RANGERS manager Ally McCoist has predicted the race for the SPFL Championship title will go right down to the end of the season.

McCoist's side has put a shaky start to the 2014/15 campaign firmly behind them by winning five games in a row in all competitions.

And entering the international break, they are just three points behind league leaders Hearts, who beat them at Ibrox on the opening day of the league season.

Yet McCoist - whose side had to come from behind twice to defeat Queen of the South at the weekend - feels their promotion bid will be hard fought.

Speaking to the official Rangers website, he added: "I absolutely do think that it will go down to the wire.

"I have never said anything other than that and Hearts have started their season extremely well. They got a big result against Hibs in the recent Edinburgh derby.

"We were extremely disappointed to lose a 94th-minute goal to them where, again, the defending was of a standard that you saw against Queen of the South on Saturday."

Rangers also had to battle to seal a 1-0 win at Falkirk last month but McCoist added: "There is absolutely nothing that has surprised me or my staff or the players.

"Everything we are facing week in and week out is what we expected and we just have to handle it. It's a good competitive league and I have to reassure our support that there's nothing that we see that is surprising us.

"It's going to be an extremely difficult and long season for us but we expected that."