Rangers’ Scottish Cup reverse at the hands of Queen’s Park looks all the more baffling now with added context provided.
That 1-0 triumph at Ibrox in February – capped by a fine second-half winner from Sebastian Drozd – came in the midst of a pretty dreadful run.
In fact, Queen’s Park’s 4-0 home defeat by Falkirk this weekend ensures that Rangers are one of only two teams the second-tier outfit have beaten since their opening fixture of 2025.
The other being Raith Rovers.
A run of two wins in 13 games. A run which, as Falkirk ran riot at Hampden Park, consigned Callum Davidson to the sack following a fourth loss in succession.
Callum Davidson sacked weeks after Queen’s Park beat Rangers
Davidson got the boot on Saturday, shortly after the full-time whistle.
And, in a roundabout sort of way, Queen’s Park have once again made life a little difficult for Rangers.
Rangers sent the out-of-favour Leon King down to their Scottish Cup conquerers recently in the hope of the young defender getting the sort of first-team minutes which have proven to be beyond him at Ibrox in recent times.
The Glasgow-born King barely featured under Philippe Clement while Barry Ferguson appeared to have little use for him either.
Presumably, Rangers were hoping that King would impress enough in order to attract potential buyers ahead of the summer transfer window. There is unlikely to be a particularly considerable group of suitors if the 21-year-old continues to play as he is right now, however.
Calum Davidson planned to use Leon King as a midfielder at Queen’s Park. While most of his senior appearances had come at centre-half, the former St Johnstone boss felt the Gers loanee had the ability to thrive higher up the pitch.
“Leon King, I brought him in probably predominantly as a midfielder for me,” Davidson explained.
“He can give us that industry. Those kind of defensive qualities you need when the pitches start to deteriorate a little bit.”
Those ‘defensive qualities’ were nowhere to be seen, however, as King lined up in midfield for the first time from the off on Saturday. He struggled badly – as did everyone else in the home XI – as Falkirk ran riot and hammered the final nail into Davidson’s Queen’s Park coffin.
King faces uncertain future at Ibrox
What a change in management means for Leon King, only time will tell.
Will Davidson’s replacement see the same midfield potential? Will he even take a liking to King at all? Or, perhaps, will he instead spark a turnaround at Hampden, with King ending the season sitting on the throne?
Not so long ago, King was playing Champions League football.
And Former Rangers forward Gordon Dalziel feels the time is coming for the youngster to make a long-term decision for his career prospects.
“It is interesting,” Dalziel says. “When he came on the scene, I thought he had a real bright future. Maybe he’s not had enough game time.
“For me, he just has to look at what he’s got to do with his future going forward. He has to play games. Games will only help him learn and get the experience he needs.”
