WHENEVER Ally McCoist missed a chance, had a shot saved or was thwarted by an opposition defender during his time as a player, his response was always the same. He shrugged his shoulders, made his way back up the park and tried to score again. And again. And again.
So was it really any great surprise when McCoist revealed on Friday that he is, despite the harrowing experience he endured after succeeding Walter Smith at Rangers, actively seeking a return to management?
At points during his troubled three-and-a-half year tenure at Ibrox - after the Glasgow institution went into administration in 2012 and when once-adoring supporters finally turned on him publicly towards the end in 2014 especially - the strain on him appeared to take a heavy toll.
Read more: Ally McCoist was badly let down by Rangers players, says Jon Daly
It would, then, have been quite understandable if the 53-year-old had sought gainful employment elsewhere after departing. He certainly had other options available to him. In the past year, he has fronted a Ladbrokes advertising campaign and worked as a summariser for BT Sport.
McCoist clearly, however, still hankers after a direct involvement in the game and is determined not to be bracketed as another great footballer who was unable to enjoy similar success when he hung up his boots and moved into the dugout.
Precious few, if any, of the Rangers fans would, despite their affection for their legendary goalscorer, fancy him to fare any better in future. His time in charge was peppered with poor displays and embarrassing results against lesser, occasionally part-time, opposition. Ultimately, it ended in failure to secure a place in the Premiership.
It will be illuminating, though, to see how McCoist fares as a manager without any of the myriad complications he had to contend with previously.
The dramatic improvement shown by Rangers under Mark Warburton has been seen by many as irrefutable evidence of his predecessor’s flaws. The Englishman has certainly done a remarkable job since arriving in Scotland last summer. His hastily-assembled team has played attractive and winning football and clinched that elusive place in the top flight.
Yet, the circumstances Warburton has worked in – he has a unified and professional board of bona fide supporters which the majority of the fan base backs firmly behind him as well as sizeable crowds cheering on his team at games home and away – are vastly different. McCoist was never afforded that luxury.
Read more: Former Rangers boss Ally McCoist ready to return to management
He was there when, among others, Craig Whyte, Charles Green, Imran Ahmed and James and Sandy Easdale sat in the directors’ box, there was severe financial instability, unrest in the stands and, latterly, dwindling attendances.
He did, too, have his moments. Two consecutive promotions were secured. Rangers won the third tier title without losing a game. A fair few top flight teams were defeated in cup competitions. Before their financial meltdown, he oversaw two memorable Old Firm triumphs over Celtic at Ibrox.
Of course, whatever achievement was recorded was instantly dismissed by the snipers due to the fact Rangers, for all their troubles, still had “the second highest wage bill in Scotland”. It was a no-win situation for him. “An impossible job,” was how his mentor Smith described it.
McCoist, who has had interviews for two vacancies in the English Championship, then, has many doubters and much to prove. Perhaps his detractors will be proved correct. But it is typical of the man that he is determined to at least try.
AND ANOTHER THING
Insanity, according to Albert Einstein, was doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.
So, if the far-reaching changes to the youth football set-up that Brian McClair, the SFA performance director, has proposed are rejected those responsible should be certified mad and carted off to the nearest sanatorium.
The Scotland friendly internationals against Italy and France underlined just how far behind Europe’s leading football nations our top professionals lag in terms of pace, intelligence, strength and technique.
The players who Gordon Strachan, the national team manager, selected for the double header were, with the exception of the Celtic contingent who were rested ahead of their Champions League qualifying campaign, the best available to him. They were outclassed in both games.
It is, concerningly, not immediately apparent where their successors are coming from. Stephen Kingsley of Swansea City and Barrie McKay of Rangers both made their international debuts as their country was defeated 3-0 in Metz on Saturday. John McGinn of Hibs and Kieran Tierney of Celtic did so against Denmark in March.
But the present structure is not working. It is failing producing players of a high enough standard. Nor are there enough kids making the step up to senior level either. To persevere with the current policy would be crazy. Hopefully, the greater good of Scottish football will be put ahead of self-interest in the weeks ahead.
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