To Be A Ranger

The U21 Championships seems to have done wonders for him.  He's came back a much improved player.  I said it before but the Croatian coach prefers Katic to Benkovic who Leicester signed for £12m.  Katic could turn out to be a hugely valuable asset for us on and off the park.

Their continuous attacks on referees has been going on so long we just shrug our shoulders these days. They really need to be brought to account with the SFA showing they are willing to back up and protect their refs. Every game they don't win they blame some decision on the ref. The cup semi win, where Mackay scored his blistering 25 harder, they blamed on a throw in that was given to us instead of them FFS 
'The The club with the worst track record on any kind of integrity is instead trying to create a narrative around alleged bias two weeks before an Old Firm game with the intention of putting the SFA and the Referee under pressure. It’s a game they have played successfully over many years with the help of the media. It’s powerful propaganda, and  by its very nature untrue, but credible to those receptive to it. By repeating it over and over again people become more receptive, and they walk on to the pitch with a Referee under intense scrutiny not to give any decisions against them'

Rangers ordered 1700 tickets for their supporters and Scots will probably fill the visitors' sector at Ł3 on Thursday. Five years ago, on July 30, 2014, for the 3rd round match el. Only 135 celtic fans came. During this visit, they lost three flags.

Rangers ordered 1700 tickets for their supporters and Scots will probably fill the visitors' sector at Ł3 on Thursday. Five years ago, on July 30, 2014, for the 3rd round match el. Only 135 celtic fans came. During this visit, they lost three flags.

Their continuous attacks on referees has been going on so long we just shrug our shoulders these days. They really need to be brought to account with the SFA showing they are willing to back up and protect their refs. Every game they don't win they blame some decision on the ref. The cup semi win, where Mackay scored his blistering 25 harder, they blamed on a throw in that was given to us instead of them FFS 
'The The club with the worst track record on any kind of integrity is instead trying to create a narrative around alleged bias two weeks before an Old Firm game with the intention of putting the SFA and the Referee under pressure. It’s a game they have played successfully over many years with the help of the media. It’s powerful propaganda, and  by its very nature untrue, but credible to those receptive to it. By repeating it over and over again people become more receptive, and they walk on to the pitch with a Referee under intense scrutiny not to give any decisions against them'

Exactly and look where we are today on the way back to square 1. 
Watch every little decision against them and for us got highlighted and the conspiracy pish get ramped up as the title race goes to the wire. This should’ve been stamped out the last time but god forbid the SFA appear to upset Scum Fc.
You reap what you sow as the saying goes, time to nip this in the bud once and for all right across the board. 

They never done fuck all 20 years ago when we were in the same (arguably a worse position) with Dallas. Nothing will change, they'll get a fine, we'll all go back to paying lip service to referees' safety.

Couldn't agree more mate. Some of the comments I've seen over there are an absolute embarrassment. 
One boy signed up to the Legia forum volunteering to escort them round Glasgow and give them travel advice and sorting out places for them to drink etc. He said something along the lines of he hopes to arrange a mutually assured good behaviour pact or some shite 
If they Legia ultras want to cause it then they will, doubt they will think 'oh fuck better not kick off, Fraser from Milngavie has sorted a mutual good behaviour pact'. The wee goon is just screaming out please don't attack us the absolute nonce.

There's cunts on FF acting like we are heading into a Mexican drug cartels lair ffs.
Aye Warsaw might be mad but we've been to Greece, turkey, feyenoord, Ajax etc. All supports with a reputation. Rangers fans generally go get wrecked and have a laugh. If trouble comes looking then we tend to just go with it, win some lose some. 
But honestly I've never seen so much shite written about an away European tie
if legia want trouble with Rangers fans then they'll get it, if they don't then our boys will have a great day and night and thats it. 
id imagine people are getting themselves worked up because legia are a passionate support and create a lot of noise and colour. Aye they'll try be intimidating but so will we in our own way next week.
dont know what's happened to some of the Rangers support these days. 

Had a look on FF yesterday and was cringing for some of the posts. Pansy bastards man. 

https://www.vanguardbears.co.uk/article.php?i=288&a=troubled-tom
☺️

I was thinking that myself the bastard

I've been pm'd the cost. I'd imagine he's done the same with everyone on the thread. Don't know why he doesn't just say it here. I'll leave it up to him to decide if he wants to post it.

1953 correct and we won the replay -- found a good article on the Thistle History website about Niven
GEORGE Niven, who has died aged 79, was at the same time one of the best and one of the unluckiest goalkeepers in Rangers' history.
A Fifer from Blairhill, he arrived at Ibrox in 1951 from junior side Coupar Angus, as back-up to Scottish internationalist Bobby Brown. The legendary "Iron Curtain" defence of the 1949 treble winners was breaking up with Johnny Little replacing captain Jock "Tiger" Shaw at left-back, but Brown, George Young, Ian McColl, Willie Woodburn and Sammy Cox were still there. 

Niven was blooded in the final game of the 1951-52 season, a 1-1 draw with Aberdeen at Pittodrie, but after Brown carried the can for a 0-5 League Cup drubbing by Hearts in the second match of the 1952-53 season Niven became first choice No 1. It was a position he was to hold until Billy Ritchie replaced him a decade later. 

Fifties goalkeepers were not the untouchables of today, frequently sustaining injuries as forwards used their licence to "rummel 'em up". Niven had more than his share of knocks, for instance he was carried off with a cut head after 27 minutes of the 1953 Scottish Cup Final, sustaining the injury when diving at the feet of Dons centre-forward Paddy Buckley.

This brought about the sight of the much larger George Young shoe-horned into Niven's jersey as temporary goalkeeper, since there were no substitutes back then. Niven had four stitches put in his wound and reappeared, head bandaged, in the second half of a match which ended 1-1. 
He sported a "Biggles style" leather helmet for the midweek replay and played his part in Rangers' 1-0 win which completed a league and cup double. These were the first of eight medals Niven was to win in his time with the club, during which he played 327 first team games.

In all, he won winners' medals for five League Championships, two Scottish Cups, and one League Cup. His matches for the club included 15 in Europe. And he is believed to have played more first team games for the club than any other Scotsman without winning a full Scotland cap.
This failing however is largely down to bad luck. He made seven appearances for the Scottish League side – an honour greater than some of the giveaway caps won in today's international games. He travelled with the Scotland party to Austria, Hungary and Turkey in an end of season tour in 1960 but he didn't play.

Indeed the closest he came to a full cap was early in 1960 when, with regular Scotland goalkeeper Bill Brown not released by Tottenham Hotspur, Niven was chosen for the game against England at Hampden. Sadly for him, he was injured and Frank Haffey of celtic won an 11th hour call-up. 
A year later with Brown again unavailable due to club commitments and Lawrie Leslie of West Ham, Scotland's first choice goalkeeper that season, injured, Niven was called up for the game at Wembley. Again injury prevented him from playing, Haffey once more getting the late call-up – and conceding nine goals in the infamous 9-3 defeat. 

Although small for a goalkeeper Niven was rarely caught out; he was agile, commanding and a good decision maker. He had few bad games for Rangers although, like the entire defence with the exception of Eric Caldow, he was lambasted for his performance in Rangers' 1-7 League Cup final defeat to celtic in 1957.
Niven held his place after the game, with the bulk of the blame falling on centre-half John Valentine. That defeat also produced the apocryphal joke about celtic's Charlie Tully passing Niven in Buchanan Street on the Monday morning and nodding a greeting whereby Niven dived through one of Fraser's plate glass windows.

As the Fifties gave way to the Sixties and new Rangers players such as John Greig, Ron McKinnon and Jim Baxter broke through, Niven found his place under increasing threat from the patient Ritchie. 

Inevitably in time the younger man was preferred, and with the younger still Norrie Martin in reserve Niven was released to join Partick Thistle where he continued to show what a competent and consistent keeper he was before Ritchie in turn followed him to Queen's Cross and again superseded him. He retired in 1968, having played 232 games for the Firhill club. In the later years of his career he went into business co-owning with Young a popular coffee bar in Glasgow's Renfield Street.
Rangers goalkeepers were known for efficiency rather than flamboyance – until Chris Woods and Andy Goram came along – and Niven certainly fitted that template. 
He was first choice at a time of change at the club. It was surely easy to come in and play behind the best defence in Scotland, less easy to backstop Rangers during the turmoil which followed Woodburn's suspension and Young's retirement in 1957.
It says much about Niven that his finest years for the club came between the eclipse of the first "Iron Curtain" defence and the rise of the second, the Ritchie, Shearer, Caldow, Greig, McKinnon, Baxter back six of the early Sixties. During those years of transition Rangers needed a first-rate goalkeeper, and in George Niven they had one.

What a cheek. Or 2.

There was a point in the off season i couldnt wait for the season to start so we had real stuff to talk about.  Fuckin blew that theory out the window with this thread

Admin, can you please ban the OP from making threads, or posting at all?
Thanks.

Ffs man.
Cunts a no well heed

Oh they are right up for playing us and believe thy will go through on away goals= 0-0 in Warsaw, 1-1 at Ibrox. Yea, the sign basically means The wives are crying,  the children are crying, we are all going to Glasgow on 29th August. It's an old Polish Rhyme, except for the Glasgow bit. I believe we are the better squad but our players will need nerves of steel in that ground. I have been in football stadiums around the world but I've never been in one as noisy and intimidating as  Łazienkowska 3.

Just been told it's this
 

He's brought back the feel good factor and handles the media so professionally. The football he has us playing just now is something special. Almost every game is a sell out and people can't believe their luck when they manage to get tickets.
 

He's brought back the feel good factor and handles the media so professionally. The football he has us playing just now is something special. Almost every game is a sell out and people can't believe their luck when they manage to get tickets.
 

He's brought back the feel good factor and handles the media so professionally. The football he has us playing just now is something special. Almost every game is a sell out and people can't believe their luck when they manage to get tickets.