Weekly Rant

[CammyF 7,988]

Home Comforts

 

After not playing at Ibrox for nearly 5 weeks we are now faced with 3 crucial home games in the space of a week. Firstly we entertain Hamilton Accies in the League Cup, then ICT and Dundee United come calling on SPL duty. The fixture list often throws up back-to-back games and after defeating Hamilton (and the inclement conditions) on Saturday, Hamilton have a swift chance to revenge the SPL defeat and knock us out of the League Cup. Following the midweek league cup tie, we have two must win SPL games at Ibrox.

 

We deserved to win on Saturday but the conditions almost rendered the game unplayable. Hopefully the weather will have improved significantly by tomorrow evening so we can demonstrate our footballing ability and express ourselves on the expansive Ibrox surface.

 

Walter Smith may use tomorrow evening to ensure that some fringe players get ââ?¬Ë?game timeââ?¬â?¢. This should mean a glimpse of players like Edu, Aaron, Lafferty and possibly even young Rory Loy who has impressed in the reserves / U19ââ?¬â?¢s this season. However, Iââ?¬â?¢d expect Walter will give this ââ?¬Ë?game timeââ?¬â?¢ to the tried and tested squad players like Daily, McCulloch, Adam, JCD et al.

 

Personally, I�d play a 4-4-2 along these lines :

 

Alexander, SW, Broadfoot, MB, Papac, Aaron, Edu, Mendes, Beasley, Lafferty and a.n.other.

 

League Cup Memories And A Scottish Cup Nightmare

 

As we entertain Hamilton in the League Cup, I thought that I�d detail some of my favourite league cup memories but will start this article with a gentle reminder not to take the threat from Hamilton lightly.

 

No Rangers fan of a certain age will ever (or should ever) forget the 31/01/1987. This was halfway through Graeme Souness� initial season as Rangers player manager and after a rocky start, Rangers had started to play some decent football and had already secured the league cup, defeating Celtc 2-1 at Hampden (Durrant and Cooper the scorers). When the draw for the third round for the Scottish Cup paired us with Hamilton, we all thought that we would have a safe passage into the 4th round. Well, anyone who was at the game will remember that we had anything but, and ended u[ out on our arses with egg all over our faces.

 

Chris Woods went into the game seeking a world record (12 games) for not conceding a goal and he actually secured this record during the game. Everything was going to plan, Rangers were pressing, a goal for Rangers was ââ?¬Ë?inevitableââ?¬â?¢, or so well all thought. Up stepped Adrian Sprott and out went Rangers.

 

It is fair to say that during Souness� reign, the Scottish Cup was never kind to Rangers. The following season would see Dunfermline knock us out at the same stage of the competition and I believe we only made one SCF under Souness where we were cheated out of a treble by Celtc and another one of those Masonic referees. Trailing 1-0 to a goal scored by a throw-in taken by Celtc that was actually ours, we scored a perfectly good goal that was chopped off after Paddy Bonner tried to collect a corner, bumped into Roy Aitken, dropped the ball and it was rammed home for what should have been a Rangers equaliser. The Scottish cup is the only domestic competition we have won less than Celtc.

We have dominated the league cup since its conception and we have featured in some of the most memorable League Cup Finals ever to be played. My favourites are listed below, no doubt you�ll all have your own favourites, so enjoy :

 

Rangers 3 v 2 Celtc ââ?¬â?? McCoist hatrick 1983-1984

Rangers 3 v 3 Aberdeen ââ?¬â?? 1987-1988

Rangers 3 v 3 Aberdeen ââ?¬â?? 1988-1989

 

Cammy F