Walter Smith: I donâ??t blame these guys for going... neither should FANS

[ian1964 10,514]

WALTER SMITH has a big question for the Rangers fans criticising players whoâ??ve abandoned the club â?? what would you do?

 

The former boss looked on as skipper Steven Davis joined Steven Naismith and Jamie Ness in leaving the stricken Glasgow giants.

 

John Fleck, Kyle Lafferty and Steven Whittaker have also quit.

 

But Smith is reluctant to criticise the players heading for the exits â?? as they were the ones who stood by the club when they were told they could leave.

 

Smith said: â??I donâ??t honestly think the boys who are going deserve criticism.

 

â??People should remember that two years ago I had to tell them all they were on the transfer list because of the situation.

 

â??They were terrific at that time and they all got on with it.

 

â??It was an awkward situation but they were great.

 

â??Everybody can be quick to criticise if they want to. Iâ??ve never been in the position.

 

â??The emotional aspect of being a former manager and being so closely involved means itâ??s a huge disappointment to see players of that quality leaving.

 

â??But the question that everyone needs to ask is â?? what would you do in the circumstances?

 

â??If you can put your hand on your heart and say â??No, Iâ??d have stayedâ??, youâ??re quite entitled to go ahead and criticise them.

 

â??Iâ??ve been a supporter since I was a boy and I donâ??t really know what Iâ??d have done in the circumstances â?? and thatâ??s the truth.

 

â??If people are being perfectly honest theyâ??d be the same. A lot of people at the club are faced with the difficult decisions and these boys are no different.

 

â??And thatâ??s why Iâ??m honestly loathe to be entirely critical.

 

â??The disappointment far outweighs that.

 

â??The players have chosen to go down that road. But like most Rangers fans Iâ??d love to see them all still playing at Ibrox.â?

 

Smith says players are no different from any other Rangers employee who faces uncertain times.

 

He said: â??Footballers are like everybody else â?? they have to do what they think is best for their careers.

 

â??Itâ??s a disappointment from my own point of view but everybody has to have an understanding of the situation that people are being placed in at the present moment.

 

â??Everyone who is employed at Rangers, whether theyâ??re a groundsman, a cleaner or the secretary, will have an element of doubt about their job.

 

â??Players are no different. If theyâ??re being advised leaving is the safest road, then so be it.â?

 

However Smith says players who have pledged to stay on, like Lee McCulloch and Kirk Broadfoot, deserve credit for their positive stance.

 

He added: â??Lee and Kirk have decided to stay and battle away and I admire the two of them and the others who have made that decision.

 

â??Iâ??d have loved the rest of them to stay but I come back to my point that itâ??s difficult to comment until youâ??re put in the position.â?

 

However, Smith does have strong views on the way the SFL have been left to deal with the mess.

 

They will meet on Friday to discuss it and Smith said: â??Itâ??s an awkward decision to make and the fact clubs have been left to decide this is wrong.

 

â??The constitution of the SFA should determine what happens to a club under these circumstances. It shouldâ??ve been there in black and white in the first place.

 

â??Thatâ??s my gripe with the whole thing. The SFA have been making changes to rules but this has been completely overlooked and thatâ??s led to this indecision.

 

â??Thereâ??s nothing in there to determine what happens to a club and where they should go when they are liquidated.

 

â??To my mind that shouldâ??ve been a fairly straightforward thing to have been placed into the SFAâ??s rules, especially after Gretna going out of business and Livingston going down to the third division.â?

 

And Smith says he has immense sympathy for boss Ally McCoist whoâ??s struggling to put a squad together .

 

He said: â??Iâ??ve got to agree with Alistairâ??s assessment â?? if they all leave and youâ??re left with very few players and have a transfer embargo on top, itâ??s going to be difficult.

 

â??It would be hard enough for Rangers even if they were allowed to sign players, as he would still have to get them together, get a formation and get them playing as a team.â?

 

Read more: http://www.thescottishsun.co.uk/scotsol/homepage/sport/spl/4416804/Walter-Smith-I-dont-blame-these-guys-for-going-neither-should-FANS.html#ixzz200rbaUdM

[foggy dewhurst 0]

he goes on the constitution of the sfasgoul determine what happens to a club under these circumstances ,well wattie the sfa only make rules not laws .

[simplythebest 0]

I'll make my own mind up thanks Walter.

[Guest JCS]

The issue was never about their decision to leave but, rather, the dishonesty which underpinned it. Anyone watching the Naismith/Whittaker press conference cannot fail to have realised immedaitely that they were casting about for excuses to justify their respective decisions. To trot out the 'Rangers history has gone', 'I didn't sign up to play for Sevco' etc. is utterly reprehensible.

 

Personally, I have no difficulty with these guys leaving, but I do have difficulty with the fact that they failed to transfer their contracts and negotiate their exit from there. At least we would have got a transfer fee, however small.

 

Sorry Walter, but you're dead wrong.

[CumbernauldGers 0]

Smith backing the scum players the way he has backed David Murray, no real shock.

 

Smith is one of these Rangers men when he is tacking money from the club, when the gravy train stopped he did not just walk away he ran.

[kuznetsov 0]

More stupid nonsense from Walter. I wish he would just stay away and keep quiet.

Edited July 8, 2012 by kuznetsov

[kuznetsov 0]

so true cumbernauldgers. he verges on clueless sometimes, he really does. sir walter was found out by tlb and could not get away fast enough. left ally in the lurch big time with a poor squad and huge wage bill.

[Guest Bluenose80]

so true cumbernauldgers. he verges on clueless sometimes, he really does. sir walter was found out by tlb and could not get away fast enough. left ally in the lurch big time with a poor squad and huge wage bill.

Bit hypocritical when you have Steven Naismith as your sig. I think Walter is wrong on this but you'll remember he beat TLB for the title and the only reason he got this seasons is due to having no competition.

[kuznetsov 0]

Bit hypocritical when you have Steven Naismith as your sig. I think Walter is wrong on this but you'll remember he beat TLB for the title and the only reason he got this seasons is due to having no competition.

 

terry butcher won walter the title. it was won inspite of horrific football and medievil tactics. the mhob have completely dominated the old firm encounters since tlb took over bar one or two games.

 

i will need to get that pic changed :-) i am not best pleased with the wee man just now. a bit like who do i get on the back of my top? who knows who is going to be here next season. :-( big lee is about the most certain i guess!

Edited July 8, 2012 by kuznetsov

[Guest Bluenose80]

terry butcher won walter the title. it was won inspite of horrific football and medievil tactics. the mhob have completely dominated the old firm encounters since tlb took over bar one or two games.

 

i will need to get that pic changed :-) i am not best pleased with the wee man just now. a bit like who do i get on the back of my top? who knows who is going to be here next season. :-( big lee is about the most certain i guess!

 

Have to agree Walter's tactics were almost Craig Leveinesq at times but we held our nerve in the run in where as TLB's bottlers shat it when they went to big Terry's place. Good choice of pic he will most probably be our next captain.