'It's been wonderful': Ally McCoist at Killie from pranks on Jim Lauchlan to acting with Robert Duvall

As the former striker celebrates his 62nd birthday, we look back on his time at Rugby Park

It’s not every day that a two-time Golden Shoe winner signs for Kilmarnock, so when Ally McCoist joined in the summer of 1998 the excitement was both palpable and understandable.

The aforementioned accolade came after he was recognised as the top goalscorer in all of Europe in both 1991-92 and 1992-93, part of a run which saw him score 355 goals in 581 appearances for Rangers and 19 in 61 for Scotland.

Put simply, signing ‘Super Ally’ was something of a big deal.

It was clear even before he put pen to paper that McCoist was past his best - he would turn 36 shortly after agreeing the deal.

There was reason to think, however, that the striker could still do a job for Bobby Williamson’s team.

In his final season for Rangers he’d managed just 15 league appearances and five goals but he’d scored 16 in 26 across all competitions, including five in the last nine matches of the season.

His final goal in a Rangers shirt came in a Scottish Cup final defeat to Hearts and was vintage McCoist, the veteran bending his run between two defenders, receiving the ball from Gennaro Gattuso and firing first time into the bottom corner.

The striker’s form led to calls for Craig Brown to include him in the Scotland squad for France ‘98, but he was ultimately left out - much to his chagrin.

McCoist admitted in 2022: “It's the worst I've ever felt in football. The worst I've felt by an absolute mile. I was in tears.”

The 35-year-old instead took on punditry duties at the World Cup, before returning to Scotland to decide on his next club.

Even in the twilight of his career he had plenty of offers - he’d scored 355 goals for Rangers, after all. Hibs boss Alex McLeish tried to tempt him to Easter Road, while Raith Rovers also put an offer on the table.

Both, though, were in Division 1 while Killie had finished fourth in the SPL in the previous campaign under McCoist’s old Rangers team-mate Williamson, who invited him in for a bounce game.

Williamson said: “He looked his usual jammy self and scored a couple of goals, so we’re hoping we can get something done - but it won’t be sorted out quickly.”

McCoist would eventually sign a one-year contract at Rugby Park.

He said: “I’ve got something to prove, that I can still score goals in the Premier League. It’s never been a problem, when I got in the team at the end of last season with Rangers my goalscoring was comparable with anybody in the league - and better than most.

“I should have been in the World Cup squad, didn’t make it, and all I’ve got to prove here is that I can still score goals.”

Perhaps it’s lucky for McCoist he didn’t stride onto the pitch at the Stade de France for the opening game of the World Cup to face Ronaldo, Rivaldo, Cafu and Roberto Carlos.

Had he done so, his Killie debut may have proved just too much of a culture shock.

McCoist made his first appearance for the reserves in a friendly game at Hurlford on a wet and windy night, the striker scoring a back post-tap-in before being substituted at half-time.

“It’s just kicking a ball about a park,” he told the BBC after the match. “It doesn’t matter if there’s 100,000 there or 100.”