Count on Murray Park quality kids

[ian1964 10,409]

RANGERSâ?? young guns are ready to step into the firing line â?? according to the clubâ??s Academy director, Jimmy Sinclair.

 

Nineteen-year-old Rhys McCabe helped Rangers blast away Celtic at Ibrox on Sunday and there is more ammunition to come from the Murray Park training centre.

 

And Sinclair today told SportTimes: â??I am absolutely confident we have the young players who can continue to help the club win matches. That is what it is all about here.â?

 

McCabe â?? who has followed such as Kyle Hutton, Andrew Little, Gregg Wylde and Jamie Ness into the first team â?? starred as Rangers defeated Celtic 3-2 and grabbed the opportunity offered by Ally McCoist.

 

â??It is a good time to be a young Rangers player,â? said Sinclair. â??The boys all know it, too. At the start of the financial trouble, academy coaches pushed the line that they must seize the chance to burst through to the first team and now they see it is true.â?

 

He added: â??It is ironic it takes the clubâ??s financial position to highlight it, but we have the kids who can step forward and make a contribution.â?

 

Sinclair pointed out former manager Walter Smith had used the Murray Park graduates in his spell as manager.

 

â??Kyle Hutton came in against Manchester United in the Champions League and Darren Cole did likewise against Bursaspor,â? he said. â??It is now teed up for kids to contribute.â?

 

He added: â??I am confident we have the ammunition. These young players are not thrown into a bath of cold water. They are acclimatised to the demands of the first team by training with them regularly. They have stood up to the challenge when put in the first team.â?

 

Little has already shown the way to the top side and he has paid tribute to his team-mates for brushing aside the clubâ??s troubles to claim an impressive derby victory.

 

He said: â??Every single player just showed they didnâ??t want to be beaten. That really came through and we had a lot of pride.

 

â??We used all the bad stuff which has happened to us to our advantage and it was absolutely superb. The attitude from every single one of our players was unreal.â?

 

The striker added: â??The gaffer told me to go and get a goal and it was great to score.

 

â??When I was sitting on the bench, I was thinking about how good it would be to score and I was planning my celebration, but I think I just went mad when the ball went in.

 

â??Iâ??m loving every minute at the moment and it hasnâ??t just been in the last four or five games. Iâ??ve been feeling really good for a few months and Iâ??ve been scoring in reserve games.â?

 

http://www.eveningtimes.co.uk/sport/count-on-murray-park-quality-kids-1.1155467

[ian1964 10,409]

Rhys McCabe backed to form the new Ibrox vanguard

 

 

BARRY FERGUSON today predicted a bright future lies ahead for Rhys McCabe at Rangers – after watching the kid boss the midfield in his first-ever Old Firm outing.

 

The 19-year-old more than justified his selection after being given the nod for the third Glasgow derby of the season at Ibrox last Sunday by Light Blues manager Ally McCoist.

 

Playing in the boiler room alongside captain Steven Davis, McCabe produced a mature performance that belied his tender years.

 

Given that his first appearance for the club he grew up in Livingston supporting as a kid only came earlier this month, then his third game for Gers was a truly remarkable display.

 

Ferguson had a wry smile on his face as he watched the fresh-faced starlet help his team to a 3-2 victory.

 

For he was thrust into the limelight at a similar young age at the Glasgow giants, first by Walter Smith and then by Dick Advocaat, when he was starting out in the game in the late 1990s.

 

He believes McCabe can now go on and establish himself as an indispensable member of the first team at his former club – just like he did at the outset of his glittering career.

 

“I was delighted for Rhys on Sunday,” the Blackpool midfielder said. “I was pleased to see Ally handing him a start and I thought he grabbed his chance firmly with both feet.

 

“I’m sure that having an experienced international like Steven Davis there alongside him would have helped a great deal.

 

“But in an Old Firm game there is no hiding place. You have to stand up and be counted and he certainly did that.

 

“I can remember Rhys from my time at the club. He was always one to look out for. It is great for Rangers to see young lads like him coming through the youth ranks at Murray Park and breaking into the first team.

 

“The club is going through a difficult time just now and nobody knows what the future holds. But no matter what happens, the emergence of home-grown talent like Rhys can only be a positive thing for Rangers.

 

“Rhys is not the only good central midfielder to break through at the club recently either. We have had Kyle Hutton and Jamie Ness in the last couple of seasons. It augurs well for the future.

 

“It isn’t beyond the realms of possibility that those three players, Hutton, McCabe and Ness, could form the backbone of the Rangers team for several years to come if they stay fit and the issues behind the scenes are resolved.”

 

Meanwhile, Ferguson has also hailed the performance of Lee McCulloch up front against Celtic at the weekend – and claimed his childhood friend encapsulates the spirit of the club’s fight for survival.

 

McCulloch played as a lone striker against Neil Lennon’s champions-elect and gave rival centre-backs Charlie Mulgrew and Thomas Rogne a torrid time with a typically rumbustious showing.

 

There was no lack of commitment to the club’s cause from the 33-year-old or his team-mates – despite the fact they have accepted massive pay cuts of up to 75% due to the club’s dire financial situation.

 

“I thought big Lee was magnificent against Celtic,” said Ferguson. “Centre- forward is not his preferred position, but you wouldn’t have known that. He led the line superbly, didn’t let up during his entire time on the park.

 

“Lee is made for the Old Firm game. He is a Rangers fan and knows what victory means in the fixture to the supporters. He has sat in the stands alongside them in the past, cheering the team on with them.

 

“He led by example. He did not shy away from the physical aspect of the fixture. That is so important in the Old Firm game. I thought he gave Sone Aluko behind him the time and space he needed to operate effectively.

 

“I appreciate the result will not make a difference in the title race. But winning the Old Firm game is always important, no matter what, and I was delighted for all the boys and the fans given what they have been through in recent weeks.”

 

http://www.eveningtimes.co.uk/sport/rhys-mccabe-backed-to-form-the-new-ibrox-vanguard-1.1155494

[andrew_2010 0]

“When I was sitting on the bench, I was thinking about how good it would be to score and I was planning my celebration, but I think I just went mad when the ball went in.

 

Love that!

[Guest Dutchy]

Lets hope there's more of them to take thier chances in the future, and hope they don't get their legs targeted by certain opposing teams.

[Darthter 542]

Now is the perfect time to get these young guys into the 1st team....league is lost, out of all cup comps, and highly likely no Europe next season.

 

Get as many of these promising youngsters into the starting 11 and get them some experience.

[Bears 0]

This is an awful time for us all. CW is the devil, but the cunt could be a blessing in disguise, if you know what i mean?

[der Berliner 3,234]

We'll probably never learn the truth, by I still have that gut feeling that Whyte was or let himself been utilized to get the club out of the HMRC stuff. A no-name getting all the blame (it works, as you can see) and some "knight" character can step forward and "really safe" us.

 

As for the youngsters ... IMHO it is a shame that it needed such dire straits to show what talent there is at "lower" levels. You'd hope that any new owner does not induge in a spending spree before we utilize what we have already.

[Guest Dutchy]

I was alluding to that myself a few weeks ago der Berliner, Whyte is just a front man to take the flak.

 

As much as I want the youths to be an intergral part of any future Rangers team, we shouldn't fill the team with kids as any youths coming in have to be part of a winning team, and there are some top players returning. So 3 or 4 youngsters in the team each week, with sensible use of the substitiutes would be the best way forward. septic might yet have a dip in results and although the league is theirs, if they were to only win it by less than 10 points, we'd have good reason to point to the admin as being the only real reason they've succeeded.

 

Just trying to be ultra positive. lol

[Zappa 0]

Now is the perfect time to get these young guys into the 1st team....league is lost, out of all cup comps, and highly likely no Europe next season.

 

Get as many of these promising youngsters into the starting 11 and get them some experience.

 

In a way, I do agree with you, but I also think Ally needs to field whatever he thinks are his strongest teams for the remaining SPL games because finishing second means a lot of extra cash for the club compared to finishing 3rd and the club needs that cash this season possibly more than any other. Massive game for us at Firpark at the weekend with the opportunity to go 6 points clear of Motherwell, but they certainly won't be lying down for us. I'm expecting a really difficult game.

[Guest Dutchy]

The good thing for us in the Motherwell game is that their home form has dipped recently, so we may have a good one next week, St Mirren not that much better.