Hemmings out for five months

The 21-year-old striker moved to Rangers from Tamworth in 2008 and made five first-team appearances last season.

Hemmings has had two previous knee operations and his absence will put a further strain on manager Ally McCoist's already thread-bare squad.

But Hemmings still believes in his ability to become a first-team regular when he returns to action, possibly around the busy Christmas period.

"It's really frustrating to have had to go through another operation and it's annoying that I'm going to be out for so long again," he told rangers.co.uk

"I felt good going into pre-season but then the problem flared up in the first couple of days and the surgeon said I needed surgery again.

"It's up to me now to make sure I work hard in my rehabilitation and get back to the level of fitness I would like to be at.

"I still feel I can get there, even after all the problems I've experienced, and I'm grateful to the club for giving me such welcome support throughout my injury problems."

McCoist is already dealing with losing the majority of his most experienced players after the club's recent financial woes and subsequent re-entry into the Third Division.