In the early 1980's a young Hamilton midfielder with a dodgy knee moved to Dundee and started putting his beloved Rangers to the sword seemingly every time the clubs met. He eventually earned a move to Rangers and became a cult hero amongst the die-hards but never got a much deserved chance at representing his country. I still say he's a legend though and here's why...
It's not a nice feeling when the player you worshipped most as a schoolboy and regarded as the living embodiment of all things Rangers during a seemingly quiet yet highly successful playing career finally departs the club, even if it is overdue as some have said in the case of John Brown. No doubt there are a lot of John Greig fans who know what I'm talking about.
Bomber never got a game for Scotland, even in an era when Brian Irvine and Tosh McKinlay somehow managed to get capped. He kept a low profile at Rangers, seeming to intentionally avoid the spotlight despite becoming first-pick to partner Richard Gough in the centre of defence. Whilst Gough did the shouting, the memorable headers and the bandage bravery that grabbed headlines, Brown was the one who did all the unglamorous stuff like providing the cover that allowed other defenders to take up advanced positions or accurately distributing the ball from defence with the neat passes you'd expect of a midfielder or even giving that tricky opposition forward the one severe dunt (without any officials seeing, of course!) that made him lose any interest he had in tormenting us. Unlike Davie Robertson, Bomber didn't seem to care about Scotland squads. He was in the Rangers team and there was no greater honour in professional football so far as he was concerned.
He knew just what it was all about when he pulled on that jersey and his name will always be there or thereabouts when future discussions turn to the spine of that nine in a row team. True, he was no Gascoigne or Laudrup, or even a Goram, but a player like Brown who rarely makes a mistake and plays on for months or even a full season despite suffering injuries that would make current 'hardman' Ricksen dial 999 is a true great in the eyes of those who appreciate nothing more than hard graft from a man with 'Rangers' going through him like a stick of rock.
The only regret I think Bomber will have is that the injuries did get him in the end and stopped him from making the one solitary appearance Walter Smith wanted to give him in the nine in a row season at the end of his playing career. Having said that, who would have thought he'd have reached the heights he did after failing a medical when Alex MacDonald tried to take him to Tynecastle from Hamilton? No doubt he cursed his luck at the time but that rickety knee meant he would end up at Ibrox instead one day.
The term 'legend' gets thrown at anyone who is supremely gifted with a football and gives us two highly impressive seasons. I think that when compared with the bravery and effort of John Brown, the contribution of much-hyped players like Paul Gascoigne and Barry Ferguson is absolutely minimal.
Bomber's greatest goal? Well, I won't pick the one you're thinking on. Instead I'll go for a 35-yard half-volley rocket of a ball that came down from from high in the clouds during a Scottish Cup tie against Hearts at Ibrox which was 0-0 at the time. He actually slid at the ball and timed his connection so perfectly that the Hearts keeper had no time whatsoever to react and attempt to get to it. Most would have thought only Jorg Albertz capable of striking a ball so sweetly and with so much venom.
Two moments from Brown I think worthy of special mention before closing came in the heat of derby matches against Celtic, the opponents you could tell he was dying to cause the most damage possible whilst still somehow retaining enough discipline not to get caught up in any real trouble.
On a dull New Year's Day at Parkhead with Rangers trying to hold onto a one-goal lead and heading towards injury time, Bomber who had been introduced as a second-half substitute gathered the ball in the Celtic half and went for a wee run trying to retain possession and waste a bit of time. Then space opened up for him to stride forward into and crack a 22-yard left-foot screamer in off the bottom of Gordon Marshall's left-hand post. Having seen the referee ignore an SFA directive about booking players who vaulted advertising boards when Mowbray scored that day for the filth, Bomber made sure he did exactly the same and made straight for the supporters who knew what joy he must have felt in his heart and vice-versa.
The other was in a Scottish Cup tie at Parkhead when we lost by a Tommy Coyne goal to nil. We are quite used to seeing a striker who has just scored boot a ball into the net for a second time in celebration. Well, my hero booted Tommy Coyne full force into the net because the bastard had just scored against the Rangers and I completely refuse to criticise him for it because my reaction would have been to do exactly the same if I thought I would get away with it.
SM
Note for Murray and Bain : Get Bomber back to Ibrox and onto the park at half-time early next season so he can say a proper farewell. Unlike you two, Bomber's main attachment to Rangers was emotional rather than financial and we'd be offended if we didn't get the chance to thank him for his efforts.