THERE was a time when the type of debut David Templeton enjoyed would have been accompanied by loud songs of praise and great expectations for future triumphs.

Having only signed up with Rangers in the final day of the transfer window from Hearts, the winger's debut couldn't have gone much better as he netted two goals, set up another and was at the heart of some of his side's most impressive attacking moves.

Considering he was scoring to put Hearts ahead against Liverpool at Anfield last midweek, such a display as Ally McCoist's side romped to an emphatic 5-1 victory over Elgin City should come as no surprise.

But therein lies the problem. How can you lavish praise on a player such as Templeton when he finds himself up against a full-back who holds down a regular job during the week while he is being put through his paces on a daily basis?

If the former Hearts man doesn't turn every defender he finds himself up against in the Scottish Third Division inside-out then something is seriously wrong.

Therefore, it is difficult to gauge just how well such players are performing now at Ibrox.

And that is why, despite McCoist's claims the standard and intensity on the Rangers training ground would match anything SPL games have got to offer, Scotland manager Craig Levein has decided to overlook the likes of Ian Black and Lee Wallace in his most recent squad.

Such measured opinions will be of no interest to the Light Blue legions.

As far as they are concerned, Rangers are now a lower league club and can only be judged on what they are up against. So if they win convincingly against Elgin City, they'll head home delighted.

And McCoist was every bit as happy as any of them with the way his final signing of the transfer window performed.

"David gave us everything we thought we would get from him," said the Rangers manager.

"He scored a couple of goals and it seems as though our supporters have already taken to him. I think he'll be a real crowd-pleaser.

"David takes the ball in tight areas, he commits people and he creates chances for his team-mates and as he showed in the match yesterday he can find the back of the net as well. So it was a very pleasing debut from him."

McCoist has, of course, gone above and beyond the call of duty this season in his attempts to remain positive regarding the situation Rangers find themselves in and it has, most definitely, rubbed off on others.

Not least the supporters. Just under 50,000 of them packed into Ibrox once again as they continue to back their team's attempts to rise from the depths of Scottish football and there are times when it appears like business as usual – only for you to remember just how far Rangers have fallen.

That isn't being negative. It is just being realistic. While some might go as far as to question the ambition of the likes of Templeton at being willing to drop down to the Third Division for the sake of an improved wage, Rangers are, quite clearly, still an attractive option.

But his debut didn't get off to the best of starts when Elgin surprised the home crowd by taking the lead through a stunning strike from defender Jamie Duff. That, as you might imagine, seemed to spring Rangers into life and it wasn't long before they got themselves back into the game.

Dean Shiels levelled the scoreline, Templeton then put his team ahead before Lee McCulloch added a third just before the break. In the second half, Templeton hit his second before McCulloch also completed a double.

McCoist said: "I thought we started okay but lost the goal. The boys were moaning about the corner and then said the ball went out, but it was a great finish from the big Elgin defender. But we came back and scored three goals before the break.

"There is a feeling among the lads that there has been a bit of negativity out there about us, but we won 5-1."

If Rangers aren't capable of securing such scorelines at home to teams such as Elgin City then there would be something far wrong.

Yes, it is a strange situation because when they drop points they will get slaughtered and when they win people will say it is expected of them.

Welcome to life in the Third Division. Next up for Rangers is Annan Athletic away. McCoist might not like it, but he knows a win for his team won't make headlines, however anything other than the three points will.