I was set to quit until I scored in the cup final; COISTY'S NEW LEASE OF LIFE.

Ally McCoist was on the brink of turning his back on the game he loves so much following his devastating failure to make the World Cup squad.

But 45 minutes in the Scottish Cup Final have convinced the most irrepressible striker in our game that he is not yet ready to be a full-time media personality.

Not when there are still goals to be scored.

And McCoist's stunning strike against Hearts, while proving to be academic in terms of the final result, has convinced the 35-year-old that time might be catching up on him but it is yet to slide tackle him into retirement.

The pain of Saturday's defeat - in his last game for Rangers - on top of the news that he would not be playing in France 98 made last week one of the most miserable in McCoist's memory.

But his second half substitute appearance has rekindled his desire to keep at arm's length makers of quiz programmes and chat shows for a little while longer.

He admitted: "I now know I have got to keep playing - I say to myself, if you can score in a cup final, why chuck it?

"Before the game, I had various offers including a lot of media work. I was considering them, but not after Saturday.

"It was gut-wrenching to lose but I still get a huge buzz out of the whole business.

"How can I give that up. As long as I can contribute - and I think I did that on Saturday - then I have to keep going for as long as possible. I owe it to myself."

McCoist revealed that he will almost certainly ignore the lure of one final massive pay-day abroad and concentrate on finding a club in Britain.

There have been suggestions that incoming Rangers coach Dick Advocaat is considering keeping the talismanic striker at Ibrox for another year but McCoist insists that he knows nothing about that.

However, he didn't exactly say that he wouldn't take the chance to stay on if the offer was made.

He added: "I have had offers to go abroad and they are very lucrative. But I'd much rather stay in Britain with my family and business commitments.

"Rangers have been a huge part of my life for so many years now and will always be a huge part of me. Obviously a new man is coming in with new ideas but let's wait and see.

"The bottom line is that the far from the cup final defeat knocking the enthusiasm out of me, it's actually lifted my determination to keep playing.

"Losing the match hurt like hell but at least I proved to myself I can still perform at the highest level."

The man who dealt such a savage blow to McCoist last week - Craig Brown - believes that the player MUST keep going for as long as possible.

He said: "I spoke to Ally on Sunday night and told him he'd sclaffed one, mishit one and scored one in the cup final.

"His reply was typical: `That's 374 I've mishit, then."

"Yes, I think he should continue playing. He might have to play at a slightly lower level but if he still enjoys it, he has to keep going.

"People who give up early will always tell you that they've lived to regret it.

"Ally's other interests will still be there waiting for him in another year if he decides then to stop playing.

"People like him will never lose his reputation. He's already a legend."

While McCoist ponders his future, retiring Ibrox manager Walter Smith knows he will struggle to come to terms with the fact that he is no longer the Rangers boss.

He admitted: "It will be hard for me. In fact, I haven't really come to terms with it. "

Smith went back to school yesterday when he joined a batch of other Scottish coaches at Inverclyde in Largs to gain a top level coaching certificate.

Next week, details of his new role at Ibrox will finally be revealed by chairman David Murray - and after that he'll head to the World Cup as part of Craig Brown's network of football spies.

Meanwhile, Dutch international defender Arthur Numan will travel to Scotland today sporting a black eye after being attacked by a disgruntled fan.

New Rangers signing Numan also suffered a head wound in the attack outside PSV Eindhoven's ground following the club's 5-0 defeat by Ajax Amsterdam in the Dutch Cup final on Sunday.

Numan, who was not seriously injured, was said to be considering pressing charges.

After his trip he'll join the Dutch World Cup squad for a training camp in Switzerland.

Taken from the Daily Record