JAMES TAVERNIER last night told his Rangers team-mates that they will have to fight fire with fire for the rest of the season because they have become the scalp every Championship player wants.

The Ibrox club’s manager Mark Warburton called for greater protection for his side from Scotland’s referees last week after Nathan Oduwa was forced to hobble off the park at half-time during an often-brutal Petrofac Training Cup match with Livingston.

Tavernier knows Rangers have become marked men after starting the Ladbrokes Championship with 10 straight victories and believes they will have to adopt an aggressive approach themselves.

"In any team, you will always get some players that are more physical than others,” said Tavernier.

“In our team, there are some physical players too. We've had a lot of challenges during the season, but we've given out the same amount as well.

“Everyone wants to beat Rangers and put their mark on us, so we've got to be strong and keep our heads in every situation.

“We have to be aggressive back as well."

Oduwa is fit for this afternoon’s visit to St Mirren, but there are doubts over Nicky Law, who suffered a leg injury during the 1-0 victory over Livingston.

“He took a whack on Tuesday night and carried on playing,” he said. “It stiffened up overnight, so he’ll get a precautionary scan.

“We’ll soon find out.”

Warburton has also revealed that he plans to make inroads on building his squad for next season by dipping into the market in January.

“David Weir, Frank McParland (head of recruitment) and I talk for hours about the type of players we are looking for,” he said.

“We have to start building our squad for next season in January because you need to bed players in.

“If you try to get all of your recruits in June, that’s a big ask. We had to do it this year because of the situation.

“Ideally, we will get one or two in January and then look to supplement that in May, June and July.”