Incentives At All Levels

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Thursday, 17 April 2014 15:00

Incentives At All Levels

Written by Andrew Dickson

 

 

CALUM GALLAGHER admits Rangers’ coaches have tough decisions to make on when to use under-20 players in the first team because of the prizes still on offer at youth level.

 

Manager Ally McCoist is keen to utilise as many youngsters as possible in the final few matches of League One.

 

But he has a difficult balancing act to perform because Gordon Durie’s second string is still chasing a league and SFA Youth Cup double.

 

Gers will play Hearts in the final of the knockout competition and results this week in the SPFL Under-20 League have sparked new life into their challenge on that front.

 

As much as it is important for the club’s emerging talents to get senior experience, it’s vital they learn to be successful and there’s a chance for them to do that too in the coming weeks.

 

Gallagher knows there are incentives at both levels for him and his team-mates and is unsure of who will play where.

 

He said: “A few of the boys are in contention for the first team but it’s going to be a difficult decision for the backroom staff dealing with that and the youth side.

 

“They’ll need to figure out where we are all going to be involved and in what matches. They need to work out what is most important.

 

“The boys are looking to break into the first team but we’re still chasing the league and the SFA Youth Cup as well.

 

“At the same time, we’ve got a deep squad and I’m sure any number of boys could come off the bench and take a jersey in place of someone who might go into the first team.

 

“All of that is something which is out of our hands though and we’ll just need to concentrate on our football.”

 

Gallagher, meanwhile, has set his sights on becoming the top scorer in the under-20 team after drawing level with Danny Stoney’s tally yesterday.

 

His hat-trick against Partick Thistle took him to 10 for the season at that level while fellow scorer Dylan Dykes is just one behind on nine.

 

Gallagher added: “We hadn’t really spoken about it but I suppose now that the games are counting down it becomes a bit more of a contest.

 

“I’ll maybe have to exert a bit of senior authority and pull Dykesy off the penalties for a while!

 

“When you’re scoring for the team, it doesn’t matter who is putting them away when it’s as tight as it is in this league.

 

“That said, I wouldn’t mind being the one who finishes as top scorer so hopefully it goes my way.”

 

http://www.rangers.co.uk/news/academy-news/item/6794-incentives-at-all-levels