Last week’s supporters clubs and fan groups statement pointed the way forward for the support for the coming season. Celebrate Rangers and our unique culture in a positive, colourful and lively manner - but stop the numpties from shooting us all in the head. Anyone who steps out of line is no longer a Ranger fans and is in fact an enemy of Rangers.
It’s over ten years since our old chum The Gub identified the “FTP Brigade” as a major problem. By desecrating our songs they were not just vulgarising them they were doing our enemies work for them. How different things might be if more had heeded his words of warning back then? Why debase your own culture?
“I’LL DO WHAT I WANT”
Of course you can. We all can. Whether it’s smart to always do what you want to is of course another matter. If you want to walk right into a trap I’d say you were a bit simple.
IN THE INTERNET AGE ONE IS ENOUGH
Last week’s hysteria about Stirling shows that a couple of fans or a punter with access to Twitter can cause havoc in the media. Boost the size of the crowd from 1,200 to 12,000 or 20,000 and a few wallopers ‘doing what we want’ can suddenly make a lot of noise. So you have to make sure your behaviour is correct. Get your own house in order.
The UEFA regulations mean that Rangers ARE responsible for Rangers fans - or those perceived to be Rangers fans - whether in the ground or not, whether they have tickets or not, whether they travel with official club travel or not.
EVERYONE AN AMBASSADOR
Usually each Champions League campaign sees one big away game that everyone heads for - Stuttgart, Barca, etc. Or Manchester for the UEFA Final. The ease and low cost of travel now means the numpties can travel in numbers to these games. Make no mistake - they are taking the piss out of you on a personal basis with their behaviour.
The fact is they don’t care about Rangers, all they care about is themselves and if that involves bad behaviour under the cover of a crowd then they are as happy as Larry and fuck you and fuck the consequences for Rangers..
In sharp contrast the average Bear does care - why wouldn’t you want to be positive about Rangers? So when a TV crew appears don’t be an arsehole.
WHAT “THEY” DO IS NO EXCUSE
Defeatism is a dead end. The bleating that “they will just find something else to be offended by” is a kop out. We do things for our reasons. If you believe we’re beat then stop wasting our time and hand in your Rangers scarf and move on out - an allotment might be a nice idea.
The comfortable armchair of defeatism is as bad as the armchair generals and keyboard hardmen who urge others to do things they wouldn’t do themselves.
TACKLING THE UNMANLY MINORITY
We’re sadly afflicted in West/Central Scotland by an unhealthy subculture of knives, gangs, drink and disorder. I’m sure that like me you had people in your class at school who couldn’t wait to slash someone. That’s not football’s fault - that’s the way it is and always seems to have been.
The numbskulls imagine themselves to be hardmen walking those mean streets - in my experience 99% of them are bullies whose bravery only extends as far as the next easy victim. Rangers being banned will not matter a jot to them. If they aren’t man enough to hold their drink and behave properly why should we tolerate them in the support? There’s no place for them.
At Ibrox we’ve had possibly the UK’s best behaved support for over 20 years - there are now more arrests at Aberdeen games than Celtic games, and the numbers who actually get to court are hovering around the zero mark.
BEHAVE OR THE CLUB DIES
If UEFA were prepared to shut Inter Milan’s ground in the Champions League do you think they will hesitate to close Ibrox? If we lose the European money the club as we have known it dies - we become even weaker and unable to compete even at the level we can now.
Without European money there is a huge gap in the finances which can’t and won’t be filled from any other source. Are you going to allow a handful of muppets to do that to Rangers?
THE NO-ONE LIKES US DEAD END
I’ve stopped singing “No-one Likes Us”. Why? Because I do care. Why wouldn’t you want people to care about Rangers?
IT’S A FIGHT ONLY YOU CAN WIN
We fight on two fronts - against the enemies outside the club and against those whose behaviour does their work for them.
If you remain silent when a “Rangers fan” lets the side down or you don’t challenged media exaggerations/lies - then YOU let Rangers down.
Everyone has a duty to support, defend and spread the good news about Rangers.
It’s your club, what are you going to do about it?