bombaybadboy08 15,660 Posted April 4, 2014 Share Posted April 4, 2014 MAY 14, 2008. The night I led Rangers out at the City of Manchester Stadium to play in the UEFA Cup Final.It wasn’t even six years ago but already it feels like a lifetime away.To be honest, maybe I didn’t fully appreciate at the time the scale of what I was involved in.If truth be told, it’s only when you leave the club and look back upon your time that you really begin to grasp the enormity of it all.I mean, there I was about to captain the team I had loved all of my life in a European final. Looking back now, it just seems crazy.To put it simply, it will never ever get any better than that for any of us who were lucky enough to be wearing blue shirts that night. But for one of us, the dream will go on this Sunday at Easter Road.OK, it’s the Ramsdens Cup Final. I admit, it doesn’t have quite the same ring to it.In fact, there is something strange about the fact my old club is even in the competition. And, yes, it does show how much things have changed in such a short space of time.But it’s still a trophy and the chance to put another prize in the display cabinet.That’s the way I look at it and I know there will be one man inside the dressing room who feels exactly the same way. And he’ll be wearing my old shirt.I’ve known Lee McCulloch for the best part of 30 years. We grew up just three miles apart, him in Motherwell and me in Hamilton.We were playing against each other from the age of nine with local boys’ clubs.We even spent a year together as kids at Rangers before he left to make a go of it at his hometown club.And all those years later we ended up standing shoulder to shoulder in that tunnel in Manchester, about to run out into the biggest match of our careers against Zenit St Petersburg, him as a sub who came on in the second half, me as the captain.So I know the guy inside out. And that’s why I can say, without a moment’s hesitation, that Big Jig will approach this weekend’s final against Raith Rovers as if he was going up against the Russians all over again.Now I realise some people will think there I go again, talking c***. But these people have no idea what it means to pull on that strip and have the chance to lift a trophy as a Rangers captain.And, yes, I mean ANY trophy.I also know there are a lot of folk out there who have enjoyed watching Rangers go through all their recent troubles.They’ll be first to say this competition means nothing and to write it off as a Mickey Mouse cup.Well, that’s fine. Go back to watching your own team.This is about Rangers taking the next step back towards a full recovery. And I’m proud my old mate will be thereleading the way, just as he has been from the day Craig Whyte plunged the club into administration.Yes, I’m sure he’d rather get his hands on the Scottish Cup this season and I know he’ll do everything in his power to make that happen too.But, for now, all that will matter to him is ticking this one off the list, along with the last two titles from the fourth and third tier. When you think about it, the big man is putting together quite a unique collection.And he deserves every medal and every special memory he picks up along the way.My own Rangers memories ended a year after that UEFA Cup Final when I left the club for a second time.I knew then I wouldn’t be back as a player and, over time, I’ve come to fully understand how incredible the whole experience was.When you are in the thick of it, you’re too busy concentrating on the next trophy to pause and reflect. It’s all about the next one. There is no time for anything else.When I left, the topic of my old No.6 jersey came up in conversation and I told Jig to go for it.After all we had been through together, I couldn’t think of anything more appropriate.If there was anyone in that dressing room who knew what it meant to represent Rangers and to wear the armband, it was my old Lanarkshire mate. He was the perfect man to pick up the mantle.Maybe Lee won’t fully appreciate what he is doing for the club at this moment in time. Maybe, like me, it will only really sink in a year or two after he’s pulled on that top for the last time.It’s funny how silly wee things put it all into perspective. Even writing these columns every week for Record Sport has given me reason to think back to my time at the club and to realise exactly what we achieved.I mean, two young boys kicking about Hamilton and Motherwell, playing against each other as kids, both playing for Rangers in a European final? Never in our wildest dreams did we think that would be possible.So, yes, I realise the Ramsdens Cup may not be as prestigious but it’s the here and now reality of the situation that Rangers find themselves in. And my old mate is still there. Still in the thick of it. Still making Rangers winners.He’s surrounded now by young boys and by players who haven’t experienced what it means to play for Rangers at the top level.It’s his job to teach them what is required and to act as a father figure.And, as he leads them towards this latest final, there will be one message above all others that he’ll make sure he gets through to each and every one of them: You don’t want to be part of the first Rangers team in history to LOSE a Ramsdens Cup Final.Listen, Raith Rovers will be right up for it. This is their chance to make a bit of history as well.But it’s on days like this that Rangers players are expected to stand up and be counted. Not to fold under pressure – but to thrive on it.And that’s why I’m delighted that, six years on from Manchester, my old mate is still there to lead them out of that tunnel. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
bombaybadboy08 15,660 Posted April 4, 2014 Author Share Posted April 4, 2014 Good interview from Barry Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Blue Ranger 21 Posted April 4, 2014 Share Posted April 4, 2014 Would I be right in saying that if we win the Ramsdens and upon our return the the top flight, Jig would have won every domestic honour going with Rangers? Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
hooooootchy 405 Posted April 4, 2014 Share Posted April 4, 2014 Good words , big jigs took some stick , expecially before the company liquidation and especially from me , but he's stuck by us as a true ranger and he's an inspiration for the next batch of legends . "I knew then I wouldn't be back as a player "Aspirations of management from baz , I work with a couple Blackpool fans who love him , thinking he can be the man to take them back to stability and a promotion push Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
bonhillbear 58 Posted April 4, 2014 Share Posted April 4, 2014 Particuarly enjoyed the go back and watch your own team line. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
simplythebest 11,453 Posted April 4, 2014 Share Posted April 4, 2014 Would I be right in saying that if we win the Ramsdens and upon our return the the top flight, Jig would have won every domestic honour going with Rangers?Sounds right Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kopter 310 Posted April 4, 2014 Share Posted April 4, 2014 It did get better though, Baz. You won the league cup with Brum. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Corky True Legend 2,682 Posted April 4, 2014 Share Posted April 4, 2014 Bet he's not the only ex player who only realises what Rangers means after he has left. Particularly thinking of certain players who "jumped ship" in 2012.Rangers, my team not my project. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
cumnockbear 2,446 Posted April 4, 2014 Share Posted April 4, 2014 The best piece Barry has ever put together Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
AlBear. 8,499 Posted April 4, 2014 Share Posted April 4, 2014 Jig - The first player to win every honour in Scottish professional football.Make it happen big man. Would be legendary. :McCulloch: Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
MayboleLoyal_atb 3,679 Posted April 4, 2014 Share Posted April 4, 2014 Good interview Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
bawsburst 1,381 Posted April 4, 2014 Share Posted April 4, 2014 The 33-year-old said: "I've thought about it long and hard and I'd have to say this is my biggest achievement in the game. A few of my mates have asked me the question and I think this is the tops."I've played in finals and won medals north of the border and if I'm honest, it's probably a bigger achievement than reaching the UEFA Cup Final too. That was great but it's a lot different from the Champions League.Stick it..... some of us don't have short memories, as to your claimed greatest achievement....... The Carling Cup. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
bombaybadboy08 15,660 Posted April 4, 2014 Author Share Posted April 4, 2014 I think the bigger achievement comment was a compliment to the size of our club, as in it's not unthinkable to have Rangers in a UEFA Cup Final, whereas winning a cup with Birmingham is.Down to how you take it though. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
quinty 1,445 Posted April 4, 2014 Share Posted April 4, 2014 I think the bigger achievement comment was a compliment to the size of our club, as in it's not unthinkable to have Rangers in a UEFA Cup Final, whereas winning a cup with Birmingham is.Down to how you take it though.I think we all know how, and where, he likes to take it Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
bombaybadboy08 15,660 Posted April 4, 2014 Author Share Posted April 4, 2014 I think we all know how, and where, he likes to take it Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bothwellbear 1,392 Posted April 4, 2014 Share Posted April 4, 2014 The 33-year-old said: "I've thought about it long and hard and I'd have to say this is my biggest achievement in the game. A few of my mates have asked me the question and I think this issue the tops."I've played in finals and won medals north of the border and if I'm honest, it's probably a bigger achievement than reaching the UEFA Cup Final too. That was great but it's a lot different from the Champions League.Stick it..... some of us don't have short memories, as to your claimed greatest achievement....... The Carling Cup.Fuck off back to the boardroom with your negativity anti-Rangers agenda. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
A.T.G 10,773 Posted April 4, 2014 Share Posted April 4, 2014 The 33-year-old said: "I've thought about it long and hard and I'd have to say this is my biggest achievement in the game. A few of my mates have asked me the question and I think this is the tops."I've played in finals and won medals north of the border and if I'm honest, it's probably a bigger achievement than reaching the UEFA Cup Final too. That was great but it's a lot different from the Champions League.Stick it..... some of us don't have short memories, as to your claimed greatest achievement....... The Carling Cup.Oh look its you againA "Rangers fan" Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
topgoalie 637 Posted April 4, 2014 Share Posted April 4, 2014 The 33-year-old said: "I've thought about it long and hard and I'd have to say this is my biggest achievement in the game. A few of my mates have asked me the question and I think this is the tops."I've played in finals and won medals north of the border and if I'm honest, it's probably a bigger achievement than reaching the UEFA Cup Final too. That was great but it's a lot different from the Champions League.You sir...are a prize fanny......Stick it..... some of us don't have short memories, as to your claimed greatest achievement....... The Carling Cup. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
thehost 11,061 Posted April 4, 2014 Share Posted April 4, 2014 Fuck me i have read some utter shite, in my time, but this really does take the biscuit.if "big jig" approaches the match, in the same manner, as zenit then we are truly fuckedthat was the most craven display, from a Rangers team, i have ever had the misfortune to witnessI'd go further, the worst thing to ever happen to The Rangers, in football terms, was Smith's fluke against France. Ever since that result we have had to watch turgid, craven crap. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
topgoalie 637 Posted April 4, 2014 Share Posted April 4, 2014 Fuck me i have read some utter shite, in my time, but this really does take the biscuit.if "big jig" approaches the match, in the same manner, as zenit then we are truly fuckedthat was the most craven display, from a Rangers team, i have ever had the misfortune to witnessI'd go further, the worst thing to ever happen to The Rangers, in football terms, was Smith's fluke against France. Ever since that result we have had to watch turgid, craven crap.Fckn Laurel and Hardy....right on cue. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
thehost 11,061 Posted April 4, 2014 Share Posted April 4, 2014 Fckn Laurel and Hardy....right on cue.you want to fuck two dead, formely male, comedians?Takes all sorts, i suppose. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
bawsburst 1,381 Posted April 4, 2014 Share Posted April 4, 2014 The AAAC brigade defending the indefensible greatest achievment quote ever, not to mention buying mockitdome season tickets for relations Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
topgoalie 637 Posted April 4, 2014 Share Posted April 4, 2014 Absolute quality,you never let me down....... Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
bawsburst 1,381 Posted April 4, 2014 Share Posted April 4, 2014 you want to fuck two dead, formely male, comedians?Takes all sorts, i suppose.Necrophilia is so mockitdome..... not surprising there then.... lol.... Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
AlCapone 7,678 Posted April 4, 2014 Share Posted April 4, 2014 Bet he's not the only ex player who only realises what Rangers means after he has left. Particularly thinking of certain players who "jumped ship" in 2012.Rangers, my team not my project.The only thing that Rangers meant to the selfish twat was the size of his wage Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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