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Given the season starts for us this Saturday I guess we should start consideration for the match previews which I felt went down well last season. The upcoming matches for August & September are as follows : Sat August 15 - Falkirk (home) - Craig Sun August 23 - Hearts (away) - Super_Ally Sat August 29 - Hamilton (home) Frankie Sat September 12 - Motherwell (away) Norris Cole Sat September 19 - Kilmarnock (away) - alanmidd Sat September 26 - Aberdeen (home) - Gazza 8 Anyone who is interested in taking one of these could you please reply and say which one you will take. I will then edit this post and update as people take the Previews on board. Also, if you could let me know if you want to contribute to the previews throughout the season I will try to keep on top of it and update reasonably regularly (as well as PM those who are up so they know it is their turn). Thanks guys. Anyone who is at the game is more than welcome to then provide a post-match review of the game. Just a little bit of blurb on how the players played, key moments, player ratings - the usual type of post game review.

http://www.gersnetonline.co.uk/2010/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=185:rangers-6-1-motherwell-player-ratings-and-mom-poll&catid=35:analysis&Itemid=67 :sd: for this bear but honourable mentions to and who were both wonderful today.... :spl:

http://www.gersnetonline.co.uk/2010/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=183:dundee-utd-0-3-rangers-player-ratings-and-mom-poll&catid=35:analysis&Itemid=67 for me but whole team deserve praise for best display of the season! :spl:

Beasley got an 8, the rest got 6s and 7s. Mental.

http://www.gersnetonline.co.uk/2010/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=181:rangers-3-0-st-johnstone-player-ratings-and-mom-poll&catid=35:analysis&Itemid=67 :nn: for me...

http://www.gersnetonline.co.uk/2010/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=174 Could have picked a few folk today but considering the criticism I often aim his way I was delighted to see Steven Davis play much better so I'll give it to him! :sd:

http://www.gersnetonline.co.uk/2010/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=169:aberdeen-1-0-rangers-player-ratings-and-mom-poll&catid=35:analysis&Itemid=67 Sorry this is a bit late... :box: for me this week.

http://www.gersnetonline.co.uk/2010/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=166:rangers-0-2-stuttgart-player-ratings-and-mom-poll&catid=35:analysis&Itemid=67 for me...

http://www.gersnetonline.co.uk/2010/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=164:rangers-3-0-kilmarnock-player-ratings-and-mom-poll&catid=35:analysis&Itemid=67 :kb: for me...

http://www.gersnetonline.co.uk/2010/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=144:rangers-2-1-st-mirren-player-ratings-and-mom-poll&catid=35:analysis&Itemid=67 Man of the Match - :jf:

http://www.gersnetonline.co.uk/2010/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=141:unirea-1-1-rangers-player-ratings-and-mom-poll&catid=35:analysis&Itemid=67 Allan McGregor man of the match for me - just from Danny Wilson.

Fair play ot the guy, he says how it is and isn't afraid to speak his mind. He's given some of the Rangers players a dodgy mark but the McGeady rating and comment are spot on. Also, the Paul Caddis comment is hilarious!

Rangers win the first Old Firm game of the 09/10 SPL season. A sublime brace from Kenny Miller, with an assist from Kris Boyd meant the Gers claimed all 3 points. http://www.gersnetonline.co.uk/newsite/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=848&Itemid=1 I'm going to give MoM to Possibly David Weir's best game of the season. Made few mistakes, was composed and excellent in the air as usual. Despite being caught for pace occasionally, Weir is still showing that he's easily one of the best center backs in the country. Long may it continue!

Rangers progress to next round of League Cup but will have every reason to be unhappy with their performance against plucky Doonhamers. http://www.gersnetonline.co.uk/newsite/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=837&Itemid=2 I'm going to give it to :na: His professionalism and dedication to the club is admirable despite constant kicks in the teeth having done nothing wrong. Big Madjestic was different class though. Think we're going to have a few home contenders for Donkey of the Week though.

Rangers throw away another 2 points with dreadful display at Rugby Park. http://www.gersnetonline.co.uk/newsite/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=834&Itemid=2 Not sure anyone really deserves a MoM award after that gutless display but I'll give it to Sasa Papac as he was reasonable enough and probably made least mistakes. :sp:

Rangers secure important away point with a fine second half performance in Germany. http://www.gersnetonline.co.uk/newsite/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=831&Itemid=2 MotM - :sn:

Rangers return to top of the SPL on goal difference with easy home victory against dreadful Accies. http://www.gersnetonline.co.uk/newsite/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=820&Itemid=2 Steven Davis for me...

http://www.gersnetonline.co.uk/newsite/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=814&Itemid=1 for me just ahead of :ss:

Back to work after a week's holiday so the usual threads (and main site articles) should be back on the go for each game.... Player Ratings and MoM Poll http://www.gersnetonline.co.uk/newsite/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=810&Itemid=2

I don't agree with quite a few, do you? Neil Alexander 7 - Looked as sound as ever. No chance with City goals. Steven Whittaker 5 - Looked dangerous on front foot but passing was awful. David Weir 7 - Rock solid for most of night except Ireland's strike but he hit late winner. Madjid Bougherra 8 - Gers best player. Cool on ball yet strong as an ox in the tackle. Sasa Papac 6 - Good outlet on left but couldn't get on same wavelength as Naismith. Lee McCulloch 7 - Growing in stature as anchorman in midfield. Didn't panic on ball. Steven Davis 7 - Quiet spells but still injected pace into attack. Fine pass for Miller goal. Pedro Mendes 6 - Pushed a bit further forward than usual with McCulloch sitting behind. Nacho Novo 7 - Same old Nacho. Missed sitter then hit great goal a minute later. Kenny Miller 6 - Poor touch too often but made amends with super lob for leveller. Steven Naismith 5 - Struggled to make an impact from wide left.

Does this really mean anything? Just a number? Or are Celtic not significantly better off than us? Interesting that some of the wee clubs have the better scores.

Thanks to all who put their name forward... Please remember Match Preview Writers need to: - Write around 500 words on their allocated match. - Provide probable team and formation within this. - Ensure it is posted the day before the match (e.g. Friday am for Saturday games). - Please check all articles for spelling/grammatical errors before posting (e.g. use Word to type the article). - If you want to accompany the preview with a review (or ratings/poll etc) please feel free to do so. May Sat 30 - 15.00 Rangers v St Mirren (Scottish Cup Final) Gazza_8 Please check this thread regularly and pm me if you're unable to make the deadline.

Alexander - 10 Whittaker - 10 Papac - 10 Boogie - 10 Weir - 10 Davis - 10 Mendes - 10 Edu - 10 Lafferty - 10 Miller - 10 Boyd - 9. I felt Boyd could've done more yesterday.

Firstly, let me apologies in advance. I am just this minute home from the game (via a succession of watering holes) so this match report and ratings, may include spurious information, fanciful ratings and dream-like conclusions. However, it serve as warning to any youngsters reading this that drink is indeed, bad for you. As we approached Ibrox today, the weather was dreadful and it swamped Ibrox in a carpet of greyness. We just had to hope that the players wouldnââ?¬â?¢t be engulfed in the greyness nor that our mood would match the conditions come full-time. There were little surprises in the team line-ups, with both teams matching up in a 4-4-2 formation. We all thought that WS would go 4-5-1, but we have been playing 4-4-2 for most of the season. Velicka can count himself unlucky to have been dropped as he has been on a terrific run lately, but Kenny Miller proved that WS was correct in picking him putting in a sterling performance. The game kicked-off with torrential rain falling around Ibrox and it took just over 60 seconds for the first MOPE to be booked. Hartley showed their intentions with a terrible tackle on Miller. This set the tone for the game, but once again the referee let them away with diving, pushing, fouling and cheating. Vinegar of Castlemilk committed 7 fouls in the first 45 minutes but wasnââ?¬â?¢t even spoken to. Scott McDonald dived 4 times in the same period and again wasnââ?¬â?¢t even spoken to. In the stands, the MOPES once again were given free reign to indulge in their vile and repugnant sectarian songs with no interference from the Police. In fact, one officer next to us asked us ââ?¬Ë?what do you want me to do about it?ââ?¬â?¢ how about doing your duty and arresting the vile fookers. Sorry, I am digressing, back to the action on the pitch. We were the only team looking to play football the first half and were unlucky when Whittikar swung a vicious cross into the box which alluded everyone and smacked the post with Borac beaten. Soon after we got the breakthrough and goal that our play deserved. Kris Boyd fed Kenny Miller who spun brilliantly and fired a wonderful ball across the six yard line that Stevie Davis met and slammed home from close range. Ibrox erupted and bedlam ensued in the stands. Rangers seen out the remainder of the first half with little trouble. The Mopes came into the game a bit at the start of the 2nd half, but the Rangers defence were awesome and repelled the threat time after time. As well as the defence, there were stand-outs all over the pitch in blue. In fact, all players deserve immense credit for the performance at last showing the determination required playing for this wonderful club ââ?¬â?? institution. The MOPES huffed and puffed but had little cutting edge and Rangers were the team who looked most likely to score. Boyd passed up a wonderful opportunity then was unlucky with a couple of headers. As the final whistle sounded, the reactions of the fans could hardly have been more different. The Rangers support rightly hailed (sic) their heroes whilst The MOPES trudged back to their hovels to claim Masonic conspiracies and indulge in more sectarian singing. So we enter the last 3 games of the season leading the SPL table by two points. We are in the box-seat, the destination is in our own hands. If we show the determination, guts, fight and passion we demonstrated today in the remaining games then there is no reason why the SPL title wonââ?¬â?¢t be coming home. Whilst all the players deserve a pat on the back, step forward Maurice Edu, Boogie and Kenny Miller ââ?¬â?? all three were simply outstanding and led us to a glorious victory. Player Ratings Alexander ââ?¬â?? safe as houses especially at cross balls ââ?¬â?? couple of routine saves to make and did nothing wrong ââ?¬â?? 8/10 Christian Daily ââ?¬â?? had a decent game and the whole defence were outstanding ââ?¬â?? 7/10 David Weir ââ?¬â?? commanding in the air and partnered Boogie superbly ââ?¬â?? not bad for someone who was at The Somme ââ?¬â?? 7/10 Boogie ââ?¬â?? strolled through the game ââ?¬â?? in a word ââ?¬â?? immense -9/10 SW ââ?¬â?? a real talent and once again showed he can perform no matter where he is asked to play ââ?¬â?? 7/10 Stevie Davis ââ?¬â?? scored the winning goal and cleared a header of the line ââ?¬â?? one of his better performances ââ?¬â?? 7/10 Mendes ââ?¬â?? struggled to get a foothold in the game but kept trying and dug in deep in the 2nd half ââ?¬â?? 7/10 Edu ââ?¬â?? simply gets better and better with each passing game ââ?¬â?? once again my MOTM ââ?¬â?? 9.5/10 Smith ââ?¬â?? helped SW on the left but didnââ?¬â?¢t offer much offensively. Like Mendes dug in and tried until replaced by Lafferty ââ?¬â?? 7/10 Boyd ââ?¬â?? led the line well but missed a guilt edged chance to kill of the game. His attitude has improved and he had a decent game ââ?¬â?? 7/10 Miller ââ?¬â?? a constant thorn in the MOPES defence ââ?¬â?? non stop running and his cross for the goal was stunning ââ?¬â?? 8.5/10 Lafferty ââ?¬â?? played very well when introduced ââ?¬â?? 7/10 McCulloch ââ?¬â?? little time to impress ââ?¬â?? 5/10 Cammy F -

I guess I wasn’t the only fan who felt slightly inconvenienced by the later kick-off time today. Well, I day inconvenienced, all it really meant was an extra 30 minutes to partake in some liquid refreshments in the pub pre-match! It was strange kicking off at 3:30PM and the late kick-off appeared to have a negative effect on the players. In recent game, Rangers have flown out the traps and snared an early goal. Toady, they looked cumbersome, lethargic and disjointed. Walter Smith decided on a defensive reshuffle to accommodate the gap left by the suspension to Boogie. Lee McCulloch replaced the classy Algerian with Christian Daily filling in at right-back and Stevie Whittikar moving to left back. Not ideal having 3 out of your back four playing out of position (a right back at left back, a midfield player at centre-half and a centre-half at right back – welcome to the confusing world of team selection – copyright Walter Smith). Pedro Mendes recovered from a serious looking knock to regain his position alongside the ever improving Maurice Edu. Stevie Davis was jettisoned to wide right and Stevie Smith continued wide left. Like the defence, that is two of the four midfield players playing out of position (a centre midfield player playing wide right and a left back playing wide left – that’s, if my arithmetic is correct, 5 players, or 50% of our outfield players playing out of position and no natural width on the bench). At least the front pairing is easy to explain, Boyd and Velicka rightly regaining their starting places. Given the amount of players playing out of position, maybe we are expecting too much from the players to easily adapt to playing out of positions and to excel in strange positions. For the fist 30 minutes, we played like a team who had not only just been introduced to each other, but just introduced to a football. The only chance of note was a Kris Boyd lob that hit the crossbar. Maybe I am being to critical of the ‘goal-machine’, but I thought he was guilty of a glaring miss on this occasion. Just we had resigned ourselves to going into the break on level terms, and we had started to prepare to welcome the brave soldiers of 45 Commando onto the pitch at halftime, we gained an unexpected but welcome lead. A leftwing corner was delivered to the back post where Kris Boyd done brilliantly to direct the ball back into the danger-area. Velicka showed his goal-scorers instinct and lightening reactions to fire the ball into the net. So we took a 1-0 lead into the interval but the first half performance wasn’t anything to write home about. The events and reception of half-time were wonderfully fitting for the brave soldiers of 45 Commando who put their lives on the line on a daily basis to ensure our continued liberty and safety, often fighting far away from home. These brave men and woman are the real heroes and watching the conditions there people work in puts a game of football into perspective. The great Bill Shankly was wrong, football isn’t more important than life or death. These people face death on a daily basis and for that, they have my (and hopefully all our) enternal thanks. As the teams were welcomed back onto the pitch for the 2nd half, a vast improvement was expected, but in truth wasn’t delivered. Our midfield was fragmented, whilst Pedro Mendes once again showed flashes of sheer genius, overall he was disappointing. The wide men once again came to narrow and allowed our fullbacks to be exposed to the Hearts wide players. I sincerely hope I am incorrect in this statement and I’ll happily eat my words, but in my humble opinion, playing Smith and Davis out wide for the remainder of the season could cost us the title. They offer very little either defensively or offensively and continually leave their wings and come inside. This situation has to addressed urgently and solved before the remaining four SPL games. Hearts controlled most of the possession in the 2nd period without looking too dangerous. We improved slightly when Miller, then Lafferty were introduced (for Velicka and Smith respectively) as they offered some directness and pace. Just as our nerves were stretched to the limit, we finally put the game to bed with our first free-flowing move of the game. Mendes, Davis and Miller combined in midfield with Mendes freeing Davis in the inside left channel. Davis’ pass across the 18 yard line managed to squeeze its way through to Miller who advanced, steadied himself and drove the ball across the six yard line where Boyd had made up ground to divert the ball into the net. A collective sigh of relief was audible around Ibrox as the points were finally secured. Another crucial three points but the performance one of the worst since defeating Falkirk 1-0 at Falkirk Stadium some weeks ago. We go into next weeks OF game with the destination of the SPL title still firmly in our own hands. However, we will require to improve significantly on today’s performance if we are to put the MOPES to the sword. Walter Smith and his management team have some tough choices ahead and some very tricky tactical and formation dilemmas to discuss and agree on. I don’t believe we can approach this game with caution and we can’t go with Boyd and Velicka upfront as both are far to immobile. It has to be one of those two in a 4-4-2 alongside Miller or Novo, or Velicka or Lafferty leading the line in a 4-5-1 with Novo and Beasley / Aaron playing wide. If Walter Smith is to play this to type, he’ll revert to 4-5-1 BUT play a defensive 4-5-1 which will mean Smith and SW supplying the width. In every ‘must win’ game this season, Smith has deployed a cautious team, this has to change on Saturday. This could and probably is ‘last chance saloon’ with the winners taking a gigantic step towards the SPL title. Walter will play for a draw and hope that Celtc trip up in one (or more) of their remaining games. For me, we have to go at them, they have weaknesses that we must and can exploit. Playing cautiously plays into their hands and strengths. It’s fair to say that Saturdays showdown is the most meaningful OF game of this century and it’s a game that we MUST win. Players Ratings : Alexander – had a few saves to make and made these comfortably – 6/10 Dailly – terrible game, but offered little support or protection from Davis 4-10 Weir – Solid, commanding but distribution and lack of pace still a concern – 6/10 McCulloch – a very decent game at centre-half – won his fare-share aerially and never shirked a tackle all game – 7/10 SW – not at his best today, but still showed flashes and can be a very decent footballer with decent ability – 6/10 Davis – flirted in and out of the game and is being wasted out wide. Had a hand in the decisive goal but offered little else – 5/10 Edu – Slowly but surely becoming a hugely influential part of this Rangers team – another sterling performance and once again MOTM – 8/10 Mendes – See SW – infuriating watching him as you know that lurking just beneath the surface is one great footballer – has to be more consistent – 6.5/10 Smith – once again struggled in open play wide left. Offered little protection to his fullback and offered little offensively – 5/10 Velicka – seemed to struggle against his old team-mates but showed amazing reactions to score on the stroke of half-time – 5.5/10 Boyd – whilst not his most effective game, he did try very hard to become involved – set up one and scored one – 6.5/10 Miller – his directness and running a fresh approach considering the staticness of Boyd and Velicka – 5/10 Lafferty – like Miller his introduction gave us something different and a welcome return at a crucial time for the big Ulsterman – 5/10 Cammy F