ian1964

Bougherra was missed yesterday, but more for his rampaging runs forward that puts our midfielders to shame, I also think the big man will be away in the summer, along with a few others mind you

RANGERS expect Madjid Bougherra to be fit in time for Saturday's vital SPL clash with Hearts at Ibrox. The Algerian defender missed yesterday's Co-operative Insurance Cup Final as he was still feeling the effects of a calf injury. Kirk Broadfoot filled in valiantly at centre back despite having discomfort due to ligament damage in his foot. Bougherra, though, should be back for the Hearts game when Rangers will try to get the Cup Final defeat out of their system. Broadfoot was sent off for a last-man challenge on Aiden McGeady yesterday but he is eligibile for the Hearts game as the one-match suspension that follows will apply in next season's League Cup competition. Davie Weir took a couple of heavy knocks against Celtic but he is suspended for the Hearts game in any case after his red card against Inverness. Lee McCulloch will be available. He suffered from cramp yesterday and that was the reason he had to come off.

Lindsay Herron reports from Hampden WALTER SMITH insists his players can recover from losing the Co-operative Insurance Cup Final and focus on bringing the Championship back to Ibrox. The Rangers manager and his players were obviously bitterly disappointed to lose out at Hampden when a Darren O'Dea header and then a late Aiden McGeady penalty gave Celtic a 2-0 win in extra time. Sasa Papac and Andreas HinkelHowever, he believes that the squad can be galvanised in the coming week as they get ready for Hearts next Saturday and the final 10 SPL matches of the season. Smith said: "We will have to get the players back up and get ready for the run-in to the Championship. "Of course we can bounce back from this. "There was not much between the teams. That was said before the match by both myself and Gordon Strachan and that's the way it turned out. "There were not a great deal of opportunities for either set of strikers and as the game was going on it looked as though maybe a set piece could be the way that one of the sides would get a goal. "Unfortunately for us we gave it up in the first minute of extra time and it never really gave us a chance to get started in the additional period. "So therefore it is disappointing to lose in that manner. "You are always disappointed to lose a goal from a set play."Steven Davis and Aiden McGeady Chances were few in the game. Artur Boruc had to make good saves from Kyle Lafferty and Nacho Novo while Allan McGregor blocked efforts from Scott Brown and Georgios Samaras. However, O'Dea headed home Shunsuke Nakamura's free kick in the first minute of extra time and Rangers found it hard to recover. The game was effectively lost when in added time in extra time Kirk Broadfoot was sent off for a last-man challenge on McGeady who scored with the penalty. Smith added: "You can't criticise the players. I felt they worked very hard in the game. "There was maybe a bit of nervousness in the players in the early part of the game but after that they put a lot into the game and there was not a lot to show for it. "You are always disappointed to lose a final especially in a final like today's when there was so little between the teams. "If you are beaten when the other side is better then that's different but I didn't feel there was much between the two sides and that's what makes it so disappointing."

Yip, the big man is out of todays cup final, just need to win it without him

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/scot_cups/7943602.stm

By Andrew Dickson KENNY McDOWALL is relishing the chance to get one over his former employers Celtic this afternoon when Rangers meet them in the League Cup final. Although he was raised as a staunch Light Blues supporter when he was a child, the Ibrox first-team coach spent a decade working with the youths and reserves at Parkhead. Barry Ferguson and Kenny McDowallMcDowall moved directly across Glasgow to Gers in January 2007 when he was appointed as part of Walter Smith's backroom staff. Doing so allowed him to fulfil a boyhood dream and now he can't wait for today's Old Firm decider at Hampden after some uncomfortable moments across the divide. McDowall joked: "It was fairly difficult for me when I was at Celtic. My family wanted Rangers to beat them but I was looking for bonus money! "I've said before on record that I had a good time at Parkhead doing the job I was in. I enjoyed it and it set me up to do the job I'm in here. "But I'm at Rangers now and I'm loving it - it goes without saying I'm really looking to get a result against Celtic this weekend. "This is the first trophy of the season and when you're playing your enemy, it's obviously a game you want to win. "The supporters will be right up for this one and there can be no excuses when the match gets underway - we've got to get on with it and do a job." Ally McCoist and Kenny McDowallMcDowall hopes the relaxed atmosphere in Smith's squad plays a part in a good performance by Rangers today. While a lot of work has been done on the training field over the last few days, there has been plenty of bonding done off it too. McDowall added: "The fact we've had a whole week to get ready has been good - we've had knocks we've wanted to clear up and I suppose Celtic will have been the same. "We've tried to keep things quite relaxed. It has been a big week and there's always a lot of tension ahead of a cup final. "There's no escaping the hype but it has been our job to keep the players as calm as possible and hopefully we've done that."

SSN reporting Bougherra is a doubt ????

Looking forward to the display, the groups involved do a great job and deserve immense credit for all their hard work, let's hope the team put in as much effort and win the cup. Hope to see some pics posted up here

What do you mean SA ?...............are you saying you don't believe the NOTW

By Lorna Smith and Mark Howarth, 14/03/2009 A CRACK team of debt-busting bankers has been put together to claw back millions from crisis club Rangers. The Ibrox giantââ?¬â?¢s finances have suffered like all businesses in the credit crunch ââ?¬â? causing some of the loans bolstering the club to be put under the microscope. Now cash-strapped Bank of Scotland bosses have hand-picked a posse of ââ?¬Ë?asset houndsââ?¬â?¢ to examine how the club can pay back much of its debt. Experts believe the bank could demand repayments of Ã?£20MILLION over the next few years ââ?¬â? taking the Rangers debt down to around Ã?£5million. Light Blues chairman Sir David Murray has already slashed 12 stadium jobs and ordered manager Walter Smith to axe eight stars in the summer. But last night there were warnings that more cuts could see Rangers facing a DECADE living in Celticââ?¬â?¢s shadow. A Bank of Scotland insider revealed: ââ?¬Å?The debt has been deemed too big and it was felt the time had come to start clawing back some of the cash. ââ?¬Å?The credit crunch means thereââ?¬â?¢s no such thing as easy money any more ââ?¬â? we cannot keep loaning companies big money against assets that leave us exposed. ââ?¬Å?We donââ?¬â?¢t want Rangers to suffer on or off the pitch so weââ?¬â?¢ve pulled together some of our best brains to make sure that the club comes down as gently as possible. ââ?¬Å?But the current situation cannot possibly continue. Ultimately, this is big business and, Iââ?¬â?¢m afraid, sometimes it hurts.ââ?¬Â As Rangers face Celtic at Hampden today in the Co-operative Insurance Cup Final, Stephen Morrow, Professor of Sports Studies at Stirling University, warned fans that the bankââ?¬â?¢s crackdown could see their club ââ?¬Å?in the wildernessââ?¬Â for the next ten years. He said: ââ?¬Å?This will make it even more challenging for a club like Rangers to compete. In some ways, Celticââ?¬â?¢s financial basis is different ââ?¬â? theyââ?¬â?¢ve been run in a different way which has left them less exposed. ââ?¬Å?If Rangers have to pay back, say, Ã?£15-Ã?£20million over the next few years, thereââ?¬â?¢s a risk of a big gap opening up between them and Celtic.ââ?¬Â It is believed the specialist lending team of bankers will study the clubââ?¬â?¢s estimated Ã?£25million debt before making a string of recommendations to claw back some of the clubââ?¬â?¢s loans. The options would include selling off assets ââ?¬â? such as players ââ?¬â? trimming overheads, selling other assets or attracting more investment. Professor Morrow added: ââ?¬Å?What youââ?¬â?¢ve got with a mature business like Rangers is that the business has developed ââ?¬â? thereââ?¬â?¢s only a fixed number of games they can play, theyââ?¬â?¢re playing those games to capacity crowds and thereââ?¬â?¢s a TV deal which is not going to get any better. ââ?¬Å?Once youââ?¬â?¢ve brought playersââ?¬â?¢ wages under control then thatââ?¬â?¢s it, there arenââ?¬â?¢t many more ways to lever huge sums of money into the club. ââ?¬Å?Unless someone comes along and gives you the cash, the only other way is to sell some of your assets and that means players.ââ?¬Â Rangersââ?¬â?¢ finances are tied into chairman Sir David Murrayââ?¬â?¢s complex web of companies, Murray International Holdings ââ?¬â? of which the bank owns around 10 per cent. UNDER THREAT: Kris Boyd Sir David gained control of the Ibrox club in 1988 after buying the majority of its shares for Ã?£6million. As chairman, the businessman ploughed cash into the club, building a third tier on the main stand and raising the groundââ?¬â?¢s capacity by 7,300. Murrayââ?¬â?¢s costly European ambitions for the side, under Dick Advocaatââ?¬â?¢s management, saw them spend millions. But the clubââ?¬â?¢s debts spiralled as TV revenues failed to make a dent on mammoth transfer fees and playersââ?¬â?¢ salaries. By 2001, mounting debts threatened the clubââ?¬â?¢s future and Murray admitted mistakes were made. He said at the time: ââ?¬Å?We got it wrong. We obviously spent far too much money. We canââ?¬â?¢t let it happen again because that would be total mismanagement.ââ?¬Â In July 2002, Murray stood down as chairman but returned two years later in a bid to reduce the Rangers debt mountain. He organised the sale of a new batch of shares which raised Ã?£50million to start paying off the bank and, by 2006, the total owed had dropped from nearly Ã?£74million to only Ã?£5.8million. Since then, the debt has started to rise again at an alarming rate ââ?¬â? despite Rangersââ?¬â?¢ run to the 2008 UEFA Cup Final. Last year it stood at Ã?£21.6million but is believed to have reached around Ã?£30million before the bank stepped in. Half-yearly figures released in January show the clubââ?¬â?¢s turnover is 50 per cent lower than 2006. And they are facing a 71 per cent jump in interest payments to nearly Ã?£8,000 a DAY. The credit crunch has hit the club hard as Murray International Holdingsââ?¬â?¢ huge commercial property assets have plummeted in value. Last night insolvency expert John Shields said: ââ?¬Å?Murray International Holdings is built on steel, property and football. ââ?¬Å?The bottom has fallen out of the market for steel and property, so the football cannot carry on being a loss-making luxury. The Bank of Scotland has specialist lending teams whose job it is to protect the bankââ?¬â?¢s money. Those men in grey suits will be looking very closely at the Rangers balance sheet and may suggest pruning the Ibrox staff. UNDER THREAT: Barry Ferguson ââ?¬Å?The team will probably be three-strong and theyââ?¬â?¢ll spend up to six months poring over Rangersââ?¬â?¢ accounts and working with the club to identify where the savings are. ââ?¬Å?They should have a strategy in place for when the transfer window opens at the end of the season and then guide the club through until it closes at the end of August. ââ?¬Å?Weââ?¬â?¢re in a recession so season ticket revenue could fall, corporate hospitality has been cut, the Murray Park Academy hasnââ?¬â?¢t delivered enough young players. The only way to raise revenue short-term is to sell players. ââ?¬Å?Usually, the fact that the club has a wealthy parent company would be enough to satisfy the banks. ââ?¬Å?But Murray International Holdings has taken a hit as well so Rangers is more exposed than it would normally be. ââ?¬Å?David Murray is a realist ââ?¬â? he is trying to bring a sound business structure to the club which is essential for it to survive but if the bank is now restructuring the debt then there may be even deeper cuts on the way. ââ?¬Å?I think the fans need to rally round the chairman at this time, not barrack him for putting his neck on the line.ââ?¬Â Sir David recently admitted Rangers had lurched deeper into the red, losing nearly Ã?£4million between June and December 2008, with Ã?£1.4million paying off interest alone. An early exit from European football at the hands of Lithuanian minnows Kaunas in the second qualifying stage of the Champions League this season cost the club around Ã?£13million in potential revenue. During Januaryââ?¬â?¢s transfer window, Murray sanctioned the sale of star striker Kris Boyd for Ã?£3.8million in a bid to rake in cash. UNDER THREAT: Allan McGregor Boyd, 25, was on the verge of a move to Birmingham City but a row over his Ã?£20,000- a-week wages saw the deal fall through. Goalie Allan McGregor and captain Barry Ferguson, on salaries of Ã?£25,000 and Ã?£30,000 a week, were linked to a lucrative Newcastle United move which also fell through. Walter Smithââ?¬â?¢s squad is to be trimmed to only 20 in the summer after failing to offload Boyd in January. But Murray has insisted that long-term loans were keeping the club stable, saying: ââ?¬Å?What Iââ?¬â?¢m doing is not panicking. We have a financial facility with the bank and we must work within that framework.ââ?¬Â Now that strategy has been thrown into uncertainty and earlier this month, Rangers admitted a dozen backroom staff would lose their jobs. John Macmillan, general secretary of the Rangers Supportersââ?¬â?¢ Association said: ââ?¬Å?Itââ?¬â?¢s a pretty bleak picture ââ?¬â? the fans wonââ?¬â?¢t take kindly to this. ââ?¬Å?Most really donââ?¬â?¢t care about who owes what to whom, so we may see a split between the club and the fans over the next few years. ââ?¬Å?But the club must recognise that itââ?¬â?¢s not the fansââ?¬â?¢ fault that Rangers are in such a mess ââ?¬â? thereââ?¬â?¢s been mismanagement and unwise signing policies which continue to this day. ââ?¬Å?The way through this crisis is to put bums on seats, not to penalise the fans. The club should look at lowering prices and even letting in kids for free.ââ?¬Â Bank of Scotland has recently been bought out by Lloyds Banking Group after racking up losses of Ã?£10.8billion as part of HBOS. Both the bank and the club refused to comment. http://www.newsoftheworld.co.uk/scottish/scottish_news/218758/Rangers-pound20m-debt-squeeze-David-Murray.html

Unless of course Kirk plays CB, if he is fit

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wtdUeHVqkLM&feature=related]YouTube - Rangers Fiorentina Penalties[/ame]

Yip, I can see McCulloch @ CB & Edu playing the holding role

By Ron Scott Ibrox defender Madjid Bougherra.MADJID BOUGHERRA (right) has been ruled out of today�s Co-operative Insurance Cup Final against Celtic at Hampden. That was the sensational news from the Rangers camp last night. It�s a crushing blow for the Ibrox club as the big French-Algerian defender has been their most consistent player all season. He has struggled all week with a calf injury picked up in last Sunday�s Homecoming Scottish Cup tie against Hamilton Accies, and has failed to recover in time to play today. Major headache Bougherra�s absence leaves Rangers manager Walter Smith with a major headache over who to pair in central defence with Davie Weir. Kirk Broadfoot is the obvious choice, but his fitness is not guaranteed either. He has missed the last couple of games with a foot injury. The former St Mirren centre-half will be given every chance to make it, but much will depend on whether he suffers a reaction from yesterday�s training session. If Broadfoot is ruled out, too, Smith�s choice is a straight one between Lee McCulloch and Christian Dailly. McCulloch has this season been converted into a defensive midfielder, and he also partnered Weir in central defence for a few games towards the end of last year. Decision Meanwhile, Dailly�s last start for Rangers was back in September. Smith has also to decide whether to use leading scorer Kris Boyd. With Kyle Lafferty favourite to start alongside Kenny Miller, Boyd�s best bet will be a place on the bench, but even that is not guaranteed with Nacho Novo fit again. Celtic have no last-minute injury scares, with manager Gordon Strachan�s only dilemma being who to pair upfront with Scott McDonald. The choice lies between Jan Vennegoor of Hesselink or Georgios Samaras. Although Samaras has 14 goals to his credit, don�t be surprised if the Dutchman starts. Strachan may also opt for the experience of Paul Hartley in midfield ahead of young Spaniard Marc Crosas. http://www.thesundaypost.co.uk/postindex.htm

Can some of you guys get some pics tomorrow, I believe the blue prder have arranged a display in the west stand, it would be good to get the pics posted up here

By Andrew Dickson PEDRO MENDES has revealed memories of missing out on silverware will be the catalyst in his bid for victory against Celtic in tomorrow's League Cup final. The Rangers midfielder has a Champions League winners' medal in his possession after he helped Porto beat Monaco in the 2004 final. Free Kilmarnock tickets!He also lifted last season's FA Cup when he was in the Portsmouth team that beat Cardiff City 1-0 at Wembley. But Mendes has experienced disappointment too at a tournament's climax and lost out with Porto in extra-time against Benfica in the Taca de Portugal five years ago. While the successes he has had stand out, it's a rare moment of failure that makes him so determined to add further triumphs to his list. Mendes said: "I won the equivalent trophy to the League Cup back home with Porto but lost out on the Portuguese Cup to Benfica. "It is always hard to take a defeat but especially in a final. At that stage, the only good outcome can be a win because of what's at stake. "If you win, everything is fantastic but if you lose you just go to the dressing room and get into the coach moaning about everything. "You don't want it to be like that and the fans don't want to be going home moaning at everyone either. Pedro Mendes battles with David Rowson"We want to enjoy ourselves and have a happy ending. Hopefully we will be able to provide one this weekend and we desperately want to win. "If we were to do that, it would be our first achievement since I joined the club and that makes this a massive game for me." Mendes, who is fit after a recent thigh strain, is just as keen to come out on top for the sake of ensuring he reflects on his time at Ibrox as positively as possible in the future. He added: "When you look back at the clubs you've played with, you want to be able to think of lots of trophy wins you enjoyed. "I don't know when it will be but whenever my Rangers career is over, I want to be able to say I won cups and titles. "When you go to a big club, you want to achieve things with your team and create lots of good memories."

By Andrew Dickson DaMARCUS BEASLEY says a win in tomorrow's League Cup final against Celtic would rank as highly as anything he has achieved in his club career. The American winger helped PSV Eindhoven to the last four of the Champions League in 2005 and started the first leg of their semi-final against AC Milan in the San Siro. Ally McCoist and DaMarcus BeasleyHe also played his part in two league title wins with the Dutch side and scored last season when he claimed his first trophy at Ibrox, the Scottish Cup, against Queen of the South. Even though he already has a decent medal collection in his grasp, the 26-year-old knows coming out on top in an Old Firm final would take some beating. Beasley said: "It would definitely be a big moment for me. Winning in finals is great but it would mean a lot more to beat Celtic at that stage. "I really enjoyed the Scottish Cup final last season because it was my birthday that day and it was great to score. It was a great achievement. "After I had been out injured for five or six months, it was good to help the team win and come out of the game with a medal. "But to see off Celtic this weekend would be right up there amongst the things I've done in the game. "Every time Rangers play them, it is a big game but this one is a bit more special because there's a trophy at the end of it."

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n7MnccEtH_A&feature=related]YouTube - king billys on the wall[/ame]

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kZw_yakdHPc]YouTube - Thornlie Boys - The Bigot[/ame]

C'mon now ...........who clicked it ? :fish:

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BQcUAyfCxTY]YouTube - Rangers players celebrating (Beautiful Noise)[/ame]

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T2zvWbrv-CY&feature=related]YouTube - Build my Gallows[/ame]

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ro9ZYSn8HkU]YouTube - famine song[/ame]

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=usfgpHnsLNU]YouTube - Thornlie Boys - Davie Cooper(The Legend)[/ame]

http://www.hornymatches.com/main.php