Macleod Performance Pleases McCoist

Photo by Jeff Holmes Rangers boss Ally McCoist insists he will not heap pressure on Lewis Macleod by needlessly over-hyping the youngster. The Scotland Under-21 cap handed Rangers their first win against top-flight opposition in two years when he fired a deflected winner past Inverness' Dean Brill to seal a 1-0 League Cup win at Ibrox. While the rest of his team were claiming handball against Greg Tansey, Macleod stayed alert to strike home the winner after his effort skipped up off Josh Meekings' out-stretched foot. His fifth goal of the season sets up a third-round trip to Falkirk next week and caps off an encouraging start to the season. But McCoist refused to overly talk up the 20-year-old - who missed the second half of last term with a viral problem affecting the muscles round his heart - as he seeks to protect his rising starlet. After watching his side make it seven wins on the bounce, the manager said: "Lewis is terrific. We asked him to contribute more goals and assists and that little bit more of a killer instinct. He's certainly given us that. "How far can he go? He's a good young player and that's probably all I'd say at the moment. In history Rangers have had great young players coming through and I hope he goes on and does as well as some of them. "It's just great to have him back. I'm not putting any pressure on him after the time he has had but it's just great to see him back and entertaining our fans. They are clearly taking him to their hearts and rightly so." McCoist's Scottish Championship contenders had looked more than comfortable against a side who had topped the Premiership until Saturday when they lost their first game of the campaign to Partick. But striker Kris Boyd - still reeling from four bad misses against Raith on Friday - blew an early chance for the lead when he fired straight at Caley keeper Brill. Meanwhile, Bilel Mohsni's casual antics outside his own box almost cost the hosts after 57 minutes when Marley Watkins robbed the ball before seeing Billy McKay fire wide. Macleod, though, sealed the victory that will at last raise a smile amongst the embattled Light Blue faithful. They have endured another week in which their suspicious gaze has narrowed on the club's unpopular board. Worrying stories about stadium naming rights, emergency share issues and secret meetings with convicted fraudsters on the run from Interpol was too much for many to bear as 35,000 seats lay empty. But McCoist said: "I want the stadium full, of course I do. I am the manager of the team and the fuller the stadium the better. But I can understand what's going on. "I'm doing my level best not to get involved in it. I can't have a bearing but what I can have a bearing on is picking teams and getting results like we did tonight." Inverness boss John Hughes, though, felt his side deserved more. "We were well in the game," he said. "Rangers weren't any better than us, that's for sure. "They swung a lot of balls into the box but in terms of playing football and ball retention I felt we were the better team. "We came down here to take their scalp but if you look at the Rangers team it's full of SPL players who have been there and done it. "It only takes one goal to win a game and unfortunately tonight it fell for Rangers. We need to dust ourselves down and go again."