McCoist keen to avoid Caley hat-trick

Assistant manager Ally McCoist is “confident” Rangers will avoid a hat-trick of losses to Inverness when they tackle the Highlanders at Ibrox this Saturday.

Inverness inflicted a 1-0 defeat on Rangers in Glasgow in mid October and repeated the feat in late December, winning 2-1 at their Tulloch Caledonian Stadium.

Those results mean Caley are chasing a remarkable maximum haul of nine points from the Bank of Scotland Premier League fixtures between the clubs this season.

On Saturday, however, McCoist insists Rangers will be determined to make amends for the defeats which were among the most damaging of former boss Paul Le Guen’s reign.

McCoist told Rangers News: “We know Inverness have caused Rangers no end of problems this season so we certainly won’t underestimate them.

“We are aware of their threat, but given our current form, which has been very good, we have to be confident of getting the win.

“Without a doubt our aim is to secure second place as quickly as possible and that means we must keep winning every week.”

Rangers are well placed to finish as runners-up to Celtic, as they have a seven-point advantage over third-placed Aberdeen.

Since McCoist returned to the club along with Walter Smith in January, Rangers have seen their results and performances improve drastically.

“We’ve had a great reaction since coming in but we want that form to continue and ensure no-one lets up,” said McCoist.

“Looking back at successful times in Rangers’ history, Ibrox has always been like a fortress and a very difficult place for teams to come.

“In recent times, however, the opposition have not feared coming to play us at home and have even said so publicly beforehand.

“Hopefully that is changing again because we have done well at Ibrox recently and it’s something that we’re working hard to achieve.”