debs1970

I really don’t want to rant in this thread, but I really don’t understand some people. 
Anyway, I’m glad I was able to pay my respects to my favourite ever Ranger. 
Sleep easy, Walter.

Simply The Best. 

Rest in peace walter.....thanks for everything 💙

It’s just starting to sink in that he’s gone and honestly 73 is no age at all. 
 
Life is cruel

Still can't believe it. 
Watching clips and videos of him it still feels so unfair..

Not a fucking peep from Nil by Mouth Call it out Angela Haggerty Jeanette Findlay James Dornan no surprises there

A colleague's just been telling me about one of his most cherished family stories. His gran was a carer and was invited to a charity dinner. She got sat next to a stranger and, throughout the whole meal, he asked her lots of questions about her work, her colleagues, and her patients - showing lots of interest in it all. As the dinner was about to finish, she finally says "I'm so sorry, I never asked what you did" and he replied "oh, I just manage a football team". She says "what team's that?" to which he says "Rangers", much to her surprise. Cue her getting Walter Smith to sign every napkin and scrap of paper she could find for her Rangers-mad grandkids. My colleague says his gran's favourite subject from that day on was Walter Smith and how much of a gentleman he was. 

Rangers have 116 Major honours. Walter is responsible for 21 of them . That is roughly around 1/6 of our trophy haul one man is responsible for. The count goes up when you consider his involvement as assistant with Souness where he played a major part in delivering success. 
 
before even considering the help and guidance he has given managers who took over the role. I have no doubts Walter’s wisdom ove the years helped Gerrard deliver 55
 
 

Apologies if posted already, just seen a great point made;
 
Rangers are 150 years old. We wear five stars to represent our achievements in that time. Walter Smith is responsible for one of them.
 

I worked in Cameron house during the period that Rangers had a huge presence there, basically every foreign player that signed would stay until they found a house (unlike Gazza who from memory never left)
Worked in a restaurant that would close for 3 hours, maybe 3-6 so staff would work split shifts. One particular day I was asked if I’d work through the split as a group needed a private area, just top up the tea etc so I agreed.  
In walked Walter with some other guys I didn’t know but it transpired they were representing a potential signing. 
It quickly became clear the name Brian was being mentioned a lot and then I heard the iconic surname (admittedly more through Michael for me) I stood there the next couple of hours as they (as it appeared to me) if not close certainly put in place the Laudrup deal. 
Won’t mean much to others that story but for me to have been present that day when such a pivotal moment occurred involving such giants of our club, it’s hard to believe to be honest. Hand on heart the great man took time to chat to me during their break, in hindsight I should have left him alone but well, young and dumb so was right in chatting to him.  
 
Walter was always around the hotel and it’ll surprise nobody when I say all the hallmarks of his character and values were constantly evident - had time for everyone, I recall we played a staff 5 aside game out the back one day and he stood for ages watching, i could barely move  
So many stories from Cameron House at that time (Gazza!) but to digress a little I’ll finish on a lighter note …. Working a shift at their marina when this bloke started talking to me about Rangers, we were playing Celtic the next day and he asked me if I was going, I said no, I had no ticket…are you going mate says I? He said aye I'm going, I am the Rangers goalkeeper. It was Dibble…I genuinely think he was about to give me a ticket until I said that.
 

Can we fuck off with any pish about the game tonight in Walters memory, this thread is to share discussion to honour the man, not to bring current form into any thoughts of our memories of him.
Show some fucking decorum.
 

Ibrox playing all his favourite songs.

Similar story here. Was too young to remember his first time with us. Must’ve been 6 too when we got 9IAR. My dad sat me down to watch all our games as a kid but I couldn’t appreciate it. The Rangers I fell in love was under advocaat. My dad told me all about what happened under Walter and a lot of stuff from the late 60s to 80s. 
 
when Walter came back my dad was almost in tears. Like you say we were under strain so I imagine to have Walter back there would’ve been a sense of comfort and a feeling of excitement cause I mind my dad saying with Walter in charge he felt like we could take on the world. I don’t need to tell anyone here what he achieved but my dad was right. He couldn’t believe that he was getting to see Rangers in a European final again. He was only 9 when we won in Barcelona and he passed away only a few months after Manchester. I’m thankful to Walter for a lot of things but probably most of all for me personally it was getting us to that final and letting my dad see us play in it. 

Was gutted yesterday upon the news. Some of the best days of my life was going to games when we were under Walters guidance. 
Met him a couple of times at a hotel I used to work in when I was younger and he was always happy to speak even though we were told not to. Got my uefa cup final programme signed off him at his nephews wedding and at the end if the night he was up on the stage singing and I'm pretty sure doing a wee bouncy. 
Class man and we've lost a Rangers icon. Seen a clip earlier if him and Jardine when we won the league and its sad they two guardians of the club are gone. RIP sir Walter. 

Work was a struggle last night just replaying all the memories over in my head from his 2nd spell, was only 6 years old when we clinched 9IAR so it wasn't my time but I'd grown up listening to stories about that side from my dad, watched all the videos etc so when it was announced that he was returning to Rangers it was like this colossus of a man was coming back to really sort the club out considering the bad spell we were going through at that time. 
Been said many times in this thread already but 07-11 was a really special period in our clubs history imo, for that man to walk through those doors again and achieve what he did considering the strains that were on the club at the time was nothing short of unbelievable, the one game that really summed it all up was the cup final v St Mirren,to drag us through kicking and screaming with 9 men to win it was incredible. 
He'll always be the Rangers manager for me and has earned a special place in our clubs long and illustrious history, thanks for the memories Walter 💙

Just a reminder for anyone who isn't aware, this evening's game v Aberdeen is on RTV inside the UK/ROI.
https://rangerspayments.streamamg.com/account/register/step1
I won't be able to come up and take my seat sadly so I've paid the £9.99 to give myself the best chance of feeling like I'm there in spirit. Look after each other Bears.

Have felt completely numb and not really known what to say - been touching reading all the classy tributes on here.
Will be so emotional tonight.  Has felt like a part of my childhood gone forever now, a sobering reminder that heroes aren't invcicble and nothing can last forever.
Thanks for the best days of my life, Walter 

Great piece by Tom English to be fair. 
Even now, seven or eight years later, the look on Stuart McCall's face is as vivid as it was when the bombshell descended that day in the radio studio by the Clyde.
McCall was speaking about the anniversary of one of the finest days for his Rangers team under the management of Walter Smith, one of many such days. He was going through the gears in how much he rated and loved his old mentor. 
"Sir Walter was the most inspirational person I ever played for," began the former Ibrox midfielder before delivering a powerful and, at times, moving speech about what "Sir Walter" had done for him. It was cracking stuff, a real insight into what made Smith so special. 
"That was brilliant, Stuart," said the host once the show ended. "But you do know that he hasn't been knighted…" 
"Sir Walter?" replied a bemused McCall.
"Yes, he's not been knighted."
There was a momentary pause. After registering his outrage that the gong had never gone the way of his ex-boss, he threw his hands to the heavens at the injustice of it all and said: "Well, he'll always be Sir Walter to me."
Tuesday was a profoundly sad day for the Smith family and for all those footballers and friends the great man influenced in an epic life in the game. 
There was a vast scale to the eulogies. Big name after big name after big name. Those were the lucky ones, the ones who knew him, who played for him, who managed with or against him, who got to spend time with him and learn from him. If you were in that group then you were truly fortunate. Others only have snapshots. 
It can be cringemaking when people on the periphery insert themselves into the narrative of a tragic loss like this by recounting their own tales from yesteryear that show what a tremendous person X or Y was (tales that are really a self aggrandisement dressed up as tribute). We run that risk here, but it's a story we'll tell none the less. 
In early 1993, this writer was in his early months in Glasgow, an alien city in an alien country; early 20s and unfamiliar in the ways of Scottish football. Perhaps he saw the vaguely bewildered look, but Smith showed a kindness that was appreciated then and is still appreciated now.
He talked warmly for half an hour in his office at the top of the stairs at Ibrox. Even in my naive state it was obvious this was unusual and special. "If you want an interview with anybody then fax the club on a Tuesday and I'll make sure it happens." 
I did - and it happened. Again and again. It was a very big deal. He had no need to help. Nothing that I wrote would have registered with him or mattered in any sense, but he did it anyway. 
If that's a self-indulgent story, then apologies, but I've always that felt it was a glimpse not of the football man, but of the man, the thoughtful character those closest to him would have known and loved. 
That decency was one side of him, the personal side. Of course, there was another side, that of the operator. At a media conference weeks later, he walked into the room and confronted some poor misfortune whose newspaper columns had annoyed him. A senior writer. Actually, it was a friend of his. "You've been writing some amount of shite lately…"
On his way out of this verbal evisceration there was a definite trace of a smile on the manager's face. I'd wondered why everybody - even the most gnarled pros in the writing game - seemed to sit up straight when Smith appeared. Now I knew. 
'If we name a stand after him, he'll always be with us'
This was one formidable manager, not just in the way he coached footballers but in the way he dealt with journalists. Respectful, insightful, funny and kind with his time - but when the mood struck, boy, was he tough. If there was a world staring championships, Walter Smith would not have been stopped at nine-in-a-row.
His connection with Rangers was life-long, since his days as a schoolkid going along to matches with his grandfather. There's a story about him breaking his leg in a game when he was 14. His father wrote to the club and asked for permission for young Walter to sit pitchside so he could stretch out his wounded limb. 
The written reply from then manager Scot Symon stayed in the family until the letter was donated to the club. Sympathy was expressed and support offered, but the answer, in short, was no. The snub never put him off. He was, from top to toe, a Rangers man, steeped in its history. 
But he meant other things to other people, too. He was a Dundee United player for 14 years. He made almost 200 appearances, some under Jerry Kerr, some under Jim McLean. He did his coaching badges at 25. 
He was assistant to McLean until 1986 (a 20-year contribution, give or take) when Rangers came calling. He was only 38 at the time. His death comes just 10 months after McLean's passing. The Scottish football team in the sky is not struggling for geniuses to lead it. 
What's been telling in the tributes is the affection in which Smith was held throughout British football. His spell at Everton was a largely turbulent one, played out against a backdrop of money troubles, questionable governance at the top of the club, and a fanbase living in fear of the drop. 
And yet those seasons of constant struggle have done little to reduce Smith in the eyes of the Goodison fans who knew what he was up against. 
Some of the journalists on the beat in Liverpool, like their counterparts in Glasgow, have been practically in tears since the news broke. They remember a man who rose above a boardroom decision to sell Duncan Ferguson behind his back in his first season. "I thought long and hard about leaving many times," Smith once said. "Day after day I reviewed my position and asked myself if there was any future for me."
They remember the mess the club was in and the lengths that Smith went to in order to wrestle it back up the table. They also remember his mischievous humour in the face of such tumult. The strength of his team was poor across 143 Premier League games, but the strength of his character never lessened, not even after he got the sack. 
He spent some months at Manchester United as Sir Alex Ferguson's assistant. That was from March 2004. Darren Fletcher credits Smith with starting the process that turned Cristiano Ronaldo from a showboating circus act into one of the game's greatest ever footballers. 
Smith went on to manage Scotland in the wake of the farrago that was Berti Vogts' tenure. It was a depressed landscape. You'd have needed a telescope to pick out any sign of life, but when he left the job to go back to Rangers he'd stabilised things and improved performances. Scotland beat World Cup finalists France on his watch. A minor footballing miracle.
The lure of Rangers was always going to be too much for him, though. Winning those early titles alongside Graeme Souness was one thing, but he came into his own when taking on the manager's job and bringing Rangers to another level. 
At one point, before foreign investment started to crash into English football with a vengeance, Rangers were the best team in Britain and, briefly, one of the best in Europe. For all that, you could easily argue that it was Smith's second spell as manager from 2007 that showed his genius in greater clarity. 
His nine-in-a-row teams were expensively put together and had class in all corners. The one he inherited second time around wasn't even in the same ballpark - and the financial climate was totally different. The distress flares were visible on the finance front when he returned. The big-money signings had dried up. The squad depth became shallow. The stress factor increased. 
In making it all the way to the Uefa Cup final in 2008 and then winning the league in 2009, 2010 and 2011, Smith showed he didn't need riches to get the job done. His pragmatism and intelligence allowed him to construct a formidable unit even with the gathering sound of financial chaos in the background. 
He never allowed himself to get distracted by a turmoil he knew was inevitable. What is that if not great leadership, brilliance under fire. 
He returned again when the club was at a new low, this time as chairman under the wretched reign of Charles Green. It was an ill-advised move and one he came to regret quite quickly. You could see why he did it, though. 
Angry at what become of his club under Craig Whyte and fearful of what might happen under Green, he re-entered the fray in a role he was totally unsuited to. He did it out of concern. Nobody in the Rangers support would have been happier to see the club win the league last season. He bore some scars from getting them back to where he felt they belonged. 
On a rainy Tuesday night in May 2011, Rangers beat Dundee United, the club that had such a profound impact on his coaching, in the penultimate game of the league season. It was Smith's last game as manager in his spiritual home. 
When club officials asked him to go back out after the game was over to take the acclaim of the supporters he was initially reticent. "I was worried everyone may have gone home as it was such a bad night weather-wise," he said. 
Those images are unforgettable, the lights and the incessant downpour making it all the more poignant. As he walked and waved, 50,000 people in the stadium got to their feet to applaud him. And they're applauding still.

Still feel numb that he’s gone and devastated I can’t be there tonight due to covid, this man is the epitome of what our club stands for the class dignity and standards he has set in our club will be seen for generations to come, we really are lucky to have someone such as Gerrard at the helm just now that’s gets our club and will continue Walters work. 

Such sad news you can see how respected the gaffer was when you read the tributes coming from all across the globe. The tributes reflect what a great family man he was and feel for his family.
He gave his all to the club and said it all when he gave up the Scotland job to come back and help us out. To win trophies in that period and get us to the Eufa cup final (with one hand tied behind his back financially) shows why he is our greatest manager ever. In fact he is and always will be Mr Rangers.

I am absolutely devastated.
News broke while I was at work this morning and I just wanted to leave. It seemed to come out of the blue after we'd all seen the golfing day photos recently. I just had to get my head down and get on with it but really wanted to be home and spend the day amongst the Rangers family reading the emotional and wonderful tributes on here.
As I was driving home though I had Radio Scotland on and they were interviewing Richard Gough. The big man spoke with such reverence and emotion about Sir Walter that I broke down.
There's nothing I can add this late in the day that hasn't been said so eloquently on here already. Growing up the man was Rangers to me. These very rare legends weave in and out of the story of your own lives and leave their mark on you in a tremendously powerful way.
I was only ever fortunate enough to meet Mr Smith fleetingly on a couple of occasions but he would smile knowingly at you as he shook your hand and then you moved out of his way with respect.
Genuinely heartbroken tonight. Rest in peace Walter and as Richard Gough said we can all only hope you're in a better place now after your recent struggles. You will never ever be forgotten.
My condolences go out to Ethel and the extended family.
God bless you Sir and I thank you from the bottom of my heart for everything you've ever done for me without you ever knowing

I normally just sit back and let the more outspoken guys on the forum do all the hard work and digest all of their points of view whether I agree with them or not. This is the fifth anniversary of my own dads passing and poignant though it always is, I feel and share the pain tonight from all of you guys mourning the passing of a Rangers giant in Walter. The guy oozed class and dignity and brought dad and my brothers so many happy memories during both of his tenures in charge at Ibrox. It is incredibly hard to let someone that you love leave this life but more important to treasure the memories that they leave behind. Walter has set the standards for everyone at Rangers to adhere and aspire to and can rest now that his battle is over. Dad was Rangers daft and it is very ironic and fitting that he now shares the same date of his passing with such a Rangers giant. Very best wishes to the Smith family and hopefully they can take comfort from the incredible reaction from the football world and beyond in recognising Walters achievements. Try and listen to David Edgar’s podcast as it is both heartfelt and poignant and dignified. The Rangers family has lost their father today as well as my family did on this day five years ago . Take care guys .

A touching tale of Walter Smith in Largs has emerged following the football great sadly passing aged 73. 
Sharing her story online, Jill Paterson says she came across the Rangers legend when she worked in Charlie Smith's pub in the town. 
She said: "A young guy came into the bar and said; 'I play for Everton, do you know if my manager is in?' Indeed he was, standing on top of a table belting out King of the Road on the karaoke, good times.'"
Jill says Walter and his players were in the pub regularly, after training at Invercylde Sports Centre. 
She added: "He was a great man, the life and soul. Not many are made like him anymore sadly."
Tributes have been paid throughout the day to the Scottish football legend, who led Rangers to ten top-flight titles, five Scottish Cups, six League Cups and the UEFA Cup final in 2008. 

That is class. Pure class. The personification of what it means to be a man. Pardon the expression, but men like Smith truly are a dying breed.😢