It was also another match where the two top summer signings failed to stand up and be counted.

I'm not one for singling players out for criticism, but Ian Black and Dean Shiels were posted missing on a night when Ally McCoist really needed them to produce the goods.

When Rangers signed both players in the summer it provided the Light Blue legions with a major shot in the arm at a time when they were in the depths of despair. Black had been Hearts' best player for a couple of seasons and Shiels was without doubt the most influential player down at Kilmarnock.

As far as I'm aware, to land the pair required a significant financial package that would top the wages on offer at every club in the country outwith Celtic.

But they aren't doing enough for me. Shiels scored a great goal at the weekend away to Clyde, but he hasn't exactly been in great form throughout the course of the season in the Third Division and it is very much the same for Black.

They are both experienced players and McCoist is perfectly within his rights to expect more from them, especially on a night when they are up against SPL opposition.

Did the 3-0 defeat against Terry Butcher's men come as a major surprise to me? No, not really.

Rangers are where they are given the level of change and the amount of players who have left the club. We are talking about 30 players having departed and nearly all the top line performers from the championship-winning teams, so it was always going to take time to rebuild.

Perhaps the victory over Motherwell in the previous round raised expectations levels higher than was reasonable, but that was definitely the high point of the season for Rangers.

When you look at the way they have struggled on the road in the Third Division and what happened against Queen of the South in the Ramsdens Cup then there were plenty of warnings that the Inverness game was going to be a tough ask.

Maybe, with what happened on Wednesday night in mind, the last thing this team needed was a semi-final clash with Celtic so it might have been beneficial to avoid the possibility of that.

It's difficult to say for sure how Rangers would get on in the SPL, but it is a question that doesn't really need to be asked. They aren't in the top flight so right now having a team good enough to win the Third Division is all that matters.

Yes, it would have been nice to have been in a position to challenge the SPL teams in the cup competitions, but that is perhaps asking a bit too much of the current team.

The biggest plus for Ally this season has been the way the supporters have turned out in great numbers to back the club and also the performance of some of the younger lads who have been promoted into the first team.

It is important the fans remember these guys are perhaps not quite ready to be playing in front of 50,000 at home matches and for them to try not to get on their backs because it certainly won't help matters.

However, the experienced guys need to understand the frustration of the supporters when they aren't performing.

Moving forward, I really hope that David Templeton will make it back for the Alloa Scottish Cup game as he is a flair player who will give Ally options in attack and really get the fans involved. I think the winger has the potential to be key for Gers.

But the other players who have come from SPL clubs, especially Black and Shiels, have to do more.

The expectation levels at Rangers are huge – even with the club operating in the Third Division – and both must deliver the goods from now on.