When Dundee United beat Rangers in the 1994 Scottish Cup Final, thus preventing back-to-back Trebles, it was a case of 7th time lucky. The Tannadice side had lost all of their previous 6 finals.
Italian midfield star, Rino Gattuso is the scorer of Gers’ quickest ever European goal. In October 1998, he scored against Israeli side, Beitar Jerusalem in a UEFA Cup tie at Ibrox after only 20 seconds.
Dutch aces, Ronald and Frank de Boer had played in the same team throughout their careers. So, when they left Ajax to join Barcelona in 1999, they went together for a combined fee of £15 million. Ronald joined Rangers in 2000, leaving his twin behind but he was joined for the second half of season 2003 /04 by Frank who made an impact at the club in his half season. Both de Boers finished their careers in Quatar, playing for the same team.
During season 93/94, after having won The Treble, no fewer than 11 of Rangers' squad needed surgery carried out at various points in that season!
In the 1992/93 Champions League group stage, Rangers played their away match against CSKA Moscow in Bochum in Germany, winning 1-0. The tie had to be played outside Russia due to the severe winter conditions that prevented football from being played. Changed days since the emergence of all those Russian billionaires and improved facilities.
When Ibrox hosted a Scotland friendly international in 1991 against the USSR, it was the first full international played at the Stadium for 53 years. In the 1994 World Cup Qualifying matches, the Scots games against Portugal and italy were also played at Ibrox.
In December 1989, Ally McCoist had the honour of scoring Rangers' 7,000 league goal in a match against Motherwell.
When Graeme Souness was manager, he banned all his players from playing golf in an effort to avoid over-exerting themselves or picking up an injury.
In September 1986, striker Robert Fleck ( uncle of present-day John) scored two hat-tricks within 4 days when he scored first against Clydebank in the league and then against Ilves Tampere of Finland in the UEFA Cup.
In 1988 while Gers were playing Polish side Katowice in the UEFA Cup at Ibrox, the Poles kept diving, play-acting and time-wasting. At one point, while their trainer was treating an "injured" player, just off the park, John Brown picked up his medical bag to remove it from the pitch. Unfortunately, when "Bomber" tossed the bag on to the track, it burst open and its contents flew out, littering the ground. The ref promptly showed a yellow card to the embarrassed Ranger.
In January 2001 on the 30th anniversary of the Ibrox Disaster, a memorial was unveiled outside the Bill Struth Main Stand. It consisted of a plinth on which the names of the victims were listed and above it a statue of The Greatest Ranger Ever, John Greig who was the club captain at the time of the terrible accident. Until this, the only commemoration of the event had been a plaque situated on the exterior of the Copland Stand where it still can be found.
Former Dutch international player and Ajax manager, Jan Wouters, joined Dick Advocaat in May 2001 as his first team coach.
During season 1996/97, two Rangers legends, former captain, George Young and manager Jock Wallace, died in the course of it, denying them the pleasure of seeing 9-in-a-row completed.
Sir David Murray decided that the club should remember and honour the achievements and contribution made to Rangers by its finest players throughout its history. Accordingly, in 2000 he set up the Rangers’ Hall of Fame, the first of any club in Britain. A mahogany panel above the famous marble staircase was assigned to display the names of those former players inducted into the Hall of Fame and an annual presentation ceremony was instigated where the players honoured received their award. The 5 criteria for consideration by the selections panel is: Service to the club; number of games played; honours won; International caps; exceptional ability.
Nowadays, a panel consisting of Sir David Murray, John Greig, Sandy Jardine, Ally McCoist and club historian, David Mason, selects the candidates annually so that the fans can vote for the heroes they wish to see inducted into the elite Hall. The club historian especially tries to ensure that the players out-with living memory are not neglected when the choice from the various eras is offered. The first member elected was Moses McNeil, one of the founders of Rangers. There are now 74 members, dating from the 19th century to the present day with Barry Ferguson.
On 23rd November 1988, at the age of 37, Edinburgh steel magnate, David Murray bought his controlling interest in Rangers for £6 million, effectively becoming the club’s owner.
In March 1990, Prime Minister, Margaret Thatcher, became the third British PM to visit Ibrox Stadium. “The Iron Lady” praised Rangers for showing the way forward for other British clubs by building the safest, most modern, most comfortable stadium in the country.
In 1991, manager Graeme Souness had a well-publicised “bust up” with St Johnstone tea lady, Aggie Moffat, after she’d complained about the state the away dressing room had been left in by Rangers.
In January, 1974, striker, Derek Parlane’s goal against Hearts was Rangers’ 6,000 league goal.
In May, 1976, Rangers became the first club to win the new Premier League, just as it had been the first to win the original First Division title ( shared with Dumbarton in 1890)
When John Greig received his Testimonial in 1978, he became the first Gers player to be granted one since Davie Meiklejohn 53 years earlier. To watch Rangers thrash the Scotland side soon to be in Argentina, for the disastrous 78 World Cup Finals a crowd of 65,000 turned up – still a record attendance for such a game. The Bears were rewarded by seeing a great performance from Rangers and a deserved 5-0 win with Greig, Bobby Russell (2) and Derek Johnstone scoring the goals. In that Treble-winning season, these three Gers played maybe the most significant roles in Gers' success but only ONE ( DJ ) was taken to Argentina by Ally McLeod and he didn't even manage a substitute appearance. Perhaps the Scotland side's display at Ibrox should have been seen as a bad omen for Argentina.
In 1984, CR Smith, the Scottish double glazing company, became the first sponsors to have their name on the Rangers shirt. In future years, they would be followed by McEwans, NTL, then current sponsors, Carling.
After winning the Cup Winners’ Cup in Barcelona, Rangers played in the first ever Super Cup in January 1973. European and World Champions, Ajax, played Gers over two legs. In the first match at Ibrox, the Dutch masters won 3-1 while in the Amsterdam return the score was 3-2 in their favour but Rangers had not disgraced themselves in taking on Cruyff and co in two very competitive matches. Nowadays some teams (Aberdeen) put a star on their shirt for having "won" this pretend cup.
In Rangers’ 1971 European Cup Winners’ Cup tie in Lisbon against Sporting, the teams finished 5-5 on aggregate and extra time had to be played. Each side scored one more goal which should have meant that Rangers would go through to the quarter finals on the away goals rule. However, the referee made a mistake and ordered a penalty shoot-out to take place - which Rangers lost. Thankfully, a Scots journalist had a UEFA rule book in his possession and went to the Rangers’ dressing room to point out the ref’s error to Willie Waddell, the Gers manager. Waddell informed the official UEFA representative who promptly overturned the referee’s decision, allowing Rangers to progress to the next round.
In the Treble-winning season of 1963 / 64, Rangers played in front of a total of 1,910,096 fans in 54 matches. The average gate of over 35,000 was a tremendous figure in those days.
In April, 1966, Dane, Kai Johansen scored the winning goal against Celtic in the Scottish Cup Final Replay to become the first foreigner to score the winning goal in a Scottish Cup Final and the first Scandinavian to receive a winner’s medal.
The dreadful winter of 1962/63 was the worst season for Rangers in terms of postponements. The Gers didn’t play a single league match between 2nd January and March 9th.
When Rangers signed George McLean from St Mirren in January, 1963, the fee of £26,500 was the highest in Rangers’ history.
In the close season, during the summer of 1962, Rangers completed a three match tour of the Soviet Union - or Russia, as most folk called it in those days. Gers beat Moscow Locomotiv 3-1, then Tblisi Dynamo of Georgia, 1-0 before drawing with the Soviet Champions, Dynamo Kiev 1-1. This first ever, and unbeaten, tour really caught the imagination of the Scottish public. So much so that, when the Rangers plane landed at Renfrew Airport ( as it was in those days) thousands of fans there, to welcome them home, streamed on to the actual tarmac of the runway to greet the conquering heroes. Airport security obviously wasn’t the same in those times! I wonder what John Smeaton would have done?
In the early 60s, when Jim Baxter was completing his obligatory National Service with the Army, he missed quite a few games for Rangers because the Army refused to release him. He even missed out on Rangers’ famous tour of Russia in 1962 due to this. Still, the Army benefited as they played him alongside other professional players who had to do their stint in the services. That Army team was probably better than most professional ones of the time.
In the 1960 / 61 European Cup, in the second round, Rangers were drawn against East German Champions, Vorwarts of Berlin. Gers won the first leg 2-1 in East Berlin but because the Allied Authorities wouldn’t grant the East Germans the necessary visas, Vorwarts couldn’t come to Ibrox to play their away leg. This was played in Malmo, Sweden. With Rangers leading 1-0, fog caused the match to be abandoned at half-time. It was replayed the next morning at nine o’clock in front of a few hardy spectators. Rangers won 4-1 this time.
In 1961, Ian McMillan scored Rangers' 5,000 league goal but it took until January, 1974 before the 6,000 league goal was scored by Derek Parlane against Hearts.
When Rangers played Fiorentina in the Final of the Cup Winners' Cup in 1961, they became the first British club to compete in a European final. The Italians won the two leg affair by a 4-1 aggregate. It took Rangers 47 years to gain their revenge on Fiorentina as they never met them again - until the semi-final of the Uefa Cup in 2008 when Gers eliminated the Italians, winning on penalties in Florence.
At the start of season 1983 / 84, Ally McCoist signed for Rangers for a fee of £185,000 from Sunderland while Derek Johnstone was transferred to Chelsea. McCoist’s signing was probably the best bit of business that John Greig ever did as manager but even The Legend couldn't have realised that SuperAlly would go on to become the greatest Rangers goal-scorer of all time.
In June, 1980, great boxing Scot, Jim Watt, who was the World Lightweight Champion successfully defended his title against American, Howard Davis in front of a full house at Ibrox.
In the summer of 1973, Chairman, John Lawrence resigned to become the club’s first Honorary President. Matt Taylor became the new Chairman.
When Chairman, Matt Taylor died in September, 1975, Rae Simpson took his place while Willie Waddell became the club’s Vice-Chairman.
In April, 1964, Rangers Pools, under the control of Davie Hope, was founded as a means of financing the Rangers Development Fund. This organisation was set up to fund ground improvements to Ibrox in order to enhance spectators’ comfort, making the Stadium more modern and safer for the fans.
In February, 1963, Rangers Chairman, John F. Wilson died and John Lawrence took his place.
In 1964, legendary American World Champion boxer, Sugar Ray Robinson was introduced to the 30,000 crowd at Ibrox during the half-time interval in the match against Dunfermline.
The Ibrox capacity was increased in 1992, by the simple method of lowering the pitch level by 12 inches thus adding another 1,300 seats to the stadium.
In 1995, the original, multi-coloured seating in the Ibrox stands that had consisted of blue, red, yellow, orange and brown sections, disappeared to be replaced by blue seats only, becoming a Blue Heaven for the Gers fans.
In 1996, the “corners” at Ibrox were at last filled in to make the stadium even more imposing and intimidating. The gaps between the Govan Stand and its adjoining Broomloan and Copland Stands were transformed by seating with huge Sony Jumbotron television screens sited above the seated area. These would be used for broadcasting away matches back to Ibrox and showing the action from games while they were being played in the stadium. The capacity of the Stadium was now just over 50,000.
At the end of season 1977 / 78, the reconstruction of Ibrox began. The Copland Road terracing was demolished and, by the end of the season, a new 7,500 seater stand had taken its place, sweeping away the fatal Stairway 13, if not the memories of the Ibrox Disaster. Over the following two seasons, the other two new stands would rise to complement the Copland Stand, built in the same manner with the same design. When the Govan Stand, seating 10,300, was completed in 1981, Ibrox had a capacity of 44,000.
The project had cost around £12 million, financed by Rangers Pools’ profits and turned Ibrox into one of the safest and best stadia in the world. Apart from the Enclosure, in front of the Main Stand, Ibrox would be all-seated – years before it was legally required. A sell-out crowd celebrated the completion of the new Ibrox by watching Liverpool defeat Rangers by 2-0 in the official inauguration match.
In the 1959 European Cup game at Ibrox against a tough Anderlecht side, Ranger, Harold Davis eventually snapped having being fouled once too often. Jurion, a player who actually wore glasses on the pitch, committed a foul and knew immediately that the ex-Korean War veteran was on the warpath when he jumped up and glared at him. To the amazement of the crowd, the Belgian ran half way up the pitch with Davis chasing him but when Davis eventually caught up with the hapless Jurion, Harold could only burst out laughing at the absurdity of the situation. It hasn’t been recorded what the Belgian burst out in. Would the gentle giant have hit a man wearing glasses anyway?
When Rangers beat Airdrie 4-0 at Broomfield in January, 1956, Gers’ Johnny Hubbard was distraught at having missed a penalty. It was the South African’s first miss in 7 years, having scored with 22 consecutive spot kicks. In total, the “Penalty King” Hubbard converted 54 of the 57 penalties he took while a Rangers player.
After one and a half years of work, the new Club Deck at Ibrox was opened in 1991. Partly funded by a debenture scheme, the work had cost £20 million and added 7,169 seats to Ibrox’s capacity. Because Archibald Leitch’s Main Stand was now a listed building, the new tier had to be constructed without damage to the existing stand. The original stand had a temporary roof put over it while work went on above it so that life could go on as normal for those fans who preferred to sit in the Main Stand.
To gain planning permission for the Club Deck, Rangers had to convert their training ground, The Albion, 100 yards away from the stadium, into a car park. Before it had become the club’s training ground, The Albion had been a greyhound racing track, only a couple of hundred yards away from another one, The White City!
At the same time, the only remaining standing area at the Stadium, the Enclosure, was converted into an all-seater stand thus three tiers of seating now stood where once there had been only one.
The Scottish Cup Final of 2008 saw two Rangers players create their own little bit of history. By appearing as a substitute in the dying minutes, 16 year old John Fleck became the youngest player to take part in a Scottish Cup Final. Meanwhile, at the other end of the age spectrum, David Weir, at 38, became the oldest Ranger to play in a final of a domestic cup, overtaking such Gers legends as Jock Shaw and Andy Cunningham.
In the 1953 Scottish Cup Final, Gers keeper George Niven, after diving at the feet of an Aberdeen forward, was carried off with blood streaming from his head. As no substitutes were allowed in those days, captain, George Young went in goal for 18 minutes until Niven returned to the field of play, having had stitches put in a cut ear, with his head protected by a leather, flying-type helmet, to guard his goal for the rest of the match. Gers lifted the Cup.
Billy Williamson, in two seasons, from 1947 – 49, only played in two Scottish Cup ties. However, both were in the Final and he scored in each. Therefore, he ended up with the unlikely record of: played 2, scored 2, winner’s medals 2.
In 1971, Rangers Social Club, adjoining Ibrox Stadium, was opened. Eventually, it would house the Rangers Pools offices and the Ticket Office.
In January, 1973, at a cost of £70,000, the Covered North Terracing, opposite the Main Stand, was converted into a stand holding almost 10,000 fans. Renamed the Centenary Stand, it had bench-type seating as that was the most economical method of achieving this until Ibrox could be completely reconstructed.
The record score for an Old Firm game occurred on New Year’s Day, 1943 when Rangers beat Celtic 8-1 at Ibrox.
Gers’ keeper, Bobby Brown, when a Queen’s Park player, was the last player to be capped for Scotland while still an amateur. The “Iron Curtain” keeper was never a full- time player at Ibrox but chose, against the wishes of Bill Struth, to remain a P.E. teacher at Denny High School.
In 1948, Willie Thornton scored Rangers’ 4,000 league goal.
Eric Liddell, the famous Scottish 400 metre Olympic Champion from the 1924 games, whose achievements were celebrated in the Oscar- winning film “ Chariots of Fire”, trained for a time at Ibrox. Unfortunately, this great hero was arrested by the Japanese while working as a missionary in China and died in 1945 in a prisoner-of-war camp.
By coming on as a sub against Dundee Utd in the CIS Final 2008, Steven Whittaker became the first player to gain a winner's medal in consecutive finals with two different clubs. Well done, the big guy - and thanks for a well-taken penalty. I remember Neil McCann did a similar feat when he won his first Scottish Cup medal for the Gers after beating us while with Hearts the year before in the 98 Final at Parkhead.
In 1943, manager, Bill Struth, who lived in a tenement in Copland Road, had a personal greenhouse built for himself inside the stadium, at the rear of the Broomloan Road terracing. This survived well into the 1950s and, despite numerous Old Firm matches, no damage to it was ever reported.
In a 1940 Glasgow Charity Cup tie against Celtic at Ibrox, that Rangers eventually won 5-1, Gers’ Alec Venters, in disgust at a refereeing decision, booted the ball behind the goal. Unfortunately, this was the goal at the Broomloan Road end of the ground – the “Celtic End”. The ref ( they were really strict in those days!) ordered the player to go and retrieve the ball. As Venters did so, a hail of bottles and missiles rained down on him. The hapless player retreated as if German bombers were overhead. The adamant ref ordered him to go back but he refused and was sent off. Blimey! Those refs were tough in those days!
In 1959, after seeing the Bernabeu's equivalent, Gers manager, Scot Symon had the idea of converting one of the rooms at the stadium into a Trophy Room in order to display the dozens of cups and gifts that the club had gathered over the years from abroad as well as at home. Through the years it has been extended and now is still one of the features of Ibrox that most impresses Rangers’ guests.
Prime Minister, Harold MacMillan was introduced to the teams before the 1959 Glasgow Charity Cup semi-final at Ibrox when Rangers met Celtic. When the P.M. shook hands with him, I wonder what he said to Rangers’ McMillan, Ian, whose nickname was “The Wee Prime Minister”?
Following Rangers’ Scottish Cup Semi-final win over Hamilton Accies in March, 1932 at Celtic Park, Gers striker, Bob McPhail discovered that his car had been stolen. He’d obviously forgotten to pay a boy to “watch” it! After an impressive, albeit frantic, police hunt, it was recovered the next day.
Rangers’ 8-0 win over Queen of the South in March, 1956 was the first Scottish League match played under floodlights. Credit to the Doonhamers’ keeper for not blaming the lights for any of the goals conceded!
In March, 1954, future Chairman of the club, building magnate, John Lawrence was appointed to the Board of Directors. He stated his philosophy from the start:
“ Rangers cannot, and never shall be, second best.”
In the summer of 1954, a new roof was added to the already partially covered North Terracing. This meant that the roof now ran the entire length of the field on the side opposite the Main Stand.
On December, 8th, 1953, The Ibrox floodlights were inaugurated when Arsenal came to do the honours - and beat their hosts by 2-1. Rangers had experimented with floodlights for a year beforehand before having the permanent ones installed under the roof of the Main Stand and the Covered North Terracing opposite, similar to the system used at Highbury by their guests that evening. The tall, pylon style floodlights eventually used at Hampden and Celtic Park were considered unsuitable due the proximity of Ibrox to the runways at Renfrew Airport, the predecessor of Glasgow Airport.
In 1947, Rangers’ Chairman, Jimmy Bowie, made the mistake of suggesting to manager, Bill Struth that, at the age of 71, it might be time for him to retire and take a seat on the Board. Bowie, a former Gers player soon found himself ousted from the Board by Struth and his faction of major shareholders. As the largest single shareholder, Struth became a director while remaining as manager. Bowie probably never set foot inside Ibrox again and died in 1969.
By the late 1930s, the theoretical capacity of Ibrox was 136,940 but the record attendance for the stadium was established on New Year’s Day, 1939 when a crowd of 118,561 saw Rangers beat Celtic 2-1 with apparently almost 30,000 unlucky fans locked out of the stadium.
Rangers’ centre-half ( and for a time, captain) during the 30s was Jimmy Simpson, father of the future “Lisbon Lion”, goalkeeper, Ronnie.
At Hampden, on March 21st, 1925, the Scottish Cup Semi-final between Rangers and Celtic saw Scotland’s first six figure attendance created when a crowd of 101,714 watched the game.
In the 1929 Scottish Cup Final, Rangers player, Jock Buchanan gained the unenviable distinction of becoming the first player ever to be sent off in the Cup Final. He was sent off two minutes from the end for dissent. Wonder what he said to the referee that resulted in such action with only a couple of minutes left?
At the end of season 1927 – 28, Rangers went on a ten match tour of North America playing various sides in 8 cities in a 25 day period. In those days, the team had to travel to New York by ship and then use the railways to get from city to city. The venues used ranged from New York, Boston, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Chicago and Detroit to Montreal and Toronto. Having won 7 and drawn 3 of their matches, the side returned to Scotland “refreshed” and proceeded to win the league the following season! What would those players have made of today’s modern footballers who get so exhausted flying to and from European games? Or who plead "tiredness" for a poor post-Champions League game?
Long before the arrival of Brian Laudrup, Rangers had discovered another " Great Dane", " Prince of Denmark" - fill in your own cliche here. His name was Carl Hansen, a centre-forward who had played against Rangers on their close season tour of Denmark in 1922. However, his nickname was "The Little Shoemaker" ( bet you hadn't filled that one in above!) and as well as being a success at Ibrox ( and a life-long Gers fan) he became the first foreigner to score in an Old Firm match. Unfortunately what should have been a long, glittering career was cut short when his leg was broken playing for the Reserves in 1924 resulting in him having to give up playing and return to Denmark.
In 1930, Bob McPhail scored Rangers’ 3,000 league goal.
In season 1931 – 32, Ulsterman Sam English scored 44 league goals for the club, a record to this day.
On 3rd May, 1938, King George VI and Queen Elizabeth visited Ibrox to formally open the Glasgow Empire Exhibition that was being staged at nearby Bellahouston Park. 100,000 spectators witnessed the event at the stadium.
At the start of season 1935 – 36, Rangers opened two “Ladies Retiring Rooms” in the Ibrox enclosure. In recent years, it seems as if it’s some of the players who come to Ibrox to retire!
In October, 1937, Rangers played a benefit match at Stoke City for victims of the Holditch Colliery Disaster. £2,000 was raised for the cause and, in gratitude, Stoke President, Sir Francis Joseph, at the post-match banquet, presented Rangers with a Loving Cup. This showed the high esteem in which the hosts held Rangers as this cup was one of a limited number created for the Silver Jubilee of King George V and presented to all English First Division clubs at that time. The Stoke President made one simple request - that on the first game of every new year at Ibrox, the cup should be used to toast the monarch. This has become an Ibrox tradition ever since with Rangers’ officials and their opposite number drinking a toast to the monarch of the time. The Loving Cup rests in the Ibrox Trophy Room to this day.
Replacing the original stand that had been opened in 1902, the present Main Stand was opened on New Year’s Day, 1929, by Glasgow Lord Provost, Sir David Mason. Its construction symbolised the status of Rangers as a sporting institution at that time. With seating for 10,419 and an enclosure in front of it that could take 15, 496 standing spectators, it was the biggest stand in the country at that time. So, almost 26,000 fans could view a match from that side of the pitch. Not only was the sheer size of this stand impressive but also its design and fittings were top class.
Rangers had hired Archibald Leitch, the architectural doyen of British football grounds to design a structure that would accommodate such numbers but also reflect the prestige of the club. Leitch didn’t disappoint and created what experts think of as his piece de resistance. What resulted was an imposing red brick façade that is now a listed building with an entrance hall that exuded the power, prosperity and aura of the classiest football club in the kingdom. The famed marble staircase and wood panelled hall and corridors must have impressed many a would-be signing target down through the years as well as perhaps leaving opponents awe-struck. The inner sanctum – the Boardroom – and the reception rooms never fail to impress visitors.
Not only were VIPs and ordinary fans catered for, the members of the Press were looked after as well. Incorporated into the stand was a Telegram and Post Office as well as a spectacular Press Box situated on the roof of the building. Through the years, many refinements and additions have been made but the red brick façade is still the same and, appropriately maintains the club’s link between the past and the present.
When Morton played Rangers at Ibrox in 1910, a Greenock butcher, desperate for a Ton win ( or with too much meat on his premises) offered his home town team a lamb for every goal Morton scored against the men from Ibrox. Those guys must have been hungry – they beat the Gers 5-1.
One of the few players who became famous for something other than playing for the club was the forward R.S.McColl. At the beginning of the 20th century he was a brilliant goalscorer, even managing a hat-trick against England in a 4-1 win in 1900. He was a former Queen’s Park player but Rangers actually signed him from Newcastle. He won his first cap at 19 and played 13 times for Scotland.
This player seemed to have every attribute needed for an outstanding forward. He was fast, brave, could swerve past opponents and his finishing power was awesome. Remarkably, he could “bend it like Beckham” – a real feat in those days of heavy leather balls with laces! One of his nicknames was the “ Prince of Centre-Forwards” but the other one was “Toffee”! You see, he also had a sweet shop business in Glasgow that would eventually become a national chain, known to millions. Yes, he WAS that R.S.McColl!
At the end of season 1910 – 11, Rangers made their first tour of Scandanavia. It took the team three days to get to their destination in Sweden ( and modern players moan about having to travel by jet) Rangers won all four of their games in the country including a win against the national side before travelling on to Denmark where they drew with its international side before beating it in the return match.
Following the First Ibrox Disaster of 1902, Rangers had to rebuild Ibrox with safety first and foremost in mind so substantial funds were required to achieve this. Consequently, at the end of that season, 22 players were made available for transfer in an effort to generate the necessary funds.
On August 16th, 1906, Rangers played Celtic in a benefit match for Finlay Speedie. During the game, Celtic keeper, David Adams cut his hand on a nail, inadvertently left in a goalpost following a 5-a-side game. Rangers immediately offered Celtic a loan of their reserve keeper, Tom Sinclair until Adams was fit again. Sinclair didn’t lose a goal in Celtic’s first six league games. He even won a Glasgow Cup medal when Celtic took that trophy. Later on, he was transferred to Newcastle where he won a league championship medal – all in the same season!
On 18th September. 1917, King George V honoured Rangers by having an investiture ceremony at Ibrox. He was driven around the Ibrox track in a car to the cheers of the crowd before presenting medals to war heroes. During the conflict, various Rangers players received medals including Walter Tull who had been the first black player to sign for the club. Tragically, he was killed in action 6 months after this ceremony having won two medals and been recommended for the Military Cross, a decoration second only to the Victoria Cross for bravery.
Throughout their history, Rangers and Celtic have generally disputed Scottish football’s major trophies but the Glasgow International Exhibition Cup was one that was literally disputed, leaving bad feelings for many a year. In 1901 Rangers had won this specially commissioned trophy by beating St Mirren, Third Lanark and Celtic in the final. The winning club was meant to have the trophy in perpetuity. However, months later, following the Ibrox Disaster, Rangers put the trophy up as the prize in a tournament to raise funds for the dependents of the victims. The four clubs that would compete would be the Champions and Runners-up of Scotland and England. Thus, Rangers, Celtic, Everton and Sunderland played for what was called The British League Cup. Ironic that, over a century later, despite many proposals, such a tournament has never got off the ground.
Rangers beat Everton, after a replay, while Celtic had got the better of Sunderland. In the final, after extra time, Celtic beat Rangers 3-2 to take the trophy – literally take the trophy. Celtic declined to return the cup to the Ibrox boardroom or even put it up as a trophy to be played for annually ( the least Gers could have expected) Celtic would not be moved and Rangers nursed a grievance for years afterwards. The trophy sits in the Celtic Park trophy cabinet to this day but I bet they don't have a card relating its history beside it!
The First Ibrox Disaster occurred on 5th April, 1902 during the Scotland v England international that ended in a 1-1 draw. 26 spectators were killed when part of the west terracing collapsed during the match. Ibrox, with a capacity of 75,000, was considered the best stadium in the country. The terracing that towered 50 feet into the air consisted of pinewood planks supported by a steel framework. During the game, fans at the top of the terracing had started to sway causing those near the front to clamber on to the playing area for safety. Suddenly, 7 rows of stepping simply disappeared and the unfortunate fans plunged below to the ground. In contemporary reports, it was described as being “ like a trapdoor opening”. The extent of the horror was not fully appreciated at the time by the crowd and, after an interval of 18 minutes, the match officials decided to continue with the game, fearing crowd trouble if it were abandoned. They were obviously much hardier people or less sensitive in those days! Ultimately, it was discovered that 26 people had died while another 587 had been injured.
From the tragedy, better and safer football grounds emerged, starting with Ibrox itself. The major lesson learned was that terracings needed a more secure base so from then on solid, earth banking was created upon which to build the actual terracing. While redesign work was being carried out, the capacity of Ibrox was reduced to 25,000 but by 1909 the ground’s capacity was back up to 63,000 and just before the Second World War its record crowd of 118,000 was created.
In 1925, when Rangers were beating Celtic 4-1 after an hour of a Glasgow Cup Final at Parkhead, captain Tommy Cairns called on his team-mates to halt the scoring as it was obvious that the trophy was Ibrox-bound. Days of chivalry indeed! We should have known better - as Celtic didn't reciprocate with similar mercy in the next Old Firm game by winning 5-0 and playing determinedly to the end!
The club's first professional cyclists' sports was held at Ibrox in August 1894. A crowd of 14,000 watched cyclists from Britain, America and Europe competing. Nowadays, we just wish that the likes of Sionko would get on his bike!
In 1889, the club's income was £1,240 but, after the introduction of league football, by 1894, it had risen to £5,227.
In March, 1899, Rangers became a Limited Liability Company thus becoming Rangers Football Club Ltd. with a board of directors. James Henderson was elected as Rangers first Chairman while William Wilton was appointed the club's first manager.
Due to the ever-increasing popularity of the game, resulting in much higher attendances, Gers jumped at the chance to move to a new ground. As it was a larger site, the club accepted the offer by its landlord of the land adjacent to First Ibrox. So, on 9th December, 1899 Gers played the final fixture there defeating Killie 6-1. On December 30th the club moved to its new ground ( the present stadium) and started off a new era with a 3-1 win over Hearts.
Rangers were now on course to become the premier club in the country and the construction of their new stadium suggested that this was their aim. The ground, designed by Archibald Leitch, who would become the doyen of football ground designers in Britain, cost £24,000 and had a theoretical capacity of 85,000. The terracing consisted of huge banks of pinewood steps while the Grandstand, running the length of the field, had seats for 6,000 fans, paying double the amount of those who preferred to stand and watch the match. A third of the crowd was even under cover. Once again, Rangers' management showed great foresight by including in the design an athletic and cycling track that would be used for well over half a century.
In the 1892 Scottish Cup Final, played at Ibrox between Celtic and Queen's Park, the ground's new, increased capacity of 36,000 was broken when 5,000 fans stormed the gates which were then closed, leaving 2,000 people outside. During the match, with thousands causing chaos by encroaching on to the pitch, an attempted robbery of the match takings was foiled by Rangers' trainer, John Taylor, who beat off the crooks!
Also in 1892, First Ibrox hosted its first Scotland v England match. However, the occasion was spoiled somewhat as the 21,000 fans had to watch a dismal display by Scotland resulting in a 1-4 thrashing!
In 1894, there was talk of a patent being granted to an inventor who claimed to have devised a system of keeping football pitches free of frost and snow without having to resort to covers. Unfortunately, some 21st century clubs still seem to be awaiting the granting of that permit!
In the Scottish Cup of 1884 / 85, Rangers drew with Third Lanark 2-2 and then 0-0 in the replay. At that time, the rules were different and no third match at a neutral venue was needed. Both teams simply went into the draw for the next round. Then, surprise, surprise, as Cilla Black would say, Rangers drew Third Lanark again, away at Cathkin, and lost 3-0!
Ibrox staged its first floodlit match on 8th March, 1888, winning 4-1 against Scottish Corinthians, a side that was basically the Scottish international team. 90 years later, in John Greig's Testimonial match, Gers defeated the actual Scotland side just before it left for the disastrous World Cup Finals in Argentina. The 65,000 fans who saw Treble-winning Gers thrash the Scotland side 5-0 should have known how Argentina would have turned out!
After 1885, the movement of players south of the border increased when it became legal to pay players in England while still illegal in Scotland. The payment of players had happened "under the counter" before this anyway and many Scots had started a trend by moving to England to better themselves. . This trend wouldn't be reversed until a century later with the arrival of Graeme Souness as Gers manager.
Although Rangers suffered less than most Scots clubs down the years, even some of Gers' early stars were tempted to try their luck down south. Peter Campbell and Hugh McIntyre went to Blackburn Rovers while William Struthers and John Christie went to Bolton Wanderers.
During season 1882 / 83, Rangers were in such dire financial trouble that the club only survived thanks to a loan of £30 from club President George Goudie whose money saved Gers from going out of business. Nowadays, with most clubs having debts amounting to many millions of pounds, this may seem a trifling amount but it was serious enough to threaten Rangers with extinction. I'm sure that nowadays, Sir David Murray would love to be able to merely sign a cheque and wipe out the club's debt!
Moses McNeil, one of the club's founders, became Rangers' first international player when he was capped for Scotland against Wales in 1876.
In the Scottish Cup campaign of 1875 / 76, in the opening round, Gers played First Lanark RV ( Rifle Volunteers) and in the next round played Third Lanark RV ( don't ask me what happened to Second Lanark! ) Gers beat Third Lanark 1-0 but some bright spark noticed that Rangers had kicked off BOTH halves of the match and, after a protest ( not uncommon in those early days) the tie was replayed with Third Lanark winning 2-0.
One of Rangers' founders, Peter Campbell, after a spell at Blackburn Rovers, became the Chief Engineer on a steam ship. Tragically, he died in 1883 when his ship sank in a terrible storm in the notorious Bay of Biscay. Nobody survived the accident.
In season 1875/76, Rangers moved from Fleshers' Haugh on Glasgow Green to the first ground of their own, as befitting a growing club. Although they had almost moved to a ground in Shawfield, their new home, Burnbank, was situated across the city in the West End of Glasgow, just off Great Western Road. This was an ideal location as most Gers players lived locally. Rangers even managed to get Vale of Leven ( second only to Queen's Park then) to open their new ground. However, the club's stay there didn't last long. After one season, it was time to move on. This time, the move took the club south of the River Clyde to the area of Glasgow known as Kinning Park. This had recently been vacated by Clydesdale Football and Cricket Club which re-located to Titwood, ultimately becoming a cricket club only.
Once again, the mighty Vale did the honours and played the inaugural match there. Unfortunately, this didn't turn out to be the perfect home for Rangers either because they were outgrowing its facilities and had already started the search for a more permanent home when their Kinning Park landlord gave them notice to vacate the premises as the site was required for industrial development. So, in February, 1887, this ground closed and in August of that year First Ibrox was opened.
This ground was practically beside the present stadium, having its eastern boundary on Copland Road. The ground's capacity was around 15,000 with an open stand that could seat 1,200. Gers had their Honorary Secretary, Walter Crichton, to thank for this inspired choice of location. He foresaw the spread of Glasgow westwards in the coming years and realised that this site had wonderful access for future spectators. Not only did it have tram and railway lines running nearby with a train station a few hundred yards away, it also had two nearby ferries crossing the Clyde and even a pedestrian tunnel at Finnieston that was the original Clyde Tunnel.
By the end of the century, when the Glasgow Underground system had been completed, there would also be a subway station on Copland Road. Even nowadays, Ibrox must be one of the most accessible grounds in the country. Although the railway station was lost to Beeching in the 60s, a motorway with access and exit points runs nearby, allowing fans to travel to the city centre or, in the other direction, Glasgow Airport, within five minutes, making it strange that the current SFA has never nominated Ibrox ahead of Hampden for a UEFA Final!
Proof of Gers' ambitions then was not only in its new stadium but also the choice of opposition to open it - Preston North End. This was the best side in England, therefore, the WORLD - the "Old Invincibles". Gers had guaranteed the Englishmen £50 of the gate money so it was just as well that the takings came to £290 from the sell-out 15,000 crowd. Despite Rangers' excellent hospitality, the famous guests proceeded to hammer the hosts 8-1 and gave the club an insight into the standards that would be necessary if Rangers were ever to equal such a club as Preston.
In 1891, the erstwhile "Indian fighter", Colonel W.F.Cody, alias Buffalo Bill, made an appearance at Ibrox - but at half-time only. His presentation to the crowd was no doubt to advertise his Wild West Show being performed in Glasgow at that time. However, many Gers fans seemed distinctly unimpressed by the American hero and calls were directed at "Long Hair" to get his hair cut! Wonder what those fans would have made of Mark Hateley in his heyday?
