A quick look at the news of the week regarding the World’s Most Successful Club.
After the controversy of Saturday, the club has been somewhat quiet. An interview with Caixinha alluded to a frustration at John Beaton’s performance, but nothing else has been said in that regard. Many fans are frustrated by this, but the club rarely put out statements of that nature. I would imagine they won’t even be convinced it’s worth it.
Consider the last time we played Hibs. Our players were attacked by opposing fans after the final whistle, with overwhelming evidence to back that up. The club was vociferous in it’s condemnation of the events and demanded action. The response from the SFA was negligible. Further calls from the club to review this were ignored. By going in so loudly, we were deemed to be the story. We were accused of being sore losers and it gave the media a chance to focus on the Rangers fans caught up in the events rather than the real story. The statements largely backfired.
That would have been a consideration for the club regarding Saturday. It may be that by the time of reading this, something has been said as the Ryan Jack appeal is considered today. If not, though, I don’t feel it’s a huge mistake. When Rangers open doors, and look for serious discussion on the game, the rest of Scottish football galvanises in their hatred and desire to claim that said issues only exist because of us. If the aim is to benefit Rangers, it’s hard to point to just how any statement would do this. It’s hard to imagine that the club hasn’t pursued official channels to make a complaint. Our public silence doesn’t mean there’s been no response.
That segues into the next big story of the week – the Club 1872 statement regarding Neil Lennon. I think it’s fair to say that most fans see this as a mistake. Whilst I can understand the intention, I don’t see much difference there to what I’ve described above. As a major shareholder in the club, Club 1872 are no longer a fan group snapping at the heels of our board. They’re in a position where everything they say and do is highly scrutinised by everyone, not just other Rangers fans. As such, the Lennon statement wasn’t going to come across as anything other than bitter.
On a wider note, football fans need to be less precious about this stuff. Yeah, Lennon was an idiot, but we can’t hide behind the anonymity of a huge crowd shouting abuse at him, then go crying to someone when he gives some back. If I call an opposing player a w*nker early in a game and he scores against my team, I’m expecting a mauling.
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The performance of both the players and the manager have been discussed in articles earlier this week. The recent interview with Caixinha hints at some frustration. What we’ll find out on Saturday is just how this squad reacts to disappointment.
There’s been no updates from anywhere on transfer news. Moves for Walker and McLean seem to have stalled. It may be that our Director of Football has brought in some new targets which we’re considering, or that Hearts and Aberdeen just aren’t willing to sell to us. The main player we seem to be trying to move on now is Forrester. There’s been no update there.
Last night, our Colts team lost 2-1 to Dumbarton in the Irn Bru Cup. By all accounts, they were unlucky to lose. Dumbarton have a good, established squad in the Championship, so it’s promising that our younger players played well as a collective. Some may feel that losing to Dumbarton isn’t a good sign, but with the very young average age of the team, that’s to be expected.
Like most fans, I’m looking forward to Saturday. Keep an eye out for our match preview tomorrow!
Tweet us @rangersnewsuk with your thoughts on the week past.