McCoist to thrash out Rangers future with Somers

McCoist: Meeting David Somers today. Picture: SNS

The 65-year-old accountant was announced as acting chairman and non-executive director this week, as the Light Blues confirmed 19 December as the date for their highly-anticipated annual general meeting.

Somers’ appointment comes amid boardroom turmoil, with the AGM postponed last month by a Court of Session ruling after former director Paul Murray led a legal bid to force a vote on his and other shareholders’ potential election to the board.

McCoist said: “I haven’t spoken to him yet, we have missed each other. I’ve left a message on David’s phone and I know he’s tried to contact me. I’m looking forward to meeting him tomorrow. We’ve got a meeting arranged for late morning before the game at Ibrox.

“I’ve left a message congratulating him on the post and I’m looking forward to working with him. There will obviously be pleasantries but we will also be discussing the ongoing future of the club – where we are, where we want to be, how we are going to get there. Just normal things you would expect the manager and the chairman to talk about.”

Rangers have been without a chairman since Walter Smith stepped down from the role three months ago. Chief executive Craig Mather resigned last month. Somers has already begun the process of interviewing potential replacements for Mather, despite the possibility of further changes to the board at the AGM.

McCoist added: “I don’t think it’s ever too soon to have a chief executive. The fact the chairman has taken up the post, I would be surprised if he thinks he’s not going to be here long-term. I think it’s very important that we do get a chief executive as well.

“I’ve said all along that the relationship between a chief executive and a manager – and, indeed, the chairman – at any football club is of paramount importance. I’m just looking forward to working with the new chairman and, hopefully, a new chief executive in the future.”

Meanwhile, McCoist does not expect to see Andy Little back in action before the turn of the year after the forward suffered a broken cheekbone and broken jaw during Wednesday’s win over Dunfermline.

He said: “It’s a really, really sore one that Andy got. He has very badly damaged the eye-socket and that will need an operation, which we are hopeful will be on Monday. After that, you would imagine it would be months. It’s a real shame.”

Little was not the only player who failed to come through that physical encounter unscathed. Skipper Lee McCulloch required six stitches in a head wound during the game, while Richard Foster was forced out of the action with an ankle injury, Bilel Mohsni suffered a broken nose and goalkeeper Cammy Bell sustained a knock late on.

McCulloch, Mohsni and Bell are all expected to be available for selection for the visit of Airdrie, although Foster faces several weeks on the sidelines. McCoist said: “We are struggling a little bit. Our captain has got stitches and our other centre-half looks as though he’s got a broken nose. Foster will be out injured and Cammy Bell took a sore one when Dunfermline got the goal, which I thought was a fair challenge.

“You are always going to get injuries and suspensions throughout the season and I think the very encouraging thing from our point of view is, as injured as the boys are, they are still keen to play, which is good.”

He added: “I was absolutely delighted with the way our players won the game and handled the game. It’s a man’s game. You have to play to the referee’s interpretation of the laws and that’s what we did.”