OPINION among the Rangers support has always been sharply divided on Ally McCoist's abilities as a football manager.

Many Gers fans felt he does not possess the necessary acumen or authority to coach the club that he represented with such distinction as a player.

They have pointed to the turgid football his team has often served up in the last few years, and some of the results they have crashed to, as proof he is not up to the task.

Others Light Blues followers, meanwhile, reckon he was unable to fulfil his huge potential in the role due to the external factors which he had to contend with.

He has operated in a highly-challenging working environment for the vast majority of the last three-and-a-half years - with constant bickering in the boardroom and escalating fans' unrest in the stands.

But there is one thing that every supporter of the Ibrox club can - or, at least, should - agree upon, no matter what their view of the legendary striker.

And that is that McCoist always wanted the very best for Rangers and gave his absolute all to achieve it.

The costly 2-0 defeat to Hearts at Tynecastle last month, a result that saw Rangers slip nine points behind in the SPFL Championship, is still fresh in fans' memories just now.

And the late collapse and loss to part-time minnows Alloa in the Petrofac Training Cup semi-final at the Indodrill Stadium last week remains a deeply humiliating experience.

But once the pain of those reverses, and other assorted cup exits and disappointments, fades in the course of time, it is fair to say that history will be kind to McCoist.

The high regard he is held in among the Rangers fan base will by no means be diminished by his time in the dugout. In fact, exactly the opposite will be the case.

The service he did at his beloved club during its greatest hour of need will not be forgotten. If anything, it has increased his standing among the Light Blues faithful.

When McCoist succeeded his mentor Walter Smith as manager back in 2011 he had just, as assistant manager, helped them complete a third successive SPL triumph.

But the major financial problems that had been hanging over the 54-times Scottish champions were set to come to a head. And, boy, did they do just that during Craig Whyte's catastrophic reign as club owner.

The prospect of being hit by a multi-million tax bill by HMRC for the use of EBTs to pay players and other club staff was a deeply worrying one.

It was, in fact, difficult to see how the Glasgow giants could survive if they lost what became known as "The Big Tax Case" given the amount they would have to shell out.

Yet, it was Whyte's non-payment of over £14million in NIC, PAYE and VAT that ultimately ensured Rangers went into administration and then liquidation.

McCoist stood by Rangers throughout that traumatic ordeal and worked for nothing during the darkest days when the very existence of Rangers was in doubt.

And when his close friend and colleague Sandy Jardine became ill, he became the unofficial figurehead of the stricken club. His phrase "we don't do walking away", a throwaway remark given to waiting reporters as he arrived for training at Murray Park one morning, was latched on to by supporters.

When Rangers found themselves demoted to the Third Division - the bottom tier of Scottish football - the majority of first-team players did "walk away". Allan McGregor, Steven Naismith, Steven Whittaker and many others departed for nothing.

But McCoist stayed where he was - even though only six players reported for the first day of pre-season training - and set about the arduous task of taking Rangers up the leagues.

He cobbled together a side full of kids and journeymen professionals and, despite some agonising draws and defeats along the way, completed the first stage of what became dubbed "The Journey".

A man who won the Golden Shoe twice in his playing career, embraced the whole process. He signed autographs and posed for photographs with fans of rival clubs at away grounds from Annan to Elgin.

The lifting of the 12-month signing ban that had been imposed by the SFA for non-payment of taxes allowed McCoist to strengthen his squad with new signings - albeit free transfers - last summer.

With Cammy Bell, Nicky Clark, Jon Daly, Nicky Law and others arriving, Rangers won SPFL League One without losing a single game - the first time they had achieved that feat in 115 years.

The fact that McCoist had "the second highest wage bill in Scottish football to work with" is often thrown in his face whenever Rangers fail to progress in a cup or beat lesser opposition.

But how many members of his current squad are considered what supporters would consider genuine "Rangers class"? Lee McCulloch, Lewis Macleod and Lee Wallace are possibly the only three.

Another accusation that has often been levelled at the 52-year-old is that he is too conservative, too reliant on tried-and-tested professionals and fails to give promising young players a chance.

But he plucked Macleod from the obscurity of the youth set-up at Auchenhowie and gave him his first-team debut back in 2012. Last month the midfielder was selected for the Scotland squad.

McCoist has worked with an array of chief executives and chairman during his time as manager from Whyte to Charles Green to Craig Mather to Graham Wallace - and was castigated for publicly backing each of them.

He was, too, for accepting the annual salary of £800,000 - what he had been on when he took over from Smith in 2011 - offered to him when Rangers went into the Third Division.

He accepted a 50 per cent pay cut back in January when it became clear Rangers were haemorrhaging money, facing huge financial problems once again and desperately needing to cut costs.

The mess that Rangers currently find themselves in is due to those who have handled money matters ... not the man who has overseen the fortunes of the football team on the park.