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Looking at our next few fixtures(Home Bold) and think we should be taking 3 points every game at least up to the Hearts game at Tynecastle, which is certianly winnable too: St Mirren Falkirk Kilmarnock Gretna Hearts Going up to Hearts away I wouldn't be happy with less than 12/12. Early days I know, don't jump the gun, count your chickens etc, but any Rangers team shoudl be winning that run of four games. I know the bottom 6 is where we threw away teh league last year, but under Walter I don't think we'll see that problem. He wont allow it. Look at what we did to last year's bogey team last week.

Thanks to Gribz and the request to be pinned in a few sections. Hopefully the Mods/Admin can keep on top of further transfer business over the coming weeks. Cheers to Gribz btw

Week 4 Saturday, 25 August 2007----------------Time Kilmarnock v Rangers---------------------12:30 Celtic v Hearts--------------------------15:00 Falkirk v St Mirren------------------------15:00 Gretna v Motherwell----------------------15:00 Hibernian v Aberdeen--------------------15:00 Inverness CT v Dundee United------------15:00 The first thing to note about this weeks fixtures is that Rangers visit to Rugby park, has a Saturday 12.30 kick-off. Beware all you guy�s who are dragged round the shops on Saturday morning. Rangers must be oozing with confidence after their 7-2 hammering of Falkirk, but Kilmarnock could prove to be a snake in the grass, as they too have remained unbeaten in their first three games. Steven Naismith will be looking to promote himself for a move to Ibrox but the current form of the Rangers strikers make this look improbable in this transfer window. Rangers should do the business and hold top spot. Parkhead will host their version of the Mad hatters ball when Wee Cheney meets Mad Vlad as Celtic get a visit from Hearts. Hearts have had a poor start to the season, with only a draw against lowly Gretna getting them off the mark. Celtic have recovered from an early hiccup against Kilmarnock to score seven goals in their last two games and should prove too powerful for hearts. Still we live in hope of a surprise result. Falkirk manager John Hughs will have dried his eyes after greet�n like a Bairn, after their 7-2 thumping against Rangers, and will welcome St Mirren to Westfield park. The Buddies had an excellent win against Inverness at the weekend, but Falkirk have been playing some of the best football in the SPL of late and should send Gus McPherson�s team home licking their wounds. Falkirk win. Gretna welcome the visit of Motherwell to Fir park or is it the other way about? Seemingly Motherwell keep claim to the home dressing room with Gretna staking claim to the home dugout. Motherwell have been playing well recently and were robbed in extra time against Killie. Davie Irons asked his team to show more steel but I don�t expect the steel men to buckle to the Weddingmakers. A Motherwell win,home or away. Hibenian v Aberdeen looks like the best bet for a draw on paper and probably will be one. I have a sneaky feeling that Hibs will win easily as Aberdeen are like a pint of Guinness. They don�t travel well. Considering Hibs lost so many key players since the turn of the year they have actually had an excellent start to the season getting two wins and a draw under their belt. Aberdeen�s have had a stuttering start and up until now only seem to be able to produce any form for forty-five minutes. A Hibs win for me. Inverness have had a disaster of a start to the season and have already lost their manager. Neil Warnock, Craig Brewster and Owen Coyle are top of the list to fill the role. Caley hope to have a new man in place possibly before Saturday, so he can asses the situation before the transfer window shuts. Dundee Utd lost their only away game this season to Kilmarnock,so they still have to prove they can pick up points away from home. Inverness will be hoping for the new manager effect, but to get anything from the game they will need to tighten their defense who went AWOL at the second St Mirren goal on Saturday. A draw for me.

KIRK BROADFOOT knows more than a few eyebrows were raised when Walter Smith plucked him from Paisley and made him a Rangers player. Now the cynics are more likely to be nodding their head in appreciation after seeing the former St Mirren star slot into three different roles in as many matches and performwell in each of them. Broadfoot might have made his name as a centre-half at Love Street but he's been used at right-back, left-back and on Saturday against Falkirk he added left-midfield to his collection after coming on as a sub and pitching in with a goal during the 7-2 rout of John Hughes' men. The 23-year-old admits he is loving every minute of it and insists he never had any doubts that he could make the jump from a provincial outfit to one of the Old Firm giants. Particularly when the captain of the club, Barry Ferguson, went out of his way to make him feel welcome. Broadfoot believes the togetherness of the squad is a major reason for Rangers' sensational start to the season and for his own promising start to his Ibrox career. The former Scotland Under-21 defender said: "When I arrived I wasn't daunted by it, I relished the challenge. If you don't relish it you're at the wrong place. If you go out onto the pitch scared you've failed straight away. Advertisement "I know it's going to get harder as more players come back from injury.But when I arrived I didn't feel overawed. "Barry Ferguson helped me settle right away. When the club captain does that it's great, but it is a bit like starting any new job because it takes time to get to know everyone." Broadfoot's ability to play just about anywhere can make him a regular on the park or on the bench - and with players like Brahim Hemdani, DaMarcus Beasley, Ian Murray, Charlie Adam, Filip Sebo and Alan Gow sitting in the stand at the weekend, he knows the competition has never been tougher. He said: "This is the biggest squad I've seen. There are 30 players who could come into the first team and do a job. "The Under-21 rule takes three off straight away but it's a battle to make the bench now, never mind the starting line-up." Broadfoot was delighted with the victory over Falkirk, which stretched Rangers' run of victories at home and in Europe to six since the start of the campaign. He was particularly happy to notch his first goal for the club, particularly as his own fan club was sitting in the stand. He said: "That's my first goal for Rangers. I'm a Rangers fan so to score for Rangers at Ibrox is a dream come true. "My mum and dad were at the game along with four of my friends. When I switched my phone on there were quite a few text messages with people congratulating me. It was a good day all round to be honest." The defender was delighted to see the strikers do the business, with Daniel Cousin and Jean-Claude Darcheville grabbing two goals each and Kris Boyd making a welcome return to the scoresheet. He said: "Danny came in from the start and did very well. Once he starts speaking English he'll be even better. "He doesn't understand anything really but his knowledge of the game shows. "Kris and Darche then came off the bench to score too so it's pleasing. I think as a squad we're starting to gel." Interesting interview,sorry if it's old news but working overseas,i was just wondering what the fans are thinking about him as i've not seen much of him :cheers:

Apologies for delay - busy weekend for me... http://www.gersnetonline.net/newsite/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=469&Itemid=1

Not to piss on Gribz parade, i'm sure he'll produce his usual pre-match analysis (good reads), but what team and formation does everyone fancy for St Mirren. 4-4-2 for me. 4-5-1 worked well for an away game in Europe but back to Ibrox and an SPL game we should be winning comfortably, no need for two holding midfielders against a team who will sit in and defend. GK - No reason to drop Alan McGregor, comfortably retaining his No. 1 status atm. LB - Papac was some fans' motm midweek, second best player on the park for me. Unfortunately no challenge for his place from Smith atm. CB's - Weir and Cuellar, no justification needed. RB - Broadfoot was an able deputy midweek. A solid performance. However not a natural RB and did not provide the attacking threat Hutton does, so Hutton for me. LM - Beasley should be given a chance again I think. Scored midweek despite an indifferent performance. With his pace and a few games under his belt he should have the confidence to beat his man which will prove useful in unlocking a packed defence. CM - Fergie is performing quite well atm. Motm versus Caley and a decent outing midweek if less spectacular. Needs to dictate paly more in this one and I think St Mirren will allow him to do so. CM - Thomson will sit deeper and do the dirty work to allow Fergie to get forward and hurt the opposition. Will also provide some creativity and attacking threat of his own that Hemdani will not. The only other option would be Brahim but with him off form Thomson gets the nod. RM - Novo earned the right to start last week after coming off the bench to great effect against Caley. Unfortunately he had to come off the bench midweek again, but it was whilst he was on we killed the tie off with the goal. I don't beleive Whittaker is match fit and don't see any other competition for the position with McCulloch taking one of the forward roles. Forward - McCulloch has been one of our best summer signings. His work rate and physical presence will prove a useful foil for his partner and also a decent outlet for the defence and midfield. Forward - Boyd if he is fit. Exactly the kind of game where he can bag a goal or two and get his season off and running. The Gers biggest goal threat should start every league game. The above would be my team for this weekend. However with Thomson fit, WS likes his middle 3 and may go with the 4-5-1/4-3-3. I hope not. I am also unsure as to Boyd's fitness, however with JCD almost certainly out we wont have many other options. Cousin signed today but I don't think he can go straight into the starting line up with only a few potential training sessions with his new team mates. Edit: Cousin signed as I typed this up.

Thanks to Gribz and the request to be pinned in a few sections. Hopefully the Mods/Admin can keep on top of further transfer business over the coming weeks. Cheers to Gribz btw

CHARLIE ADAM has given Rangers a huge pre-season boost by signing a new contract tying him to the club until 2012. The midfielder has committed his future to Rangers and is delighted to cap a fantastic debut campaign by penning a five-year deal. Since returning from St Mirren last summer Adam's reputation has risen considerably due to a string of excellent performances in the top team. After being given his chance by Paul Le Guen, the 22-year-old then held down his place in the side following Walter Smith's appointment and made over 40 appearances last term. His 14 goals also played a big part in helping the Light Blues cement a Champions League spot and Adam's efforts were subsequently rewarded with a call up to the Scotland squad. His involvement with the Dark Blues at the end of the season topped a great year and although he only had 20 days' rest in the summer, Charlie admits is feeling fit and raring to go. He told Rangers.co.uk: "It's great to be back and I am enjoying training so far. "We didn't get too long off but I really don't mind because we are here at Murray Park now preparing, hopefully, for a really successful season. "I am also delighted to get my contract sorted and commit my future to Rangers. "I have been here for a while, with two loan spells in between and I was happy with how I did last season. "To come back and play over 40 games was more than I could have expected and now to be rewarded with a new deal is fantastic. "I spoke to the manager and his advice influenced my decision to sign such a long-term deal. "What he said just confirmed my own thoughts and I'm pleased it's all finalised before the games start. "I will keep working hard and hopefully do well. We have strengthened the squad and I believe we can have a good season." Gload to see he has been sgined up, one of the best bits of talent to come out of Murray Park

They come out tommorow morning. Who would you like on the first game of the season obviously we will get an away game first. I would take Motherwell away again as we had last year. Or someone like, Kilmarnock or St Mirren

6th place Hibs cant catch 7th placed Falkirk. The SPL must scrap this joke of a split.

About time these two players got called up Hutton is playing out of his skin this now and whenever Charlie gets a free kick you are confident it is landing in the back of the net.

3 promotions in a row but how jammy was that to get a winner in the 90th minute to nick it and put them up. St Johnstone must have thought they were up! I feel for St Johnstone. They would do as good a job in the SPL as Dunfermline or St Mirren and it should be 2 up 2 down. Yet more nonsence from the SPL / SFA etc. Could they do the impossible and win a 4th successive league next season :devil:

Where did all go wrong for us this season? Why aren't we witnessing the 'moon-beams' of success promised by (perennial liar) SDM? What went so drastically wrong with the PLG appointment? We were all excited by PLGââ?¬â?¢s appointment and some were blinded by SDMââ?¬â?¢s ââ?¬Ë?moon-beams and financial investmentââ?¬â?¢ promises, both have failed to materialise over the last 9 months or so. In fact, it could be argued that all SDM has achieved over the last 12 months is sell of our most profitable asset in the deal that saw JJB inherit our merchandising sector and brand name. On the pitch, after watching Rangers play wonderful football at Fir Park on the opening weekend of the season (well for about 45 minutes), most of us believed, only to have our dreams shattered and our frustrations heaped upon. It isnââ?¬â?¢t hard to find reasons for us losing the league so weakly ââ?¬â?? dropping 7 points (out of 9) to ICT, dropping 5 out of 9 to DUFC (same record v Tims) and dropping further points to Motherwell, Kilmarnock, St Mirren and DAFC. Our inability to snatch victories from the jaws of defeat (or draws) hasnââ?¬â?¢t helped either. So another season of abject failure that was made worse by the total and utter mismanagement of our club which doesnââ?¬â?¢t bode well for the future. It doesnââ?¬â?¢t take a genius to realise that our squad requires major surgery in the summer, or that the club must pro-actively defend themselves and us the fans as we are continually under fire at the moment. Do we have the leaders at the club to sustain these challenges and come out on top? It is my opinion that Rangers Football Club will never again be successful if Murray, Bain and McIntyre remain in charge. Cammy F

This is depressing in a way. Why dont the other clubs want to advance and have a 2nd SPL to try and boost revenue etc!!! The worst part is the SPL may invite the other 8 clubs in and have this breakaway which will create 2 leagues of 10. Who is honestly running the game in Scotland??? They are a joke!!! Everyman and his dog outside those in charge realise we need to expand the SPL to at least 14 teams and scrap a lower division and make it 3 leagues. The likes of Dundee, Gretna, St Johnstone, Livingston, Partick and Clyde are all capable of holding there own against Dunfermline, St Mirren and Motherwell etc and we should have a 16 teams in the top flight. We could be playing each team twice then have some sort of breakaway / split where the bottom sides have some sort of play off and the top sides play each other again.

dont know if this is of any use to anyone but i stay 2 mins from love st stadium and the traffic in paisley is a nightmare at the moment due to the motorway at the airport being down to 1 lane. trains are off as well i think as central station being refurbished. dont try and go thru renfrew as a shortcut as its worse than paisley for traffic if travelling to the game - leave early :D

Looks like he is 100% commited to Rangers and hopefully he can play very well for us, performances like last Saturday will do us great

We are currently trying to sign 23 year old Kirk Broadfoot from St Mirren. Gus Macpherson confirms Walter has spoke to him on the phone.

Gallacher - 17 Lowing - 19 Perry - 17 Donald - 18 McMillan - 18 Emslie - 18 McShea - Furman - 18 Shinnie - 17 Lennon - 19 Fleck - 15 MacLachlan - 17 Djeziri - Harvey - 17 Good young team. Anyone any ideas how old McShea and Djeziri are?

Former Celt rejects Gers Thu, Feb 01 2007 18:45 Mark Fotheringham has revealed he snubbed Rangers to join Norwich - because he wanted to play a higher standard of football. The former Celtic star joined on transfer deadline day along with fellow Scot, Simon Lappin, who arrived from Scottish Premier League side St Mirren. Fotheringham had been training with Rangers for a week and looked set to join Walter Smith's men. However, having watched Peter Grant's side take on Wolves at Carrow Road on Tuesday evening, the 24-year-old was quick to change his mind. The former Dundee player said: "I went to watch Rangers against Hearts at the weekend, it was alright but I think the standard is a lot stronger in the Championship as a whole, with the amount of teams and the size of the clubs here so that was obviously a big decision for me but, I am just delighted to be down here, I'm buzzing." Fotheringham looks set to make his debut against Leeds at Carrow Road this weekend and admits he is excited about lining up with his new team-mates for the first time. "I am so impressed with the squad, we have got some good players here and I just can't wait to get started playing with them," he added.

Now compare this to the first squad. Talk about just giving everyone a number and saying Odds in the A squad and Evens in the B squad but McGregor your in both!! Who the hell is Broadfoot, Greer, McEveley???

WALTER SMITH is the new manager of Rangers. Smith's appointment has just been confirmed and he will be joined in the dug-out by Light Blue legend, Ally McCoist, who also makes the move from the Scottish national team to become Rangers' new assistant manager, and Kenny McDowall, the former Celtic reserve boss, who becomes first-team coach. The new management team's first match in charge will be at Ibrox this Saturday against Dundee United, ironically the team where it all started for Smith. A club statement reads: Rangers Football Club today (Wednesday January 10, 2007) confirmed Walter Smith, Ally McCoist and Kenny McDowall as the new Management Team. Walter, who first joined in 1986 as Graeme Souness' assistant before guiding Rangers to its historic Nine In A Row triumph, returns as Manager while Ally joins as Assistant Manager and Kenny completes the new-look backroom team as First-Team Coach. Chairman Sir David Murray commented: "It is a great pleasure to welcome Walter and Ally back to Rangers Football Club. I have great respect for both men and their achievements and I am convinced they will take the Club forward. "I would also like to extend a special welcome to Kenny. He has a terrific track record as a coach and will undoubtedly enhance our new Management Team." Smith, who has transformed Scotland's National side and managed Everton since leaving Ibrox in 1998, has signed a three-year contract with the Club. He commented: "I am delighted to return to Rangers as Manager. This Club has always been in my blood and I can't wait to get started. "I am looking forward to teaming up with Ally and Kenny. I worked side by side with Ally during our time with the National team and I am also delighted Kenny has agreed to join us at Ibrox." McCoist, the Club's record marksman with an incredible 355 goals in 581 appearances between 1983 and 1998, stated: "It was a privilege to pull on the Rangers jersey for so many years but I am delighted to return as Assistant Manager. "I was honoured to be named in the Greatest Ever Rangers Team and included in the Club's Hall of Fame but this is something really special. I know the Club inside out and I am ready for the challenge." McDowall, the former St Mirren and Partick Thistle striker who has a proven track record as a youth coach with Celtic FC, commented: "This is an exciting new chapter in my life and I am relishing the chance to team up with Walter and Ally at Rangers. "Working at Murray Park on a daily basis will also be a real thrill." Press Conference shortly.

Last season I thought there were major things going on behind the scenes which weren't helping us on the pitch. This was because of what was being reported in the media, the rumours, little comments, the general lack of team spirit etc. In the end we didn't learn much other than there did seem to be elements within the team undermining AM and even a talking-to from DM didn't seem to change the players' attitude much. Fast forward to this season and its much the same. I could be totally wrong, but there still seems to be major problems in our squad. I don't buy in to the media conspiracy, that they're all against us, every fan I knows thinks that the papers are against their club. We've had some of the same rumours as last year and stories in the media about dressing room unrest, PLG not settling, thinking about leaving etc. Its pretty clear on the pitch that there's a lack of leadership and team spirit. Only this week we have Svensson admitting that there are distinct groups of players in the dressing room who socialise together. While this is a long way from disruptive cliques, I don't think its a good sign and I'm starting to wonder if there's more to the story than meets the eye. We've also seen PLG making some strange comments to the press about Ferguson, the goal-keeping situation earlier and seemingly struggling to find a good word to say about Boyd. We're not at Christmas yet and DM has had to have a word with the players about their performances. IMO he should have been telling them their wages would be donated to charity until they pulled their collective fingers out, but I'm guessing it was a general kick up the arse kind of talk which has so far fallen on deaf ears. I really hope I'm wrong here, but something's not quite right and it seems to be the same sort of atmosphere we had last season. The manager has changed along with a lot of the backroom staff, so its even more strange. There's usuall no smoke without fire although we all know that we do have a lazy media who will report any old nonsense, but I just have a bad feeling about all of this. Time to concentrate on the game against St Mirren which is, like the rest of our league matches, a must-win fixture. Time to get behind the team and PLG and let our voices be heard.

He seemed like a good prospect in the begining but it just seemed to cave in after his bust-up with le Guen.

Captain Steven Pressley is once again at the centre of controversy at Hearts, having not been included for Saturday's trip to face St Mirren. The defender returned to the starting line-up at Inverness last weekend, having missed the previous two matches. But BBC Scotland understands Pressley was involved in a row with the team management on Thursday. And Pressley did not train with his Hearts team-mates on Friday, despite being fully fit. In late October, Pressley voiced his concerns about squad unrest under the regime of club owner Vladimir Romanov. He was not selected to face Falkirk on 13 November and was an unused substitute against Rangers. His exclusion led to protests from supporters but the rift between fans and Romanov appeared to be healed after a meeting with the Russian businessman and the reinstatement of Pressley. I see Rangers putting in a bid for him. He would be a good stop-gap until we find a replacement.

How bad have they fallen now!! 6th in the league, drawing with Caley and St Mirren! They are in free fall