pete 2,499 Posted February 13, 2015 Share Posted February 13, 2015 Record FC Rangers: From goal king to pauper poacher ... heartbreaking tale of the Lost Boyd 11:48, 12 February 2015 Opinion by JonathanMcFarlane "AT 31 he’s still too young to be written off. Maybe someone will see sense and build a team around him. But then again, this is Rangers we’re talking about..." SNS Kris Boyd curses missing a sitter to level the score for Rangers Kris Boyd curses missing a sitter to level the score for Rangers AS the ball floats through the air time slows. The Raith defence moves out as one, desperate to execute an offside call as the fox in the box ghosts onside with clinical precision. The goal gapes as the one player you would put your mortgage on zeroes in on the cross. As the ball touches his head, four yards out, I rise to celebrate, a feeling of relief flooding through me. He can’t miss I think, not from there, not Kris Boyd the record SPL goalscorer. The stunned silence that follows his fluffed header only served to further accentuate the loud crack of his foot lashing the goal-post in frustration, the wicked punchline to an awful joke. Boyd’s face contorted in frustration speaks a thousand words. How on earth has it come to this? Boyd's arrival was universally heralded. Here was a guy who had endured a bumpy road in recent years but after a blistering spell at Kilmarnock looked as though he had emerged a better all-round player. Kris Boyd celebrates his goal against Hibs that secured Killie's Premiership status Kris Boyd celebrates his goal against Hibs that secured Killie's Premiership status Forever criticised for his lack of contribution outside of the box, the penny had finally seemed to drop after his ill-fated sojourn abroad and a more hard-working attitude emerged. It was hard to imagine it going wrong, Boyd proved at Killie he could still back it at the top level with nearly 20 goals for a struggling side. Rather than a question of IF he'd score for Rangers it was more a case of 'how many?' So where has it all gone wrong? Boyd looked to want it almost too much from the get-go. He stated many times he regretted ever leaving the club he grew up idolising and his desperation to show what he could still do translated into snatching at chances. As you watched him huff and puff it just felt wrong and different. The man who used to write the happy endings has found himself in the wrong movie. A large part of the problem lies not with the player but the ineptitude of the squad supposed to be supplying him. Hopelessly unbalanced and lacking depth in attacking midfield and out wide, the chances that used to flow like the club champagne have dried up. Operating on scraps, Boyd’s most glaring weaknesses are exposed but that's hardly his fault. With players such as Templeton, Miller and Macleod around him he should have scored a barrel-load but with Ally McCoist reverted to the direct style of previous seasons it became obvious Jon Daley was a better fit for the plan. It's a crying shame. Of all the players whose contracts are winding down, Boyd has the most potential to turn it around. With a change of style and an injection of some creative talent to the midfield the most deadly predator in the Scottish game can still be a major player at Ibrox. At 31 he’s far too young to be written off. Maybe someone will see sense and build the team around a guy who loves the club and can score goals for fun. A happy ending? This is Rangers we are talking about… I am not a Boyd fan and certainly never wanted him back but I have to agree the style we play is not suited to him. High balls and tight control were never his forte. 0 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frankie 8,693 Posted February 13, 2015 Share Posted February 13, 2015 Problem for Boyd - or indeed any of our strikers - is that we create next to nothing. We hardly ever get to the bye-line and resort to aimless balls as soon as we cross the half-way line. 0 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
BrahimHemdani 1 Posted February 13, 2015 Share Posted February 13, 2015 (edited) Boyd has had plenty of chances to score a good few goals and has missed horribly on numerous occasions. He made his bed in Turkey and with the brief interlude at Kilmarnock has gone downhill ever since. How anyone can suggest building a team round him is ridiculous. He's one of those players whose careers will not extend beyond his early 30's and he only has himself to blame. Edited February 13, 2015 by BrahimHemdani 0 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ser Barristan Selmy 222 Posted February 13, 2015 Share Posted February 13, 2015 Boyd has had plenty of chances to score a good few goals and has missed horribly on numerous occasions. He made his bed in Turkey and with the brief interlude at Kilmarnock has gone downhill ever since. How anyone can suggest building a team round him is ridiculous. He's one of those players whose careers will not extend beyond his early 30's and he only has himself to blame. Agree with this though Scottish football is so dire that I wouldn't be surprised to see him scoring freely again in the spl next season at a different club under better coaching and management. We do seem to suck away whatever little ability our players have. 0 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ser Barristan Selmy 222 Posted February 13, 2015 Share Posted February 13, 2015 Problem for Boyd - or indeed any of our strikers - is that we create next to nothing. We hardly ever get to the bye-line and resort to aimless balls as soon as we cross the half-way line. Boyd was missing endless sitters earlier in the season. 0 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
buster. 5,404 Posted February 13, 2015 Share Posted February 13, 2015 (edited) Problem for Boyd - or indeed any of our strikers - is that we create next to nothing. We hardly ever get to the bye-line and resort to aimless balls as soon as we cross the half-way line. The lack of creativity is certainly an issue but it's not difficult to see that for whatever reason, Boyd lost his 'professional way' and threw the metaphorical towel in. For me the writing was on the wall (in pencil) prior to the season beginning when he was pictured in the new strip on a pier in North America. IIRC I said on here that I had to do a double take because I thought that given his shape, he was an ordinary punter . I remember the Willie Vass pic's of himing being substituted once and you could see he didn't want to be there. Not long after, we had his cameo at Tynecastle where his frustration seemed to actively seek a red card. Boyd is marking time and running down his contract and he knows someone will take him on hoping he'll get back to his Killie shape despite their reputation for excellent pies. IMO he shouldn't be in the team or the bench but then if you look at how many players are in a similar position.......it highlights the bad management both at football and executive (TRFC) levels. Edited February 13, 2015 by buster. 0 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
colinstein 294 Posted February 13, 2015 Share Posted February 13, 2015 He clearly isn't as fit as he was at Killie. He should show a bit of professionalism and lose weight. If he did so his sharpness of last season should return. It's also true we're not creating many chances and he 's missing sitters when we do. 0 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
andy steel 0 Posted February 13, 2015 Share Posted February 13, 2015 Remember the game early in the season, I'm not certain but it might have been Raith away, I think we won 4-0 but Boyd missed about 6 gilt-edged, your Granny could score them chances. He's been absolutely crap since he came back and he wasn't that great first time around anyway. 0 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
buster. 5,404 Posted February 13, 2015 Share Posted February 13, 2015 Interesting comparison with another 'large' centre forward in the Championship. Zeefuik arrived at Hearts and took 62 minutes in his first ever Scottish football match to match the two league goals that Boyd has scored this season. 0 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
biggordy 0 Posted February 13, 2015 Share Posted February 13, 2015 There was once a time when I thought the team should have been built around him. That time is sadly long gone. Word is he's been lined up as Assistant player/manager to Gary Locke at Killie at the end of the season. He can go now as far as I'm concerned. 0 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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