ROSS WILSON was not up for election and his name was not on the ballot paper. It was perhaps just as well for the man who found himself under the spotlight on the stage at the Armadillo.

The votes cast and percentages attained are always indicative of the feeling of the Rangers support and when it comes to judging the backing that the few who sit in the Directors Box have from the many that pay their money at Ibrox.

But there is no such mathematical barometer to measure the mood when it comes to Wilson. Online debate and discussion is one thing, but the feeling in the air is another and it was the sporting director that had questions to answer at the Annual General Meeting on Tuesday morning.

It is doubtful if Wilson's responses to a handful of queries will have silenced his critics or won over his doubters on the floor. At the top table, there was little to suggest he should be concerned over his position.

As is so often the case at these events, it was an opportunity missed in many ways. This was the largest gathering of shareholders for quite some time but those that ventured in from a cold, crisp Glasgow morning didn't create a red-hot atmosphere as few seats were left unfilled.

The questions that were valid were not concise enough to really hold the board to account, while others - the most bizarre of which was a Covid-themed rant that got the short-shrift and derision that it deserved - reflected the mood of the individual rather than the collective.

One was pointed in the end, though, when Stewart Robertson and the board were asked if they firmly believed that Wilson was the right man to develop the playing squad. Unsurprisingly, the short answer from Robertson was yes.

He went on to speak about the 'incredible' progress that has been made since Wilson's arrival at Ibrox and how Rangers are 'miles forward'. It was a backing that Wilson would have welcomed, but he wasn't slow in defending his position when the opportunity arose.

Figures used by the questioner relating to the likes of Juninho Bacuna and Aaron Ramsey were dismissed as wide of the mark but John Souttar's injury issues are a matter of public record and the defender was backed to be a 'strong signing' by the man who played a part in bringing him from Hearts this summer.

The line that 'Ross Wilson doesn't sign football players' stood out. It is unlikely to placate supporters, even though there must be an acceptance that - as Wilson stressed earlier in the meeting - the recruitment process involves the manager, his coaches and the scouting staff before the button is pressed on any deal.

Matters relating to transfer strategy were prominent and are even more pertinent than usual given the position that Rangers find themselves in ahead of the first competitive fixture of the Michael Beale era at home to Hibernian next week.

A presentation from finance director Kenny Barclay highlighted the investment the Ibrox board have made in the squad in recent seasons. Those figures were there in black and white, but there is no clear way of analysing the value for money factor.

"I think when you sit second in the league at Rangers you are always going to be disappointed with the return from the whole squad, rather than focusing on the seven players who came in the summer," Wilson said.

"Whether it’s me as sporting director, Michael in the seat he sits in, you are always going to be disappointed in the return we’ve got. There’s no question about that.

"However, we have a lot of belief in this squad and Michael touched on that earlier on.

"He also used a word that is really important to us – identity – and making sure we have a team on the pitch that represents our shareholders and supporters proudly on the pitch every single week.

"At this moment in time, of course we’re not happy with the return. That goes without saying.

"I noticed that you pulled some of the players that have done well out of the statistics you said.

"We definitely feel some of those players have made a fantastic return for us and others haven’t made a strong enough return yet. That goes without saying.

"It’s up to all of us inside the club, led by Michael on the pitch every day, to get the best out this squad that we possibly can. And we certainly believe there is more to come from them."

The coming weeks will determine if that is the case or not. Time will also tell just what Beale's squad will look like as Rangers prepare for the January transfer window and try to empty a treatment room that has been bursting at the seams this term.

The loss of so many first team players was a mitigating factor in the failure of Giovanni van Bronckhorst and the Dutchman can perhaps feel aggrieved that he was left with such a depleted group during his difficult last few weeks as manager.

“The injury situation has been a concern to Gio, to myself, to our medical team," Wilson said before Beale insisted that no player would be rushed back as he highlighted the issue of the squad adapting to the change from his regime under Steven Gerrard to that of Van Bronckhorst and now back to a more familiar way of working.

“It was widely predicted before this season and it was something managers up and down the Premier League were discussing at every single press conference, particularly clubs who play in Europe and with players involved in international football.

“It was predicted that before this World Cup there would be more injuries than ever before. There’s no doubt we’ve experienced that here at Rangers with a mixture of injuries that have happened during the season and long-term injuries, like Ianis Hagi’s which happened last season.

“But we are really pleased that in the last week since Michael took over that we’ve seen players return. The group is getting stronger on a daily basis with people coming back.

“But it’s important to say that we don’t take injuries lightly and are constantly evaluating our processes and structures to make sure at every area we can have the strongest possible Rangers."

The importance of player trading - both in financial and sporting senses - was again a theme that permeated the meeting and that is another area that Wilson will be critiqued on by a support that have become increasingly disgruntled in recent times.

Wilson declined the opportunity to put a value on the squad because there 'wasn't any science' behind the £100million figure that Dave King stated at the AGM two years ago. Regardless of what it is worth on paper, it is on the field where it matters most.

Whether the sporting director likes it or not, his standing with supporters will naturally rise and fall alongside the fortunes of the team. In that regard, the coming weeks and months could not be more significant for the club or one of its key figures.

Wilson will never need a Resolution to keep his place at Ibrox. His approval rating, and ultimately his fate, will be decided the old fashioned way on the pitch and in the boardroom.

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