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I lived just north of Belfast for a few years during the 1990s. I was there during the 'end' of the troubles and for the Good Friday Agreement, indeed I voted in favour of it. There were 322 people killed during the 1990s alone, 854 during the 80s and over 2,000 in the 1970s. Everyone in Northern Ireland was affected, directly or indirectly. As a Glaswegian I arrogantly thought I had a grasp of the place before I went, I didn't. Like so much in life Northern Ireland is far more nuanced and complicated than some like to portray it. The Good Friday (or Belfast) Agreement was a compromise. It was very difficult for some people to accept it, I knew people who couldn't. I understood why too. For me it came down to stopping the killing. Those numbers of dead above, that would have continued. There are people today alive who otherwise wouldn't be. It's that simple. No one got what they wanted. Republicans had to admit they weren't getting a 'united Ireland' through violence, the only way that was going to happen was through democratic means and that might take generations, if ever. Unionists had to accept that a 'united Ireland' was a legitimate aim as long as it was achieved through the ballot box. Everyone had to accept murderers, sociopaths, gangsters and monsters were not only going to get away with their crimes, but be allowed into civil society, take up important roles of state and have their past whitewashed. Northern Ireland is a better place to live in today than it was when I moved there. It's certainly not perfect, far from it, but police officers can now tell their neighbours what they do for a living, teenagers can work anywhere in the city without the genuine fear they could be abducted and murdered on their way home. That's progress, believe it or not. The price of this is accepting people who were responsible for a lot of the violence, anger and murder now have important roles, make decisions, and walk like statesmen and women. It's a bitter, bitter pill, but surely better than the alternative. I think so, at least.

Last night saw Dessers play his 100th game for Rangers and score his 45th goal and he's not been here for 2 full seasons. Shows a few things; 1. He is always available. 2. He scores goals both domestically and in Europe. 3. He never, ever hides despite the despicable treatment he received fron our own fans. 4. We'd be far worse without him. 5. He's the best striker we have at the club. 6. Far more pressing issues with the team / squad than "replacing" him.

During the Battle of Aisne, on the Western Front of WW1, two men were given the unenviable task of capturing an enemy machine gun post. It was a suicide mission, nevertheless the soldiers followed their orders and attacked. One of the men was Private George Wilson of the Highland Light Infantry, the other man’s name hasn’t been recorded for posterity. Private Wilson received the Victoria Cross for most conspicuous gallantry, a medal you can still see today as it’s displayed in the HLI museum in Sauchiehall Street. Wilson survived the mission and the war. His comrade that day was killed before the enemy machine gun post was secured. Writing about the nature of fate and luck Sergeant Thomas Painting, who was present at the battle, retold the story “Private Wilson from the HLI and one our men attacked a machine gun. Our man got killed but Wilson captured the position. Wilson got the Victoria Cross and our man got a wooden cross, that’s the difference.” Luck, fate or whatever you want to call it is that most elusive and valuable of commodities in football too. Sure, you make your own luck. 30 years from now history will record that Cyriel Dessers scored an injury time winner in a classic 4-3 victory. It’s unlikely anyone then will care that he had 10 or so good chances to score before that. He scored the winner, that’s the only stat that counts. Lucky Cyriel. Lucky Rangers to have him. Unlucky Dundee to keep allowing him to get chances. Luck has been on my mind watching Rangers this year. Had James Tavernier not missed a stoppage time penalty against Queens Park we’d probably have gone on and won that cup tie. Lucky Rangers would have been the gist of the headlines. Clement would have hung on for at least another few weeks, almost certainly until the Fenerbace tie. Luck had something else in mind, no VCs for Phillipe. Barry Ferguson might just be a lucky manager. Certainly he’s incredibly lucky to actually be the Rangers manager. He’s not nearly qualified for the job, indeed I’d argue he would have been lucky to ever get another senior managerial job following his stints at Kelty and Clyde. Yet now he’s managing the biggest club in the country. Not only was Ferguson out of work and available, but so were Allan McGregor, Neil McCann and Billy Dodds, who along with Issame Charai have been unable to fix our defensive frailties but have found a bit of steel from somewhere. A lucky find. Incredibly, Ferguson’s Rangers have yet to win a match at Ibrox. The Fenerbace game was actually a horrible performance, lacking in everything we’ve come to expect from Rangers in the Europa League. Yet we’ve all forgotten about that because Jack Butland chose that moment to re-find the form that made him an England international once upon a time. A 2-0 defeat that felt like a win. We left Ibrox relieved and ecstatic, almost forgetting we’d carried a lot of luck that evening. Our support returned to Parkhead and watched Rangers deservedly go in ahead at the break, before succumbing to Celtic’s Japanese footballers once again. We know how this story normally ends, yet this time it didn’t. Celtic’s defenders decided defending wasn’t for them, Igamane got the break of the ball and delivered a finish so beautiful that should also be displayed in a museum in Glasgow for everyone to admire. Ferguson’s Rangers seem to have all the same weaknesses as Clement’s, yet somehow they feel different. I think, and I say this quietly so as not to break the spell, but I think we’re carrying some luck for what feels like the first time in years. The Dundee disallowed goal, their point blank miss in the second half, oh we’re definitely carrying some luck. It’s about time frankly. Napoleon was once criticised for winning battles through luck. He replied that he’d ‘rather have lucky generals than good ones, lucky ones win battles’. Is Barry Ferguson a lucky general? I hope so. Unlike 8,500,000 others Private Wilson VC survived the First World War and returned to Scotland to resume his life. However, Wilson was taken by TB in 1926 without reaching his 40th birthday. Everyone runs out of luck, eventually.

For the first 40 or so years of our existence Rangers were no more Protestant a club than Partick Thistle or Falkirk or Arbroath were. The later arrival of that Protestant identity was down to a number of factors. Rangers rise from being simply another football club to being recognised as one the most attractive to watch and the success that brought. Queen's Park's decision to remain amateur and not embrace professionalism. Queen's Park were one of the most famous clubs in the country, hugely influential and successful in football's formative years. By the turn on the 20th century they were already struggling to attract the calibre of player they were used to and losing support. Partick Thistle moving from Partick to Maryhill. Glasgow was a city of 'incomers' in the early 20th century. Family allegiances to clubs didn't yet exist in the way we see them today. Men, and it was almost exclusively men, would finish work on Saturday and many would go and watch a game close to them. Maryhill was a lot harder to get to from Partick and the west of the city, Govan had great transport links and an attractive and successful football team. So thousands of men went to watch Rangers and a habit was formed. Rangers started to attract supporters from all across the city. Not being Celtic. Celtic were successful almost from the day they first played. They had lots of money and were clearly looking to attract the Irish Catholic population of the city, something they did successfully. Many of those not from that background didn't see Celtic as the club for them. Irish home rule became increasingly divisive politically and increased a feeling of 'them and us' in cities with big Irish populations, like Glasgow. Protestant immigration from the north of Ireland. Around a quarter of all the Irish who came to Scotland were Protestant. Many brought with them their culture, for some that included Orange institutions, with numbers swelling during the late 19th and early 20th century. So Rangers changed as it's support changed. We became the 'Protestant' club and the unionist club. We didn't set out that way, it was simply that the city changed around us. The city is changing again, those of us who live in Glasgow can't help but notice. At the same time our players are changing too. My formative years watching Rangers the entire starting 11 were Scots. Robert Pryrz and John McClelland were seen as exotic. My son's heroes are Columbian, Moroccan, Nigerian and Cameroonian. Whether some like it or not our support is changing too. I know supporters who have no religion, indeed strongly dislike organised religion. I know supporters who are strong Scottish nationalists. Supporters who are Marxists. I know practicing Roman Catholics who support Rangers, Jews, Hindus, Sikhs and or course Muslims. Many of these people have no attachment to loyalism, Orangism, even Unionism. But I've yet to hear one of them say they want to see Red Hands and Union flags banned from Ibrox, or loyalist songs banned. If your culture is so threatened by our club welcoming a small number of its supporters to enjoy a cultural and religious ceremony then maybe it's got bigger problems.

Muscat and Rose sound like names from the wine menu

Good luck for the game I will drink a few of Der Berliner's beers tonight, and bought some ear-plugs too, just to be in the safe side.

STAUNCH! Well, it has been just over a month since doleful Phil departed the Stadium and the interim management team of Barry, Neil, Billy and, Allan were appointed. There has been six games, four league fixtures against Killie(a), Motherwell(h), Sellik(a) and Dundee(a). A last sixteen Euro tie against Fenerbache was squeezed in between. There has also been a week long international break; thus, an unforgivingly hectic schedule. Time for rumination has been utilised for the higher priority of grabbing breaths. Inhalation over PQ way is more difficult, the collective airways are constantly blocked by bubbling hilarity. Over these last few years, I have provided dozens of examples of why BBC Scotland should be considered a Sellik state of mind. Where the ACSOM podcast leads, Pacific Quay is sure to follow. The kd lang tribute act and ACSOM main presenter, Paul John Dykes told his viewers, "Barry Ferguson does not have a brain, his team is all about spirit, spit and sawdust". An on screen contributor chipped in with, "Barry is being helped by a couple of BBC Scotland's staunchest pundits". STAUNCH became the defining word. Right across their football content, there was a compulsion at PQ to describe the appointments as STAUNCH. We are talking Sportsound, Sportscene, Off the Ball, A View from the Terrace, .............., etc. Wullie Miller, Chris McLaughlin, Tom English, Stephen Thomson, Stephen McGinn, the diversity twins RAB and Tam, Craig Telfer, Craig Fowler, ......... etc all uttered the word. Some mixed in the unappetising relish of jokes that implied 'thick with it too'. To reinforce the message, the mental imagery was related, the brown brogues on the marble staircase and Barry driving through the Auchenhowie gates in an orange Ford Ranger. It was a STAUNCH sniggerfest. We are all products of our conditioning and fifty-sixty years past in both Primary and Secondary school playgrounds, we told Pat and Mick jokes. You know Pat and Mick decide to take up fishing but quickly realise the cost of clothing and equipment could be prohibitive. Thus, Pat tells Mick to hold him over the bridge by his ankles. When he has his hands on a fish he will shout 'haul' and Mick pulls him up. After an hour, Pat hollers 'haul'. Mick asks, you've caught a fish to which Pat replies, 'naw, there's a train coming'. During senior school and University, we were told these jokes were unacceptable. The Irish are an erudite people, relating jokes confirming a lack of education was a device allowing easy and lazy hatred. RAB Cosgrove has an easy and lazy get out when he feels discomfort, he refers to, "cheeky football rivalry". Can he fit in the following jokes told on BBC Scotland in the last month to that three word phrase? Barry enters a restaurant with EBT Team and is presented with a menu. He tells the waiter, 'we will have the Pageone'. The waiter informs him that he is reading Page One of the menu. Barry approaches the counter and orders, 'a fish supper and a can of coke'. Lady behind the counter replies, 'Ah think you've got the wrong place, this is a Library'. Barry thinks and leans in to whisper, 'a fish supper and a can of coke'. Barry appeared on Countdown alongside Ian Ferguson and it was the only time the show concluded in a nil-nil draw. Barry has to be portrayed as both staunch and thick because it makes him easier to hate. The facts are unhelpful, he married his RC childhood sweetheart, their children were baptised in that faith and, initially their children attended denominational schools. The Establishment broadcaster ignores the facts and continues to pump out the staunch and thick line because they want to be seen as strict adherents to the narrative demanded by the Establishment club. Now, that is staunch.

Why not? Nothing bad has ever come out of Austria.

Must get my name on the season ticket waiting list so I can demand to be taken off it if SG gets the job.

Someone was on the glue when they bought him and then on the skag last summer when they didn't sell him.

Has to be this currently on sale item . Yup, it's a Jack Butland draught excluder , and yes, you guessed it...it doesn't keep the draughts out either.

The fact this isn't actually a story aside if an elected MP on a charity bike ride requests to stop at Ibrox to help raise publicity for it are Rangers expected to say 'no', we don't like the party you're in? I'm fully aware of who and what Maskey is, stands for and excuses, and I doubt there's many votes in a visit to Ibrox for him. Parts of the Shankhill and the Village are in his constituency, so while he literally doesn't represent most of those people he is their MP too. To criticise the club and the board for for allowing them to visit is unfair. Raising £25k for MND research isn't to be ignored either.

Given the circumstances, that is a really good result tonight. Everything that could go wrong decision wise did and add in two serious injuries to Rice and Sterling, then we bad luck doesn't begin to cover it. Yes, we didn't play well per se but we're still in the tie. Job done.

Correct. celtic opposed an extension of the season because they claimed to have arranged a tour of Japan early in the close season. “Sporting integrity” they called it. There was no such tour. That’s celtic integrity.

I don't think it matters whether fans agree or disagree with the banner. Either way, it was still extremely stupid to have at it a UEFA game.

A snippet of an Athletic article from February: A director of football does far more than just manage transfers, even if some fans still mistake them for heads of recruitment. Thelwell oversees the medical and sports science departments, the academy and women’s teams and data/analytics. Three years in, his fingerprints are evident across all of them. Jack Nayler, formerly of Chelsea and Real Madrid, was appointed head of sports science in September 2022. Gareth Prosser, Thelwell’s former colleague at Wolverhampton Wanderers, became academy director and Carl Darlington, previously of the Welsh FA, joined as head of coaching. Former player James Vaughan initially returned in the new role of loan pathways manager and now also heads up academy recruitment. There have been promotions for the highly-rated Dan Purdy, now head of recruitment, Charlie Reeves (head of insights) and Matty Hawkes (head of first-team analysis). Data has been moved to the start of the recruitment process, while Reeves produces game reports to be presented to managers and coaching staff. Under Thelwell and Vaughan, Everton’s loan strategy has been revamped, with the focus shifting from winning youth matches to player development. Loans are used for different purposes — to give players the necessary exposure to secure a deal elsewhere and help Everton recoup some money, or to help a potential future first-team player like Harrison Armstrong, who moved to Derby County last week, take the final leap into the senior set-up. Deals contain penalty clauses if a certain threshold of games is not reached. Everton sold Tom Cannon and Ellis Simms for a combined £15m in the summer of 2023 after successful loans in the Championship. Also factoring in the departures of Ishe Samuels-Smith to Chelsea and Gordon to Newcastle, they have made around £70m from academy graduates in Thelwell’s time at the club. They would not have wanted to lose all of those players, but PSR and the financial situation dictated that they had to make difficult decisions. After consultation with staff across all levels, Thelwell, Prosser and Darlington have produced a ‘game model’ to be implemented by every Everton side, with the aim of improving the pathway to the first team. There is a feeling strides have been taken, but an acceptance stocks will need to be replenished at academy level too if Everton are to compete again. It is a familiar picture across the board. https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/6134154/2025/02/14/kevin-thelwell-everton-future-transfers/

An xG rolling chart? Woke nonsense. Mine is better...

Similar to Buster, between 1978 and 1990 I completed six tours of the Province; two six month affairs, the rest were 3-4 emergency stints. Sinn Fein/IRA came to the table and signed the Good Friday peace deal because they had ran out of road, they had no room to manoeuvre. The Int' chaps, the crystal gazers always spouted the IRA needed at least 2,0000 operatives to stay relevant and effective. We are talking balaclavas on the trigger, bomb makers and layers, recce' groupings, safe house holders, watchers, sympathetic farmers, Doctors, medical professionals, drivers, journos, quartermasters, artificers, .......................... etc. By 1990, the IRA had over 1,500 folks in GB, Northern Ireland, Republic of Ireland, Euro, North, Central and, South American jails. There were a few dozen more banged up in the tin pails of Australia, South Africa, Canada and, New Zealand. A few spectaculars, the Barrington sniper rifle campaign and, the desperate proxy bombings were the last gasps. Danny Morrison, the broth of a bhoy that came up with, "who in this room would disagree if the Provos took control on the island of Ireland with an Armalite in one hand and the ballot box ion the other" was in the jail for conducting a pistol whipping a catholic pensioner in a Sinn Fein office, who refused the use of his house as the base for an ambush. The IRA were defeated by professionalism. The civil authority in the UK lost the peace because Blair washed his hands after signing the peace deal. Paul Maskey at Ibrox and a former member of my Regiment facing charges for actions on the day of Bloody Sunday are evidence of that fact.

If I was him, and I actually won the Europa League as interim manager, I would refuse the permanent post. Wouldn't get any better for him after that.

Would it be bitter, twisted, and downright cynical to suggest that this change comes in when Pederasts FC has to play a qualifier in CL for the first time in a few years ??

UEFA didn't say it was racist specifically, but a club either abides by the rules and their rulings or they don't take part in their competitions. It was clearly discriminatory, if your own interpretation of the banner is correct. If people want to do fight against UEFA then go ahead, but it'll fail, and fans shouldn't be selfish to use the club for their own individual ideologies when it's clearly going to result in punishment and threaten the attendances of other fans at future games. I don't see the relevance. Just because something isn't criminal doesn't mean it's acceptable to UEFA. We, as a club, aren't going to win any fights against UEFA. We're not from a big league and don't have any influence.

The guy with the sellik tap is Marc O'Rose. Marathe, Steinsson, and sundry others were at Elland Road, last night. Interestingly, so was Daniel Farke. Just, em, sayin', like.

My Samsung phone can pick out Neil Armstrong's footprint on the moon, but a photo showing unusual events at Ibrox from across the road is blurry...

I can talk about Holland. Their game is a community thing. Grandads are playing walking football, The sons are playing senior football and the grandkids are in the youth set up. Depending on the area, every age group has multiple teams. They have perfect grass pitches to play on. They get their money through contribution of all the players paying a monthly subscription and also most clubs have a canteen where beer and wine is allowed to be served. That brings in a fortune. I have said on here and on other websites, that it is a scandal that a team like Renfrew Juniors don't have a club/system that everyone in Renfrew can play football. If they had senior and youth teams, even indoor football all paying contributions then look at what money they could have

Took a wee trip to see the Sons yesterday, couple of things stood out. 1. Webster our loanee looked a useful player. Son of Andy😳 2. Game was held up in second half due to fire alarm. All fans on the pitch for 10 minutes or so, no fire brigade in attendance. Surely all football grounds fire systems are connected to fire service? 3. Not one person left the ground before full time! Lesson there for some of our fans.

We know what's going to happen. If the team is competing for the league, winning games we're expected to win and giving Celtic a challenge then the majority of fans will be happy. If we're 10 points behind them by November, our new players haven't bedded in and we've just dropped points at home to Falkirk then the pitch forks will be out. It'll be the manager who gets it first, but eventually Thelwell will come under fire and finally the board if nothing changes. Sacking a manager every autumn keeps the fans from outright revolt. A decent percentage of fans couldn't care less who owns the club and who runs the club, if we're winning the league. Look at the SDM years if you think I'm exaggerating. If we're finishing the league as Champions then our new owners could strip the oak panelling from the Main Stand and sell it for fire wood and many in our support would turn up and help them shift it. We're being sold to total strangers, people with no connection or affection for our club, people who's motives we can only guess at, and I'd say the majority of our support are welcoming them with open arms and a decent number are actively cheerleading them. There's little sense of nervousness, no worry or concern from an awful lot of people. Those who do have concerns are told they're happy settling for second and have no ambition. Like most of us I saw our club teeter on the very edge of oblivion not that long ago. It amazes me how many of our support are happy to gamble it all again. It was interesting learning about Athletic Bilbao again recently. A club with an identity, with a purpose, who know exactly who they are.

Once again we're getting entrenched in a binary argument, when both are valid, IMO. On the one hand, it's certainly true that we are an impatient lot, that are generally unwilling to go through the necessary rebuilding phase and get hooked on a quick fix. We are financially unsustainable. Despite knowing it was front-loaded, we overspent stopping their 10IAR and yet most were still expecting us to keep spending. On the other hand, I do think the solution can be as simple as getting the right appointments and the right structure in place. I do think a good coach solves most of it. I have been of the opinion that we've been dragged one way and the next in terms of planning and rebuilding because we've had too many voices in the boardroom - exacerbated because the fans are too impatient to see anything through unless it bares immediate fruit. I'm hoping the takeover will solve most of these issues.

Start to cut the cost of the playing squad then extract profit.

Might have been a different story if the referee had done his job in the first half and awarded a penalty & sent off the defender.

No wonder! You're always criticising them🤣🤣.

Wonder what the odds were at half time for 2-2. Are we giving Dessers the assist for Hagi's strike? He must have known the only way to get the ball to Hagi was to play it off the inside of the post. 😄

Ian Crocker sounds almost disappointed...

Clearly, there's a context to the team selection but it doesn't matter who plays our attitude and complete inability to do the very basics is a damning indictment on current and recent coaching staff. Nevertheless, many of these players really are a disgrace to the jersey.

Fans: League's gone - just play the kids. *plays the kids* Fans:

Reading we've accumulated more coefficient points this season than we did the year we got to thr final.

I'm sure I read somewhere that CD has a better goals per game or minute ratio than Morelos (that's an invite for @Rousseau to prove me wrong). 😀 All strikers miss chances, McCoist did, Hateley did, Boyd did, Kenny Miller did, but the 4 mentioned above played in "partnerships" rather than a lone striker.

Sure that's not Butland's report card xpected gaffs

What annoys me is the league was over some time ago so why not experiment different formation different tactics give the boys their chance to stake a claim

OK, I'll indulge you. Because the current set-up is boring. Playing the same teams 4 to 6 times a season is boring. I think a lot of football fans will have the same opinion. I'd also say that the current set-up doesn't encourage player development.

Bigger league and ditch the four games nonsense.

Bigger league - 16 teams, play each other twice (home and away). No split but would keep promotion / relegation play offs (Bottom 2 relegated / top 2 promoted. Play off between 3rd bottom and 3rd top). I know nobody would vote for that, but we need to change the format.

The sooner this season is over and the sooner the takeover is complete the better.

We could always put it on a banner...

I don't think it's right to dish out lifetime bans for something that wasn't actually racist or discriminatory. UEFA didn't like it, so censor and ban those fans forever? At most, a ban from European games would make more sense.

He's had his head turned by the Famous.