O Captain! My Captain!

By Lee ClarkAs the dust settles this morning, after a pulsating 1-1 draw with Tottenham last night, we don’t have time to blink as we approach another Hampden League Cup Final showdown with Celtic. In a season of almost constant negativity, it’s nice to wake up this morning feeling like we’ve restored a little pride, albeit we are somewhat disappointed not to have beaten our English Premier League opponents. It’s quite the turnaround from a couple of weeks ago, where so many people, Rangers fans included, were speculating how many Spurs (and Celtic for that matter) would take off us this week.The players, manager and fans deserve huge credit for their respective roles in the game. All we have been asking for as fans, is for the players to give us everything and start approaching games in a manner befitting of the jersey and credit where it’s due last night they did exactly that. In fact, since the drab 1-1 draw with Dundee Utd there has been a shift of sorts in the way the team (and fans) are approaching games. Whisper it but, do I sense we are all starting to enjoy it a wee bit again? I know I am and it was great to see some of the players who had been completely written off, properly turn up against a strong opponent. Diomande, Ridvan, Raskin (motm for me), Propper and Igamane were all outstanding last night and that’s before we get to our much maligned and somewhat rejuvenated captain, James Tavernier.In my 30 something years following the team, I’ve never known the chatter about the role of club captain to be quite as prominent as it is now. It seems like all of the discussion, in the build up to this one surrounds whether he should start the game on Sunday, in fact there is even a poll on the FF Messageboard on this very subject which has around 80% of you voting for Tav to be left out. It’s an emotive subject and I can see the arguments for both sides however, it occurred to me that I need to go back to my very first final against Celtic, in 1990 for the last time I was really aware of the topic of Rangers captain to be such headline news. This was a season of off-field drama for The Gers with Graeme Souness facing touchline bans, a very public fall out with STV News and with star striker Ally McCoist not only being left on the bench to make way for new signing Mark Hateley, he too was forced into a public apology by Souness, for attending a race meeting during some days off.All of that seemed to pale to insignificance however, with the noise around Terry Butcher. Having been a fault for one and scoring a spectacular own goal for the other, Butcher had been dropped from the side following a 2-1 defeat at Tannadice in September.  With the League Cup semi-final against Aberdeen (Rangers biggest challengers at that time) looming, speculation was rife around the Rangers skipper. Was it a loss of form? Was it injury? Or had Butcher and the manager fallen out as many were suggesting? Whatever the reason Butcher was dropped from the semi-final squad too as Rangers shrugged off the negativity to win 1-0 and march onto the final.Just like this week, Celtic would have the advantage in terms of preparation time. Having finished the previous season a lowly 5th, they had no European football to contend with, whilst Rangers faced an extremely tough away tie in Belgrade where they would be overwhelmed 3-0 by Red Star. The disappointment at the time was huge however, with hindsight it was no disgrace as the Serbians would go on to win the competition. Rangers arrived at Hampden, licking their wounds from a tough night and with the news drifting through on the road to Hampden that Butcher would not return to the Rangers squad (there had been press reports claiming he would) it’s fair to say, the Bears flocking to Hampden, weren’t quite as confident as they might have been.Celtic, whilst not really in the same league as us at the time, had improved under Liam Brady and after the two sides had fought out a tense 1-1 draw at Ibrox the previous month, everything pointed to this being another tight affair. For my part, I was at fever pitch levels of excitement. This wasn’t my first trip to Hampden to see us in a final, having watched us lose to Aberdeen, in extra-time the previous season, however as we had won 3 of the last 4 league cups and were in our 9th final in 10 years, this trophy very much felt like it belonged to us and I was determined that we would add to that.Rangers made three changes from the side that had lost comprehensively in Belgrade, with Huistra, Ferguson and the injured Mo Johnston dropping out to be replaced by Hateley, McCoist and Hurlock making his first appearance in a cup final at 32 years of age. It was a slightly cautious midfield from Souness, with no natural balance on the left but, with Super Ally starting and Mark Walters in the side, both so often the scourge of Celtic, the underlying feeling is that we had more than enough to see them off.The game started at breakneck speed with Grant clattering into McCoist in the first 20 seconds. It was a poor one and would undoubtedly have seen the Celtic midfielder carded in the modern game (aye I’ll crack the jokes) but, to both players credit, they laughed it off and got on with it. It was a scrappy start and in truth, Celtic were having the better of it. As the wind and rain came in they had two good chances to score, which were dealt with by England’s number 1, Chris Woods without too much fuss. I was getting really nervous about this now, we looked sluggish after the midweek slog and the usually dynamic Walters was getting little joy from that carthorse Rogan, down the right hand side.From nowhere McCoist is through on the left after lovely work in the middle of the park from Hateley and Hurlock. Bonner commits himself and takes the legs away from Super inside the corner of the box. The Rangers end and McCoist are screaming at the referee as Bonner throws his arms up in innocence. It’s a clear penalty, he knows he hasn’t got the ball, his reaction alone tells the entire stadium that, yet somehow McLuskey awards a throw-in to Rangers. McCoist is absolutely livid and for the second Old Firm meeting on the bounce at the National Stadium, the ‘always cheated’ receive a massive helping hand from the match officials. It was a shocking decision but in truth, other than McCoist getting a bit of his own back on Bonner in that very same corner, as he launched the Irishman over the advertising boards a few minutes later, that was as exciting as the first half got. McCoist and Hateley were not yet the force they would become, and failed to make any sort of impact in the game and in increasingly blustery conditions, neither team could get a foothold.Half-time came and went with Celtic starting the stronger and they ran at us in the opening minutes, with Creaney once again going close. I was getting extremely anxious now, we didn’t look ourselves at all and despite being a far superior team and squad, it felt for the first time that this might not be our day if it carried on much longer like this. It’s funny how some memories stick in your mind but, even 34 years  later, I can still vividly remember how sick I felt as the roar went up from the east end of the ground as Celtic won a corner on the 52 minute and piled forward. You just got the sense they were in the ascendancy and call it the innocence of youth (I was only 8 years old) or just plain terror but, when my grandmother defiantly shouted ‘This is yours Goughie!’ the only thing I could think to say in response was, ‘It could also be Paul Elliot’s Gran!’  Before she could clip me round the ear and tell me to ‘shut it’ we watched in horror as Collins’ deep corner was blasted hopefully back across goal and, there indeed was old ‘Jackanory’ himself to stoop low and head Celtic into the lead.Whenever they scored against us, there was always that split second of silence, as the stadium collectively holds its breath and in that moment, when their end explodes your whole world just collapses. It wasn’t my fault of course but, it didn’t half feel like it. Not only was I terrified of them at that point (a cardinal sin in itself to my dearly departed Granny) but, I’d just predicted Celtic’s opening goal.  Even at my young age and all those years ago I can still feel the absolute shame of it all and the next few minutes did little to lift any of our spirits. Celtic, their tails up, were all over us now and only a quite brilliant Gary Stevens tackle, sandwiched in amongst three corners stopped them doubling their lead.Souness, to his credit had seen enough and swapped Huistra for Hurlock, to immediately restore some balance to our lopsided attack and within minutes (and to my eternal relief), it had paid off. Richard Gough took the responsibility and drove forward into a slightly less congested midfield, clipping a lovely pass to Hateley, who intelligently flicked it inside to McCoist. With his back to goal and the strength to hold off two defenders on the turn, Mark Walters arrived to bullet the ball past the helpless Bonner.  It’s hard to describe what a moment like that means to anyone who hasn’t experienced it. It’s joy, it’s relief, it’s tears, it’s just absolute frenzy and when it’s the first goal you’ve seen Rangers score against Them in a Cup Final, it means so much more than any of that. It had taken 65 minutes but, finally there was a bit of quality from this Rangers team and something for us to shout about. McCoist and Hateley had given us a little preview of what to expect in the coming seasons and it was their intelligence, along with Gough being the leader that he was, who had dragged us back into the game. Now we had truly arrived in the Final, it was 1-1.Like Celtic’s had for them, the Rangers goal gave everyone of our persuasion in the ground, a huge lift, the players responded and Rangers could and should have taken the lead minutes later. Walters’ sweeping corner from the right was met brilliantly by Hateley and from only 6 yards out, with just Bonner to beat, John Brown missed his header completely and Celtic survived. In the context of such a tight game, it’s a monumental opportunity and despite a half chance for Celtic right at the death, it was a nervy and extremely scrappy end to the game and we were into extra time.  In truth neither team could claim to be hard done by, it had been a tense, turgid affair, and other than the aforementioned sitters for both sides it had been an even contest although, it has to be said the one moment of real quality in the match had come from Rangers and this was also a team that just knew how to win. For that reason we were still confident.The teams (unusually) opted to remain shooting into their ‘own’ ends of the stadium for the first half of extra-time and despite our confidence in the West Stand, the rollercoaster of emotions struck again as, within minutes of the restart, it was Celtic who spurned a glorious chance to take the lead. Gary Stevens, uncharacteristically found himself the wrong side Dziekanowski, whose weak effort from 10 yards was held from Woods, after being put through by Rogan of all people. It was a massive let off for The Gers and a stark reminder that we could still quite easily lose this.The game had reached stalemate again, scrappy passes, turnovers of possession in midfield, hopeful balls forward that ran through to the ‘keeper or out for a goal kick. This game really wasn’t for the purists and even Souness appeared to ‘shut up shop’ a little replacing McCoist with Ferguson, to try and get a foothold in the midfield battle. The crowd had become subdued, with many expecting very little in the way of chances and many more thinking it could be penalties. Then, as if from nowhere Gough is in the box, with only Bonner to beat, he prods the ball over him and after what feels like an eternity the ball crosses the line. For a second I’m not sure what has happened, is he offside? How was he even in that position in the first place? Then of course the Rangers end absolutely erupts, in shock more than anything else, it’s literally a goal from nothing but, it’s in and we are going crazy again.It wasn’t until years later I watched the goal back and realised we had actually won a freekick, inside our own half that was launched forward by Gary Stevens towards Hateley and, doing enough to put each other off, the ball is missed by him and Elliot for Captain Marvel to drift in at the back post and knock it home for the winner. Watching it back it reminds me so much of Gough’s last-minute equaliser against them in that famous 1987, 2-2 draw at Ibrox. For someone who was known for his prowess in the air, he had a pretty decent record off popping up in the box to score with his feet against Celtic didn’t he? Just like the first goal King Richard had taken the responsibility to drive forward when we needed it most and this time we were surely going home with the trophy?Of course we still had the second half of extra time to contend with and despite us expecting a Celtic onslaught that would never come, we seen the game out for another famous victory. It was far from a classic but, it meant absolutely everything to me and to every Bear in attendance. As Gough climbed the steps to lift his first trophy as Rangers captain, it felt very much like a new dawn in that respect and when I think of the Rangers captain, it’s always his face I see first. Not only had he shouldered the responsibility of the departing Terry Butcher but, he had been a colossus in defence, had a hand in one goal and also scored the winner. He was a true leader and deserved every bit of praise in the aftermath of the matchWhatever happens with our starting line-up this weekend, what a story it would be for Tav to do something similar. I won’t sit on the fence here either. Despite an upturn in his form, Tavernier should start on the bench this weekend but, I feel like he will make a massive contribution to the game regardless. We all have our opinion on him, I’m a huge supporter of Tav and the debate around him as Captain has never been an issue for me but, I think we can all agree that him scoring the winning goal on Sunday before he lifts a trophy that has always belonged to us would be a quite fantastic end to what has been a difficult period for the club.Good luck to all my fellow Bluenoses, let’s give them hell!