ALLY McCOIST has warned his young Rangers side not to turn the club's 140th birthday celebrations into a damp squib.

Gers host Stirling Albion at Ibrox today on the landmark occasion which will be played out in front of a host of the club's legends, including the Greatest-Ever Ranger, John Greig.

Albion are the only club to have beaten the Light Blues since their descent into the Irn-Bru Third Division when they won 1-0 at Forthbank on October 6.

Now Coisty has had a word with his kids and made them aware of their responsibilities – and the chance to show the assembled Ibrox legends the future is bright for Gers.

The Rangers manager said: "I know what today means and I am really looking forward to the occasion, but the one thing we can't do is to take our eye off the ball.

"We have a job to do and it must be business as usual. We have an opportunity to contribute something to add to the occasion through our performance.

"We just can't allow a sub-standard performance to turn things into a damp squib.

"It is fantastic we will have so many legends back at Ibrox for this game and we must use that to show them the future of the club is bright.

"The players have been made aware they have a responsibility to produce their best, and especially for the younger lads what a great opportunity this is to show some of the biggest names in this club's history Rangers are in safe hands."

But the return of Ibrox icon Greig, who signed McCoist from St Johnstone in 1981, clearly means the world to McCoist. The Gers gaffer said: "Greigy is the Greatest-Ever Ranger and his name is synonymous with the club. He was my gaffer and it means everything to me that he is coming back for this special occasion.

"He has played a bigger part in this club's history as player, captain, manager and director, than arguably anyone else and, although he probably wouldn't see it that way, it is the truth.

"For him to be back and meeting up with his old team-mates and some of the boys who played under him will be tremendous.

"We still stay very much in touch and I have always spoken to him regularly and taken his advice. When he walked away from this club I knew there was something well wrong and it is just fantastic he is coming back today."

Recalling the defeat at Forthbank, McCoist admitted it had represented the lowest point in his tenure as Ibrox boss, but stopped short of thirsting for revenge.

He said: "I don't like to use the word revenge, but we were very poor that day and, along with the Berwick game, it was as low as I have felt as Rangers manager.

"Even though they played well and we didn't, we still created so many chances, but I felt then that things would turn for us and they have.

"It has just taken time for the players to get to know each other and, as that has happened, our football and our results have improved.

"Today will be about putting on the type of performance that will underline how far we have come since our last game with Stirling.

"We may have a long and bumpy road to go to get back to where we need to be, but we are making good progress."