It is inconveniences that waylay Ally McCoist.

The Rangers manager can generally be satisfied at the way his team has established a solid run of consistency, with 16 consecutive matches having now been won this season. He can quibble that his players struggle to establish their leads in the opening period, but the mentality and fitness of his squad is sufficient enough for Rangers to eventually prevail. These are issues that are incidental to David Somers, though.

The new Ibrox non-executive director, who has also taken the role of acting chairman, attended Saturday's visit of Airdrie, and met McCoist over a cup of tea in the morning. He would also have been aware of the fans' protest outside the main door before kick-off - which involved banners and chants of "sack the board" - and a similar discontent being expressed in the singing section of the Broomloan Road stand during the game.

Comments from the group backed by Jim McColl, which has the support of the institutional shareholders and is seeking the appointments of Paul Murray, Malcolm Murray, Scott Murdoch and Alex Wilson to the board, will also have emphasised how entrenched views are. Somers wants to press ahead with seeking a new chief executive and further additions to the board, but McColl's group are adamant they will not accept that before the annual general meeting, on December 19 at Ibrox.

The two Murrays are believed to have met with fan group representatives before Saturday's game. Hearts and minds are being fought over, and Somers will be aware of the lack of trust the fans have with the board, but also the pressing issues: a fragmented shareholder base and the need for additional funding in the coming months.

"Corporate governance is his game," said McCoist. "He is aware of what the club needs."

The Rangers manager is "hopeful that we can have a successful working relationship", but for now they are essentially operating in different environments. McCoist's team performs as though oblivious to the conflict around the boardroom. He was surprised to learn that 23 of 24 goals have come in the second half of games. It is also now seven matches in a row in which Rangers have failed to establish a half-time lead, six of which saw them end the first period goalless.

Even so, it appears to have little effect on the players' assurance. The supporters, and probably the coaching staff, would feel more relaxed if the scorelines accurately reflected the dominance Rangers tend to hold over their opponents, but the players have been able to maintain a relentless intent. It took less than a minute after the interval to break the deadlock against Airdrie, when Jon Daly headed a deflected Arnold Peralta cross beyond Andrew Duncan, the opposition goalkeeper.

"I don't think it's coincidence, we worked really hard in pre-season and it's paid off," said Robbie Crawford, the Rangers midfielder. "We keep going and always believe we're going to get a goal and break teams down eventually, even if it can be difficult during the first half. The mentality at this club is to win every game and keep this momentum going."

Some players are enduring frustrating spells. Nicky Clark will wonder how he ended this game without scoring, having hit the bar and seen several close-range efforts saved, while most of the decisions David Templeton made in the final third were misjudged. Nonetheless, the winger earned the penalty that saw Rangers secure their win, when he was brought down by Gregor Buchanan, with Lee McCulloch converting the spot-kick.

"If I was going to be a little disappointed about anything it was just that we didn't score more goals," said McCoist. "But that's not a bad thing to be moaning about if you are winning and keeping a clean sheet."

The most enduring aspect of the occasion was a show of unity, though, when a card display and a minute's silence marked Remembrance Day. The hush was poignant.