RANGERS
HELLO BHOYS, WE’RE BACK!
It’s taken a decade for Rangers to regain supremacy in Scotland, after demotion to the fourth tier and a long, punishing path back. But with Stevie G in charge, the Gers are on top – ruining Celtic’s dreams of 10 in a row
Words Chris Flanagan
At 5pm one Saturday in late March 2013, the Smiddy Haugh Hotel’s bar was virtually deserted. Not much happens in Aberuthven, a tiny village on the A9 between Perth and Stirling, but that was about to change.
Unexpectedly, the doors burst open and in came Ally McCoist, accompanied by a boisterous Rangers squad. “There were two a two punters at the bar, and they shouted to the owner to remind him of the rules about no football colours,” recalled McCoist with a smile. “There were 20 Rangers players, standing there in their tracksuits.”
That lunchtime, Rangers had drawn 0-0 at Montrose. In normal circumstances, there would have been no jumping for joy following a result like that. These were far from normal circumstances, however: the Gers were in the fourth tier of Scottish football, and they had just made the first step on their long journey back to the top.
When Queen’s Park slipped up at home to Elgin that afternoon, promotion was sealed and McCoist stopped the coach trip back to Glasgow, ushering the players inside for half an hour of celebratory drinks.
That moment of happiness had been long overdue, after the most turbulent year the club had ever known. First administration, then liquidation, then demotion to Scotland’s bottom tier – all in the space of a few chaotic months in 2012. It has taken nine years to recover from those devastating events – nine years made all the tougher by Celtic racking up nine consecutive league titles.
But finally, their misery is over. Under the management of ex-Liverpool and England captain Steven Gerrard, Rangers have surged to the Scottish Premiership title this season, and will raise the league trophy for the first time since 2011. The success marks the end of the most remarkable period in the famous club’s history – a period they are more than happy to leave behind...
UNHAPPY VALENTINE’S DAY
Craig Whyte’s reign as Rangers owner could not have got off to a better start. Nine days in charge, one league title.
On the final day of the 2010-11 campaign, just over a week after Whyte’s takeover, the Gers triumphed 5-1 at Kilmarnock to become Scottish champions for the third season in succession. It was a world record 54th league title for the Ibrox giants. No one imagined it would be their last for 10 years.
“Not at all, because we were dominating,” says Lee McCulloch, who had joined the club in 2007. In his first campaign, McCulloch had been part of a squad that reached the UEFA Cup final – Rangers’ first European showpiece since 1972. “It was an unbelievable journey,” he remembers. “Zenit were too good for us in the final, but I think 220,000 Rangers fans took over Manchester. My family aren’t lavish, but they got a limo down to make it special. The M74 and M6 were a sea of blue scarves hanging out of cars.”
Whyte: in for a pound but out of his depth
“CLUBS BIT THEIR NOSE OFF TO SPITE THEIR FACE – SENDING RANGERS DOWN HURT THEIR OWN FINANCES”
It was one of many iconic moments during the 23-year tenure of owner David Murray – a spell that delivered 15 league titles and 35 major trophies in total. The final years of his reign had been characterised by cost-cutting, though, and Rangers were known to be more than £30 million in debt.
“The signs were there,” former striker Kenny Miller tells FourFourTwo. “I rejoined Rangers for my second spell in 2008. We brought in Steven Davis, Pedro Mendes and Kyle Lafferty, but I don’t think we really made a permanent signing after that until Nikica Jelavic in 2010. You could sense things were going on, but I’d never have imagined the extremes it got to, when the s**t hit the fan.”
Surprised by a lack of agreement over his contract extension, Miller was sold to Turkish outfit Bursaspor halfway through Rangers’ final title-winning season. Murray had been looking to offload the club for some time, and probes were already ongoing into Rangers’ tax affairs when Whyte bought the club for just £1 in May 2011. “I think it will bring back a level of stability to Rangers,” commented manager Walter Smith.
The reality turned out to be the opposite, however. The first nine days went well, but it was all downhill from there. Smith departed the dugout that summer as part of a prior arrangement to let McCoist, his loyal deputy, take charge. The Gers’ transfer business was underwhelming, with some voicing concerns about the level of funding Whyte could offer the club. Rangers lost 2-1 on aggregate to Malmo in Champions League qualifying, then 3-2 on aggregate to Maribor in attempting to reach the Europa League.