ROSS McCausland has insisted he has been completely unaffected by the criticism which has been directed at Rangers’ players in recent weeks – because he used to one of the fans hurling the abuse himself.

And McCausland, who has started in the last two cinch Premiership games against Dundee at home and Hearts away, has stressed he is desperate to play against Celtic in the Scottish Gas Scottish Cup final at Hampden on Saturday and help the Glasgow giants finish the season on a high.

Philippe Clement’s men have been savaged in the media and by their own supporters at times in the past couple of months as Brendan Rodgers’ charges have come from behind them to claim their third successive Scottish title.  

James Tavernier and his team mates managed to win just three of their last eight league outings and finished eight points off top spot in the table as a result.

But Northern Ireland internationalist McCausland knows exactly how Rangers’ followers feel having been in their shoes himself in the past and stated that he still has confidence in his ability. 

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“I don’t really think a lot of the boys listen to it,” he said. “For me personally, it’s not something I bat an eyelid at. I know what I’m capable of, so it’s just about keeping myself on the straight and narrow.

The Herald: “With football, criticism is going to come. When I was a young fan myself, I was probably giving some of the players criticism as well. I think it’s normal. If you can’t take it in this day and age, it’s probably not for you.

“It’s only normal. Sometimes you won’t have the greatest of games. You just need to pick yourself up and go again. You try not to dwell on it. It’s all to do with your mindset and how you approach things.”

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McCausland added: “You always want to prove yourself, especially as a young player. I want to play every single game. There’s a lot of good players at this club. A lot of boys have missed out at times this season due to injuries.

“That’s probably where I’ve been able to step in at times. But even with those boys coming back, I still want to prove myself and show that I deserve to play.

“My only experience of playing at Hampden was in the League Cup final earlier this season. To be playing in that standard of game at that age was amazing. It’s probably quite mad that I’ve played in that stature of game at such a young age. But that was a really big period for my confidence.”