CENTRE-FORWARD is the position that allows Andy Little to have the greatest impact.
He does not have outstanding quality but he is a refined finisher. That attribute is enough to make him most effective in a central role, but he is also strong and smart enough to take up positions that benefit the team.
Against Queen's Park, Little won several high balls but also held off defenders and brought team-mates into play.
That kind of versatility allows him to be effective when he does not have the pace or power of a devastating striker.
Being closer to the opposition penalty area is better for Little than a role on the flank, where he tends to be marginalised but still has determination.
Little, as a more conventional centre-forward than Francisco Sandaza, is also a better foil for Dean Shiels, who can play off him more fruitfully than the Spaniard, who tends to drift into the channels and so leave the team without a focal point.
WIDE RIGHT says CHRIS JACK
ANDY LITTLE has been a man of many positions at Rangers.
But the Northern Irishman, who once started an Old Firm clash at right-back and has been utilised on the wing for much of campaign, showed where his natural berth is on Saturday.
Little is keen to stake his claim for a regular run at the head of the Gers' attack, with his overall performance and two goals the ideal way to prove his point.
He is more than capable of doing a job as the lone front man but when skipper Lee McCulloch returns from injury, he could find himself shunted wide right once again.
If manager Ally McCoist persists in playing Dean Shiels in 'the hole' then Little's best chance of a starting slot will come playing in a wider role.
It is perhaps a waste of his natural scoring talents to have the 18-goal forward hugging the touchline so often but he could be left with no option unless his gaffer has a change of heart.
