Rangers v Ross County 04-02-17 Programme Preview

v ROSS COUNTY | SATURDAY 4 FEBRUARY 2017 | KICK OFF 3pm

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>CONTENTS

IN TOday’s MATCHDAY PROGRAMME

RANGERS

FOOTBALL CLUB IBROX STADIUM, 150 EDMISTON DRIVE GLASGOW, G51 2XD Chairman DAVE KING

Directors JOHN BENNETT, JOHN GILLIGAN, DOUGLAS PARK, GRAEME PARK PAUL MURRAY

Clint HILL

Honorary Life President JOHN GREIG MBE

Managing Director STEWART ROBERTSON

Director: Finance and Administration ANDREW DICKSON

Manager MARK WARBURTON

Assistant Manager DAVID WEIR

Doctor PAUL JACKSON

Head of Performance and Preparation CRAIG FLANNIGAN

Goalkeeping Coach JIM STEWART

Head of analysis NEIL MCILHARGEY

Head of Recruitment FRANK MCPARLAND

Kit Controller JIMMY BELL

Editor NEIL SMITH

Design GREG JOHN GILFILLAN

Photography KIRK O’ROURKE

Contributors ALICE HEDWORTH, NICK THOMSON, ROBERT BOYLE, ANDY CAMERON, ROBERT CARMICHAEL, LINDSAY HERRON

Print L&S LITHO The views in this magazine are not necessarily the views of Rangers Football Club. All material is copyrighted and may only be reproduced with the written permission of Rangers Football Club. The appearance of an advert within this publication does not necessarily mean that the goods/services advertised are associated with or endorsed by Rangers Football Club. All facts and information accurate at time of going to press.

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MARK WARBURTON MY TOP TEAM: JON TORAL LEE HODSON - ON THE SPOT ON THIS DAY: 4th FEBRUARY DEREK FERGUSON INTERVIEW LEE WALLACE RANGERS HISTORIAN: DAVID MASON ANDY CAMERON THE A TO Z OF RANGERS NINE IN A ROW PART 6 - FEBRUARY 1997 CRAIG MULHOLLAND NEXTGEN GERS - ROSS MCCRORIE JUNIOR GERS STATS & APPEARANCES THE LAST WORD: TOM MILLER

STAND &

DELIVER INTERVIEW BY NEIL SMITH | PHOTOS: KIRK O’ROURKE

CLINT HILL has been a standout performer this season but he knows that at a club like Rangers high standards must be maintained week in week out.

EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW WITH DEREK FERGUSON

You’re Living The Dream

by Lindsay Herron

DEREK FERGUSON had the world at his feet as a talented teen at Rangers but he hopes the rising stars at Auchenhowie avoid making the same mistakes he made.

Billy Gilmour

EREK FERGUSON is arguably the perfect example of a nurtured youth product who became a top talent in the Rangers first team.

Equally, and he would agree, the way he lived his life off the field in his formative years is a glaring warning to all aspiring players.

Some people are drawing parallels with Billy Gilmour, who is one of the Auchenhowie gems, and Ferguson, more than most, sincerely hopes the young man goes all the way at Ibrox.

Fergie was so good that John Greig played him in Tom Forsyth’s testimonial against Swansea City on 27 March 1983 at the tender age of 15.

And at the start of the following season Greig had no hesitation in handing Ferguson his competitive debut in a 4-0 win over Queen of the South in a League Cup tie on August 24.

He was just 16 years and 24 days old when he came on with 21 minutes remaining to replace Craig Paterson and continues to hold the record as the youngest debutant in the club’s history.

A year later he was playing in his first Old Firm game, given the responsibility

by Jock Wallace who had returned to replace the departing Greig, and by the age of 18 he had played Celtic five times.

It was a sign of the confidence he exuded as a player and the trust his managers had in him.

NEXT GEN

POSITION: Defender BORN: 18.03.1998 HOMETOWN: Dailly, Ayrshire JOINED RANGERS: 2008 WEIGHT: 74kg HEIGHT: 1.83m

GERS

IN TH E WE’L REMAIN L PR ING OF PR PL AY ERS ILE SOM OGR AM HOP E OF MES WAR IN T B UR T TON G TO FO HE DE V HIS SE A ELOP ’S PL S ON RCE A NS T M IN TH HEIR WA ENT SQ U Y E FU TUR INTO M AD E. A RK

I joined Rangers from a tournament down in Ayr with my local boys club Girvan Youth and one of the scouts was watching. They told me to go to a community training session at the Rangers Training Centre and Alan Boyd spotted me and took me in to train with the under-10s and it was from there that I got signed.

I played for Girvan Youth from under-7s all the way up to under-9s, then I signed for Rangers at under-10 level.

20 years on - february 1997 - part 6 Jorg and Brian Are Fab In Feb - Gers keep their noses in front during crucial month IN the summer of 1996 Walter Smith and his Rangers players began an incredible journey that would end with a historic triumph. Having secured eight successive championship titles, Gers needed one more to equal Celtic’s record, set under Jock Stein between 1966 and 1974. The pressure was massive, the intensity was ferocious and the expectation was colossal but Smith and his players came through in magnificent fashion. Today we relive another stage of the unforgettable 1996/97 season.

ONE DIRECTION OVER THE PAST 18 MONTHS HEAD OF ACADEMY CRAIG MULHOLLAND HAS BEEN IMPLEMENTING AN AMBITIOUS PLAN TO DRIVE THE CLUB’S YOUTH DEPARTMENT FORWARD AND HELP MORE OF RANGERS’ TALENTED TEENS FORCE THEIR WAY INTO MARK WARBURTON’S FIRST-TEAM PLANS.

Over the next few pages Craig discusses the impressive progress that has been made so far and also the challenges he has faced.

Interview: Nick Thomson

CRAIG MULHOLLAND WITH UNDER-20S COACH GRAEME MURTY

THE OFFICIAL

RANGERS PODCAST

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MY TO P

TEAM

THIS SEASON WE HAVE ASKED THE RANGERS SQUAD TO PICK THEIR BEST XI FROM PLAYERS THEY HAVE PLAYED AGAINST OR WITH. AS A BIT OF HELP THEY WERE ALLOWED TO INCLUDE ANY TWO STAR PLAYERS FROM THE WORLD OF FOOTBALL. TODAY, ARSENAL’S JON TORAL– WHO WAS A YOUTH PLAYER AT BARCELONA BEFORE HE HAD LOAN SPELLS AT BRENTFORD, BIRMINGHAM CITY, GRANADA AND NOW RANGERS FROM THE GUNNERS – SELECTS HIS TOP TEAM.

TOM RECKONS JAK ALNWICK WILL PROVIDE GREAT COMPETITION FOR WES FODERINGHAM BETWEEN THE POSTS

The Last Word with Tom Miller

I

JON TORAL

EMERSON HYNDMAN

BROX icon Peter Lovenkrands will be joining Tom Miller on the gantry for RangersTV’s live coverage of today’s game against Ross County.

Tom, as ever, is looking forward to this afternoon’s action and we caught up with him in midweek to get his thoughts on the three players Mark Warburton signed during the January window…

I think the three signings the manager has made are excellent but it was also a blow to lose Matt Gilks, although I can understand why Matt wanted to go.

THE NEXT MATCH...

G O A L K E E PE R S

G O A L K E E PE R S

1. WES FODERINGHAM 25. JAK ALNWICK

1. SCOTT FOX 31. AARON MCCAREY

RANGERS MORTON

DE F E NDE R S

SCOTTISH CUP R5 SUN 12 FEB 2017 KICK-OFF 3pm

DE F E NDE R S 2.

3.

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JAMES TAVERNIER CLINT HILL ROB KIERNAN LEE WALLACE DANNY WILSON LEE HODSON PHILIPPE SENDEROS DAVID BATES

MIDF IE L DE R S 8.

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JON TORAL JOSH WINDASS HARRY FORRESTER ANDY HALLIDAY JORDAN ROSSITER NIKO KRANJCAR EMERSON HYNDMAN JASON HOLT LIAM BURT

FOR WA RD S 7.

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10.

14.

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JOE GARNER KENNY MILLER BARRIE MCKAY JOE DODOO MICHAEL O’HALLORAN MARTYN WAGHORN

2.

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MARCUS FRASER JASON NAISMITH JAY MCEVELEY ANDREW DAVIES KENNY VAN DER WEG PAUL QUINN REGHAN TUMILTY

v

MIDF IE L DE R S 4.

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CHRIS ROUTIS JIM O’BRIEN MICHAEL GARDYNE MARTIN WOODS TIM CHOW TONY DINGWALL JONATHAN FRANKS IAN MCSHANE OSCAR GOBERN CHRIS BURKE MILAN LALKOVIC

FOR WA RD S 9.

10.

11.

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53.

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RYAN DOW LIAM BOYCE CRAIG CURRAN ALEX SCHALK GREG MORRISON RUSSELL DINGWALL

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REFEREE: DON ROBERTSON | AR1: ALASTAIR MATHER | AR2: ANDY MILNE | FOURTH OFFICIAL: ALAN NEWLANDS

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