Truebluejimmy

Come on the Gers!! We are back!!!

As the fortieth anniversary of Rangers’ greatest achievement on the field, now is as good a time as any to remember that glorious occasion. Much has been written about Rangers triumph in May 24th, 1972 and it will always remained etched in my memory as to quote a terrible cliché,I was there! My brother Crichton, my future brother-in-law George and me made up the intrepid threesome bound for the distant Mediterranean port. Our means of transportation was an ancient Humber camper van which served as our sleeping quarters during the week long Odyssey. Since neither Crichton nor I had a driving licence, George was left with the Herculean task of conveying us single-handedly from the wilds of West Fife to Barcelona and back! We somehow made it over the Pyrenees with the Humber creaking ominously as it climbed the huge mountains which separate France from Spain. It was clear that from the moment we entered Spain that it was very different. We were ordered out of the van at customs control by uniformed men in strangely shaped, black patent hats. This was our first encounter with the notorious Guardia Civil, General Franco’s paramilitary force notorious for their brutal methods of suppressing any form of dissent. Much has been written about “Barcelona 1972”, much of it true some of it fantasy. What is clear is that to gain any understanding of the events, one has to understand the Spain of 1972. Francisco Franco took power illegally in Spain, following the end of the Spanish Civil War in 1939. Along with his buddies Hitler and Mussolini, he ruled ruthlessly and was particularly brutal in those regions which he saw as dangerous and disloyal. Barcelona being the capital of Catalonia was essentially a city under constant oppression. People were not allowed to associate in groups of more than three people, trade unions were banned, speaking Catalan was banned in schools and in public, there were no free elections. It was into this strange, alien world that Crichton, George and I wandered, innocents abroad. On the day of the game the number of Rangers supporters suddenly became much more visible. They gathered in the Plaça de Cataluyna and began the songs which were regarded with curiosity by the locals. The Guardia Civil stood back nervous at seeing so many people express themselves freely. Gradually the locals' curiosity overcame their natural caution to observe these strange tall, fair skinned aryans from the north. Divided by language, religion and culture, two diverse peoples engaged initially at least in nervous social intercourse. As I recall it was a clear morning with just a few clouds in the sky, perhaps a harbringer of the eventful day which was about to unfold. By two o'clock as a result of the chartered planes arriving, the Plaça de Catalunya had suddenly filled to overflowing. In those days, one of Her Brittanic Majesty's notes would get you 320 pesetas. That is a lot of vino tinto and cerveza! At just forty pesetas for a carafe, the day was set and it was fiesta time.I remember clearly attempting to have a conversation in broken English with a diminutive Spaniard who reeked of garlic. After two litres of red wine, the wee man knew "Derry's Walls" and "The Sash' by heart. By this time, the huge square could no longer contain the thronging mass of humanity. New friendships had been established between one oppressed people and another with a long and dignified history which cherished personal rights and freedoms.They may have struggled to understand the impenetrable dialects of Larkhall, Harthill and Skye, but instinctively the locals knew the good guys had come to town. From the Plaça de Catalyna the great human cavalcade headed down the Ramblas, the main thoroughfare of Barcelona. From the high balconies dark eyed beauties tossed carnations, wine was offered and gratefully accepted. Then almost imperceptibly at first, a faint chant could be discerned, growing each second in volume until it reached an incredible cacophony. '¡Libertad! ¡Libertad!¡Libertad!The people had found their voice, Rangers being the main orifice for Catalan pride. All the while Franco's acolytes watched on nervously, their itchy hands massaging their huge truncheons. We sensed what was coming but we were young, we were free and above all we were Rangers. At the end of the Ramblas, we turned left under the stunning "Arco de los Borrachos" and onto the Nou Camp. The game still has a surreal quality to it, almost dreamlike. Even any aspiring screen writer could not have come up with a better script. The venue of the game held in the last bastion of fascism with its unhealthy link to the Catholic church and religious fanatics. Ranger's opponents? The Godless, soulless artifact that was the Soviet Union. A society in which human beings were reduced to the status of 'social units". And between these two evils stood Rangers, standing for the true values of Christianity and decency. I have read a lot about Spain and its recent history and have retraced my steps three times. It was slightly scary to learn that the same route we ploughed that May day was in the footsteps of George Orwell and the International Brigade. Orwell and co may have come to Spain with different objectives and most probably had no interest in football. However, had George and his fellow democrats been present that balmy May night, you can be sure that he would have been cheering on the lads in blue and white. After all, the victory in Barcelona was more than just a game of football.

What about that season when Hearts never won the league, and lost it on the last ten minutes of the last game??? You don't have to hate Celtic to see that Hearts were the best of a very bad bunch that year. And oh yes...the very same pre-Souness years that Walter was talking about. Football in Scotland needs to be restructured but that is a very different matter altogether.

Money buys you younger, fitter players. And YES having an efficient scouting system helps even more.

WTF? Today Walter said that Rangers may be entering a 'barren period' akin to pre-Souness days. He also made the point that finances were they key to everything. Given the fact that Celtic seem to be buying two players for each position, how in God's name is that fair. Under O'Neill, Celtic spent loads of money, fair enough as so did we as we discovered later to our cost. The point is that as Walter says, we are heading back to early eighties spending, whereas they are still spending at a much more current market rate. They are not obviously spending EPL amounts as they don't have the cash, but they are easily outspending everybody else. As Walter implies, how is that fair and what does it do for Scottish football?

This isn't sour grapes, but considering the significant financial gap that exists between Celtic and the other clubs in the SPL, surely there is a case to be made that if they do (after so many failed attempts) finally win the SPL that it has in fact been bought. This in my mind would make any sort of title win totally invalid. Remember their main opponents including the likes of Hearts, Aberdeen as well as us are competing in an unfair market. Sheer purchasing power, rather than sound investment or good management will eventually buy them the trophy. Fair competition happens in the real economy, so why not in football? We as a country are suffering economically, everywhere you look people are losing their jobs and there are cutbacks to local services. Rangers is an excellent reflection of the harsh realities that affect the Scottish nation. Before I was opposed to any sort of quotas or signing restrictions but given the grim economic forecasts for the future surely this is the way forward so as to ensure the continuation of Scottish football as a fair and equitable industry. There should be a limit on the number of non-Scottish footballers in the SPL, this idea has been mooted at UEFA level as there is general concern about the effect of big money clubs distorting the football industry. I admit there were mistakes at Rangers, but those that committed these mistakes have left the club and Mr Whyte has been left to pick up the pieces. Rangers and Hearts in particular were lent money on a reckless scale by the banks with supporters having no say in how the money was spent. I notice that Greece for example is trying to get their huge debts reduced by telling their creditors to take a hit too, in other words, the banks as well as the Greeks made mistakes, they should take the blame and pain too. Surely it is not unreasonable to say, given the prominent role that Rangers plays in Scottish society, to wipe out some if not most of the debt. Maybe I am being idealistic, but given what I see in the wider world, I would say Rangers and others have a case for going down this path. Fred 'the shred' Goodwin ran the RBS into the ground, got a knighthood and a pension amounting to millions,whereas thousands of ordinary people in banks lost their jobs due to his gross incompetence. Is that right? Of course it is not, there is talk of stripping him of his knighthood, stopping him getting his pension and even bringing him to trial. Rangers were as much a victim as the businesses and people who were robbed by RBS. We were as much victims as the rest.

Some bheggar called "Tommy' claiming to represent a fictitious radio station called "Glasgow online", called David Taylor who was former general secretary of UEFA. This post carries a lot of power and influence, with the ear to those who run the game in Europe. In the course of the recorded discussion Taylor makes a strange reference to the fact that 'his wife and kids were good catholics' and claimed that Celtic had 'not got a lot of friends in the media, particularly the BBC'. Just what does his wife and children's religion have to do with anything? Taylor then admits that his wife attended the Rennes-Celtic game as a supporter of the grey and green. Conflict of interest? I should say so. Mr Taylor's remarks should confirm what many of us suspected down the years. Celtic seemed to enjoy a charmed life when they were dishing out the punishment for rowdy fans throughout Europe. We have been hammered along with teams from Holland and other countries, why? Well, I did notice that Platini was spotted a few times at Celtic games in the company of the recently departed sinister Dr Death. Why have I not posted the link? Because although I haven't listened to it personally, I would not give them the pleasure of registering a hit and adding to "Tommy's" notoriety.I read a written summary and that was enough. Why have I posted a report on here? To attempt to get Rangers supporters to wake up to the extent they are entrenched and use influence to get their way. This is not paranoia but fact. They run circles round us with their active attempt to promote their interests at any cost. We are naive, we really are. They can buy and sell us, day and night. Somebody at Ibrox needs to get organized and fight fire with fire.

It's easy to make that assumption, next time I'll be much clearer.They are a creepy bunch.

I don't know much about him at all. Let's look closer at home for a replacement for the big man only IF needed.

Obviously I can't prove that he won't sign for them, but I would be very surprised. I have read about him and he doesn't seem to fit the profile of the player they need. Lennon said they needed a big strong forward like Jelavic. Worringly, if he doesn't fit their profile, I would have doubts about him replacing our big man. Jelavic doesn't just score goals, he leads the line, makes the ball stick and links play, remember how effective Naismith was? We NEED to keep the big man and that is our top priority, if he goes his replacement is going to have to be as good, if not better given our horrendous injury list. I'll be keeping my fingers crossed.

In Scotland? Surely not!

We were strongly linked with a Polish player called Pawel Brozek. To be honest, I had never even heard of that guy. All of a sudden the tims are now linked with him. He certainly won't sign for them, but that doesn't matter to them. Their intention is so scupper the Rangers bid by driving up the price and raising the player and agent's expectations. They really are a sneaky shower who don't even try to hide it.

Call me old fashioned, but I prefer going to watch good Rangers teams. That is maybe a controversial statement nowadays! quote name='Thermopylae' timestamp='1327722043' post='1059711428'] Don't get me wrong it was great in the 9IAR years when you watched real quality on the park turning it on most weeks but I know the game against hibs today will probably be a close run thing and that makes victory all the sweeter when it happens

Read the posts that follow the post you posted. WE HATE THE SCUM!! I listened to the Dutch guy on Wednesday and he was great the first time in ages. However, I gave them the benefit tonight and within two minutes I was out!! Scum, utter scum!!

DO NOT!! It is pish.