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Ian McColl...part time player and Iron Curtain legend.


Colonel Mustard

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Ian McColl was part of the famous Rangers Iron Curtain defence, alongside Brown, Cox, Woodburn, Young, and Shaw. This combination missed only 7 games between them between 1948 and 1950...racking up 353 games between them, out of a possible 360. In fact with 526 games for Rangers, he is in the top 10 for Gers appearances.

One remarkable thing about McColl was that he played for 15 years at Ibrox as a part time player, first of all studying for his degree, then working for civil engineers FJC Lilley alongside playing for the Gers.

Grandson of Scottish International William McColl who played in the 19th century, McColl won 6 titles, 5 Scottish Cups and 2 League Cups, and also helped Scotland to take the scalps of Germany, France, Spain, Yugoslavia, Belgium, Switzerland when playing for his country.

As Scotland manager at the age of 34, he had a healthy win record making him the 2nd most successful national manager, and oversaw the 2-1 game against England, where Baxter claimed he was going to put through his own goal for a hat trick, if England hadn't scored their goal. :D

Unfortunately, McColl was the man to take Slim Jim away from Rangers when he was appointed manager of Sunderland in 1965.

All in all, quite a football career for a man who finished in the game at 41 years old, after being sacked by Sunderland, and whose main job wasn't football for most of his time in the game.

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i used to think he would have made a good manager of rangers

He possibly could have. Apart from the slaughtering from England in one game, he had a great record for Scotland.

We beat Spain 6-2 with him in charge, among some other great wins. We also lost out from going to the World Cup finals in a play off with Czechoslovakia, who went on to get to the final.

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Also got beat by Ireland and Norway on the same tour did they not? My Dad told me everyone in Scotland was shitting themselves after those results then they went and hammered Spain with Gento, Puskas, di Stefano, Suarez, del Sol, Santamaria :lol:

The Law man got a hat trick against Norway but we lost 4-3.

Denis scored 4 against them a few months later as we gubbed them 6-1.

No' bad going.

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