The Robby McCrorie Rangers conundrum as time has come for an Ibrox boss to show some trust

Nineteen months have passed since Steven Gerrard waxed lyrical about Robby McCrorie after the keeper was thrown in at the deep end and delivered two massive clean sheets.

The then Rangers boss said: "Robby's always been in my thoughts. We've always had a plan for him. We think he's got the potential to one day be a Rangers number one.” Since then? Rangers have had three more managers than their talented goalkeeper has had first team appearances.

McCrorie’s situation is a conundrum that just keeps getting kicked down the line by a succession of bosses and it’s doing nobody any good. The goalkeeper will turn 25 next week. Yet the talented shotstopper who was - and still is - regarded as a future Scotland number one by goalkeeping experts at club and national level hasn’t played a first team match since August 2021. Considering he delivered two performances and clean sheets which would have skooshed the Daz doorstep challenge it seems difficult to think what more McCrorie could have done to announce his arrival as a Gers keeper.

Those back-to-back games for Rangers in late August 2021 came in a pressure furness 0-0 draw away to Alashkert which clinched a Europa League group stage spot followed three days later by a 1-0 victory in the cauldron of an Ibrox Old Firm.

That’s when Gerrard hailed the youngster adding: “Robby and his people know our plan.”

But since then? Nothing. Did that plan gone out the door along with Gerrard a few months later? It's not as if he was lacking in top tier experience by that point having had two separate loan stints with Livingston.

Last year Gerrard's successor Gio van Bronckhorst handed McCrorie a new deal until 2025 - when he’ll be 27 - and said: “Robby is continuing to develop as a