Left in ruins

[ian1964 10,720]

 

 

MAURICE EDU grew up in a country where Rangers patrolled the national parks.

He was almost 20 before he discovered a famous football team, some 5,000 miles away in Glasgow, went by the same name.

 

He was your average American soccer player who never claimed to be anything else.

 

Born and raised in Fontana, California, Gers meant nothing to Edu until the day he arrived from Toronto FC in 2008.

 

That the midfielder â?? now at Stoke City â?? didnâ??t jump ship straight away like Steven Naismith and Kyle Lafferty illustrated to boss Ally McCoist everything he needed to know about the man heâ??d become.

 

Naisy and Laff â?? both self-confessed Gers fans â?? were among those who led the mass dressing-room exodus from Ibrox in the summer.

 

The pair â?? along with Steven Davis, Steven Whittaker, Allan McGregor, Jamie Ness and Rhys McCabe â?? turned down the chance to join Charles Greenâ??s newco.

 

Walking away from their contracts, some cost Rangers MILLIONS in transfer fees.

 

The fans and McCoist are nowhere near ready to forgive. Much less forget.

 

Thatâ??s why in the week both Naismith and Lafferty broke their silence on their Ibrox heartache, McCoist countered by insisting they have only themselves to blame.

 

He said: â??I can understand their hurt, of course.

 

â??But for 140 years our football fans have made up their own minds on things and thatâ??ll continue to be the case.

 

â??I think they probably look at somebody like Maurice Edu, for example, who didnâ??t claim to be a Rangers fan or wanted to come and watch Rangers play until he was 110. But what he did do was transfer over and Rangers got money for him.

 

â??I think thatâ??s how the vast majority of the Rangers support are looking at it.

 

â??I can see where they are coming from. Look at last Saturday. Everybody to a man and woman was talking about it. It was just magic.

 

â??Our fans â?? and nobody has sung their praises more, deservedly so, than me â?? never forget their heroes and the players that did them a turn and that will always be the case.

 

â??I can understand their decision but I can also totally understand somebody like Maurice, who didnâ??t want to play in SFL3 but wanted to see the club get a few quid.â?

 

Both Lafferty and Naismith claim they are no longer welcome at Ibrox.

 

After making their beds in the summer, McCoist insists they must now lie in it.

 

He said: â??I donâ??t think they can complain.

 

â??If I wasnâ??t welcome at Rangers then it would be heartbreaking. I can understand their disappointment.

 

â??But that disappointment has been created by their choice. To say itâ??s anybody elseâ??s fault or problem is totally wrong.

 

â??I am aware thereâ??s real resentment amongst the fans. But if you think Iâ??m going to sit here and say to the fans that theyâ??re wrong, Iâ??m sorry I wonâ??t.

 

â??Iâ??m maybe guessing they never gave that side of it much thought, but I donâ??t know.

 

â??They had decisions to make. They might say â??I wish I hadnâ??t done that, I wish Iâ??d stayed and got the club a few quidâ??.

 

â??But they obviously didnâ??t think that, which is fine.

 

â??We are where we are and I deal with the aftermath.â?

 

At times, that aftermath has resembled a train wreck.

 

But there are positive signs McCoist and Gers are getting themselves back on track.

 

Fans have until Tuesday morning to buy into the share issue, while on the park McCoistâ??s side can extend their lead at the top of the table with a win on Montroseâ??s artificial pitch this lunchtime.

 

The gaffer smiled: â??I canâ??t remember playing at Links Park, but I have a rough idea of what to expect!

 

â??Much of the same as to what weâ??ve been getting.

 

â??Iâ??m loath to say itâ??s not an ideal surface, but I understand the reasons for it and Iâ??ve not got a problem with it.

 

â??Theyâ??re all different surfaces, believe it or not.

 

â??The surface at Annan seemed fine, although David Templeton got an injury.

 

â??They are not ideal, but they are different. One of the boys was saying it actually helps when it rains, but we wonâ??t see it until the game.â?

 

McCoist saw Celtic struggle past Arbroath in the Scottish Cup in midweek and last night he told Neil Lennon: Welcome to my world.

 

Coisty said: â??It was maybe a wee reminder to everybody in Scottish football â?? although we donâ??t need a reminder, as you know â?? that there are extremely difficult places to go.

 

â??Neil would admit his team were in a very difficult Cup tie. You go up there at night, itâ??s cold and icy and the pitch was freezing up. Itâ??s a leveller.

 

â??Itâ??s a little taste of how we feel. Maybe now people have a realisation that these places are difficult to go to.â?

 

http://www.thescottishsun.co.uk/scotsol/homepage/sport/leaguedivision3/4698576/Edu-got-Gers-money-Laff-and-Naisy-turned-their-backs-on-the-club.html

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He said: “I don’t think they can complain.

 

“If I wasn’t welcome at Rangers then it would be heartbreaking. I can understand their disappointment.

 

“But that disappointment has been created by their choice. To say it’s anybody else’s fault or problem is totally wrong.

 

Bang on!. Thats just saying - You are NOT welcome.

[Guest Blue Pimpernel]

Nail and head, it was difficult to see all these players go but the fine division lies with those that left honourably and those who left on self intererest.

We know who these people are and respect exists within those categories.

Unlike most situations, these do fall into distinct envelopes, apart from Aluko, I believe his circumstances send him clear and clear with best wishes, others have served their fate and so be it- life clearly goes on.

I for one don't believe we deserve to be where we are, but we are Rangers THEN, NOW AND FOREVER and on that point no doubt exists.

WATP