The Ever Present Stench Of Negativity

[CammyF 6,807]

For those unlucky enough to have been reading my inane ramblings for some time, this next statement may come as a huge surprise, there was once a time where I wouldn�t have had a negative word to say about our beloved club. I was always a champion of the club and even although privately I had reservations of the way it was being run, I wouldn�t allow a bad word to be uttered relating to Rangers FC. I can�t recall when my attitude changed but reflecting on over 10 years of posting on GersNet, it appears that I have always been an old cynical so-and-so who never looks on the bright side of life, especially where Rangers are concerned. On further reflection, and looking for any excuse to explain my negativity, I believe that the general malice surrounding our fortunes is what has transformed me into the cynic that I am.

 

Let me get one thing straight from the start, I don�t enjoy being cynical and I certainly don�t enjoy witnessing the continued demise of the club that we all love. But, it is hard to find anything positive to pen regarding Rangers. I thought long and hard about this article as I remember writing the same things numerous times over the years and as always nothing has improved. Sir David Murray has moved (or been moved) aside and a new Chairman has taken the reigns, but do any of us expect this to change anything? Will our crippling debt suddenly disappear? Will our manager suddenly decide to play free-flowing attractive football? Will the club finally stand up to the agenda driven journalists earning a substantial living from continually berating Rangers? Will Ibrox be renovated / upgraded so it is once more the majestic stadium that it once was? Will we suddenly transform ourselves into a marketable brand and re-establish a successful merchandising department? Will Murray Park suddenly start producing a stream of players who are genuine Rangers material? Will the vast majority of the Rangers fan-base even care?

 

Football clubs mean different things to different people. I am not unique and I am not looking for plaudits but I can honestly say that I love Rangers with ever fibre of my being. After my family, Rangers are my life. That�s what makes the current state of our club so personal and so hurtful. It is like watching a family member dying and being unable to help. I think we can all recall times that the Rangers result hurt so much that you just went home, curled up into a ball and refused to communicate with the outside world for days. We can also recall times where the Rangers result made your day, week, month or year. That�s the joy of being a football fan. One second can change your whole mood and entire outlook. However, recently I have found that no matter the on-field success (which I have enjoyed) hasn�t quite supplemented the feelings for doom and gloom. After the initial high of the success comes the realisation that the club is still rotten to the core.

 

It is easy to sit and pen articles like this and not come up with ways to improve the situation. However, even if I were to give solutions to all our problems, our club wouldnââ?¬â?¢t be interested. After-all, we are all faceless and clueless. But I wonââ?¬â?¢t let our managers assessment of internet fans deter me from putting over some suggestions! Iââ?¬â?¢ll admit that reducing the crippling debt has to be our priority. How do we manage this without weakening the team? That is the $64,000 question and one that I have no answer for other than to find an escape from Scottish Football or to cut our cloth accordingly. The one negative surrounding Rangers that I would love to be able to tackle (Iââ?¬â?¢m open for discussions Mr Johnston) is how to tackle the odious journalists. If I were tasked to develop a solution I believe that I would have this sorted in a matter of months. Firstly Iââ?¬â?¢d ban any journalist that had shown prejudice in reporting on the ills of Scottish Football and who implicated Rangers and no other teams / clubs. I would then inform their editors of why they were banned and inform them that the ban wouldnââ?¬â?¢t be lifted until they ensure impartiality. Make no mistake these papers need us more than we need them. Certain journalists wouldnââ?¬â?¢t be given a 2nd chance, they would serve a life-time ban from Ibrox and Iââ?¬â?¢d release a statement informing everyone why they were banned including showing examples of their one sided reporting. As fans we can invoke change here ââ?¬â?? simply donââ?¬â?¢t buy newspapers. I havenââ?¬â?¢t bought a newspaper for over 7 years. It is also worth noting and recalling at this juncture, we the fans are still the biggest single financial contributor to Rangers FC.

 

Another worrying aspect is how we have become an unmarketable brand. This is solely down to neglect from our custodians. They have allowed us to slip from being the single most recognised Scottish Institution to a badly run laughing stock. Our current sponsorship with Carling is highly unlikely to be renewed and that leaves us with another potential financial head-ache. Make no mistake, our rivals from the East End are a far more marketable brand than we are and are in sound financial state at this moment in time. I heard a story this week that supposedly came from one of our current coaching staff. Now, before going any further, I don�t believe a word of this, but its another example of the negativity around our club. The story goes that if we hadn�t made it to the Champions League this season then the administrators would have been called. The story continues that if we don�t escape from Scottish Football then they may still be called to Ibrox. As stated above, I don�t believe that our current financial predicament is that serious, but we�d be kidding ourselves if we didn�t believe that we could reach that perilous state soon if things don�t improve.

 

The millstone that is our debt is stopping other areas like Murray Park being utilised to their full potential. This is also true regarding the upkeep of Ibrox Stadium that looks like a tired old lady now rather than the super-model it used to be. It breaks my heart seeing the state of Ibrox ââ?¬â?? broken TVââ?¬â?¢s, dirty and disgusting toilets etc. This is Scotlandââ?¬â?¢s first UEFA 5 star accredited stadium we are talking about here. It is also a remembrance of those who lost their lives at the Ibroxââ?¬â?¢s disasters.

 

I have had many discussions with many Rangers fans regarding the above issues and why I am so negative and cynical and I appear to be in the minority. Am I missing something? Am I overtly negative and cynical? Should I just shrug my shoulders and refuse to believe that my club would ever go to the wall just because we are ââ?¬Ë?Rangersââ?¬â?¢? I canââ?¬â?¢t believe how blind some Rangers fans are when it comes to the long-term future of the club we profess to love. Never mind we won the SPL title and have just beaten Celtc ââ?¬â?? everything is hunky-dorey eh?

 

Cammy F

[Union City Blue 0]

Alright Cammy - I can see you put a lot of thought into that and your disappointment is palpable.

 

I am absolutely convinced that there are load of things that can be done to make you happier. Off-field, that is.

 

You're right that Rangers' outlook was probably in the hands of fate on the last day of last season - and also that most people quickly forget when they see silver. And quite rightly so, for a short period!

 

 

So, chin up mate! Try to think of ideas and then get involved off-line with whoever you think will help you get your voice heard, or independently. That's another thing you can do.

[Zappa 0]

The millstone that is our debt is stopping other areas like Murray Park being utilised to their full potential. This is also true regarding the upkeep of Ibrox Stadium that looks like a tired old lady now rather than the super-model it used to be. It breaks my heart seeing the state of Ibrox ââ?¬â?? broken TVââ?¬â?¢s, dirty and disgusting toilets etc. This is Scotlandââ?¬â?¢s first UEFA 5 star accredited stadium we are talking about here. It is also a remembrance of those who lost their lives at the Ibroxââ?¬â?¢s disasters.

This is possibly the least important of the issues/points you talk about, but then is it? As you say, it's Ibrox we're talking about and it should be as perfect as it can be without modernization. It shouldn't cost the club much at all to rectify any issues about the general repair and cleanliness of the stadium. There's no excuse for the whole place not being as perfect as it can be before a match, then again at HT after a clean up, then again at FT after another clean up. Anything less than an impression of it being spotless is a sign of cost-cutting in the wrong places.

[Union City Blue 0]

This is possibly the least important of the issues/points you talk about, but then is it? As you say, it's Ibrox we're talking about and it should be as perfect as it can be without modernization. It shouldn't cost the club much at all to rectify any issues about the general repair and cleanliness of the stadium. There's no excuse for the whole place not being as perfect as it can be before a match, then again at HT after a clean up, then again at FT after another clean up. Anything less than an impression of it being spotless is a sign of cost-cutting in the wrong places.

 

It's symbolic and symbolism is hugely important in football and fan culture - especially (probably) at Rangers.

 

The town, the identity, the strip, the badge, the colours, the logo, the stadium; everything is massively symbolic to supporters. At Rangers, you can chuck in a few more regarding culture and so on.

 

Most fans are fiercely protective of their patch and want to be proud of it - and rightly so. It is part of us, and we are part of it. That's what business can never understand.

[maineflyer 0]

I have had many discussions with many Rangers fans regarding the above issues and why I am so negative and cynical and I appear to be in the minority. Am I missing something? Am I overtly negative and cynical? Should I just shrug my shoulders and refuse to believe that my club would ever go to the wall just because we are ââ?¬Ë?Rangersââ?¬â?¢? I canââ?¬â?¢t believe how blind some Rangers fans are when it comes to the long-term future of the club we profess to love. Never mind we won the SPL title and have just beaten Celtc ââ?¬â?? everything is hunky-dorey eh?

 

The best years of Rangers are most definitely in the past. I saw some of them and I'll always treasure the memories. It's not easy to accept and the denial going on is unhelpful but understandable, especially amongst the younger supporters. Sadly however, it is certainly true.

 

Personally, I cannot see the slope being anything but downwards from here on ......... possibly for football as a whole but certainly for Rangers. If you only arrived in the 1990's then sorry but you missed it, you're now supporting a shadow.

 

Are you being overly negative or cynical? Not from where I'm sitting. Simply telling it like it is.

[andy steel 0]

It comes and goes.

 

What affects me might not affect you, so these reasons could be miles wide of the mark; but the main thing that has jaundiced my supporting these last 4 and a bit years (a novice, compared to you) has been internet interaction. Before, I'd be pretty much talking about and going to the game with my friends, and as is normal in your circle of friends, you're mostly on the same wavelength. Not on everything, but mostly. But going online I've been debating in a most dispiriting way with people who oftentimes lurch into name calling, or conform to the worst media stereotype. I've got to the stage where I'd rather not be associated with such people, and that inevitably affects the strength of my committment.

 

So coming from a different direction, you maybe get to the same place: with you, it's the younger fan, with me, it's culturally driven agenda. I might have missed it had I not been online.

 

Seems kind of stupid to be posting online, talking about how posting online has pushed me further away from the Rangers than I have ever been in my life. But that's how it is.

[Frankie 8,151]

It is carried easy to be carried away by the almost omnipresent negativity surrounding our club - from depressed fans rightly concerned about our future, to a media always desperate to put the boot in, to the club itself struggling with their PR.

 

I try and avoid this by attempting to enjoy the basics. The odd exciting piece of skill during a game; the tasty victories against Celtic, the UEFA Cup run of 07/08, the charity and dignity of our support and just walking into Ibrox every other Saturday. I try my best not to take those small virtues for granted and it helps me cope with the many valid problems we read about on a day-to-day basis.

 

I'm sure the troops attending the CL game next week could put it all into perspective for us.

[chilledbear 16]

The best years of Rangers are most definitely in the past. I saw some of them and I'll always treasure the memories. It's not easy to accept and the denial going on is unhelpful but understandable, especially amongst the younger supporters. Sadly however, it is certainly true.

 

Personally, I cannot see the slope being anything but downwards from here on ......... possibly for football as a whole but certainly for Rangers. If you only arrived in the 1990's then sorry but you missed it, you're now supporting a shadow.

 

Are you being overly negative or cynical? Not from where I'm sitting. Simply telling it like it is.

 

I saw the best years in the early sixties, but then again I saw the best in the early seventies (European Trophy), but what about the nineties? In between there were some bloody holes, a lot worse than what is happening now.

Go for nine years watching that lot win the League, and tell me it was better than the present.

[fraser54 0]

The best years of Rangers are most definitely in the past. I saw some of them and I'll always treasure the memories. It's not easy to accept and the denial going on is unhelpful but understandable, especially amongst the younger supporters. Sadly however, it is certainly true.

 

Personally, I cannot see the slope being anything but downwards from here on ......... possibly for football as a whole but certainly for Rangers. If you only arrived in the 1990's then sorry but you missed it, you're now supporting a shadow.

 

Are you being overly negative or cynical? Not from where I'm sitting. Simply telling it like it is.

 

I am not supporting a shadow ! I am supporting a team that my father supports, my grandpa supports, my great grandpa supported etc etc !! Rangers is in the blood, stories will be passed down by generations of Barca 72, Davie Cooper etc !

There is no shadow, we are one great club who will go on together !!

[maineflyer 0]

I saw the best years in the early sixties, but then again I saw the best in the early seventies (European Trophy), but what about the nineties? In between there were some bloody holes, a lot worse than what is happening now.

Go for nine years watching that lot win the League, and tell me it was better than the present.

 

I also started in the late fifties and early sixties. The niar years were awful and the '69 cup final remains my low point as a bear. But is isn't all about the field of play, you expect highs and lows. In the early 1960's Rangers were genuinely and widely acknowledged as Scotland's best club by supporters of many clubs. They might not have liked us but they generally like what the club represented. No one was running down our heritage and precious few that I can recall were offended by what Rangers stood for or what Rangers fans sang. We had the best scouting system in the business and generally didn't know what debt problems were. We played in three European finals in 11 years and generally held our heads high. Fast forward to fans being asked to grass on fellow fans, hounded by stewards looking for an excuse to have you ejected, pilloried in the media and government, a virtual pariah in our own back yard, a yawning gulf between club and support, a chairman lying through his teeth to an increasingly gullible support, etc, etc. It's hard not to compare the matchday experience now with 20 or 30 years ago and watch subdued fans sitting in silence for 75 minutes before heading for the exits. Was it better back then? Damned right it was. At least that's my personal opinion - it's the only thing I have to offer.