goodbye to the players and the staff. The man that he is, he finished by saying that nothing would make him more proud than if they went on to win the title.

"It would be a great tribute to Ally if they boys could pull that off."

McCoist's turbulent three-and-a-half year reign was finally brought to an end late on Sunday night.

The former Scotland striker had been determined to see out his year-long notice period but just 14 hours before the club's directors were set to face off against seething shareholders, a brief three-line statement confirmed McCoist was gone.

McDowall will be assisted by Gordon Durie and Lee McCulloch, now doubling up as skipper and player/coach, as he tries to re-energise a team that has creaked its way through recent weeks.

But the 51-year-old former Celtic youth coach, who quit Parkhead to join Walter Smith's Rangers coaching staff in 2007, looked uncomfortable as he explained how new chief executive Derek Llambias and football board chairman Sandy Easdale turned to him just moments after dispensing with McCoist.

They also sent coach Ian Durrant back to work with the club's Under-20s side - and left McDowall to break the bad news.

The former Partick and St Mirren striker said: "The board intimated to myself that Ally had been put on garden leave and they told me they were going to make some changes to the structure of the coaching team.

"Gordon was to come up from the (under) 20s to assist me and they wanted to make Lee a player/coach and I was to start immediately.

"Was my opinion sought? No, they asked me if I could make those changes immediately. But the decision was made by them.

"As for Durranty, that was the board's decision too. They asked me to carry it out which I duly did.

"I was asked to inform the guys of the changes being made."

McDowall was promoted to assistant manager when McCoist replaced Smith in 2011 but Llambias hinted at Monday's shareholder meeting that he could end up keeping the top job permanently.

"I'm just going to take it one game at a time and try to get Rangers winning on the park," said the interim boss before he paid tribute to McCoist. "I'm very saddened to see a good friend, who has been absolutely unbelievable for the club over the last three years and longer before that when he was a player, depart.

"Ally McCoist was the glue that kept this club together.

"I was surprised when I found out he had resigned because I didn't know it was coming. Listen, we are all big boys. It has been a bumpy ride but football is football and anything can happen."

While the club's off-field soap opera was a distraction for McCoist, performances did little to help his cause.

McDowall's first match in charge will come against Hibernian this Saturday but he knows defeat will all but kill-off their automatic promotion hopes.

However, he warned fans not to expect sweeping changes when he names his line-up for the Easter Road clash.

He said: "There's not a whole load I can change because everything Ally was doing was with my backing.

"The players appreciate that they have got to do a bit better on the park in terms of consistency. But these guys are good players. They don't just become bad players overnight.

"Because they are Rangers players, everything is scrutinised - every last pass. But they know they need to keep their standards high."