Tour de Football III (Rangers v Dundee Utd)

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After arriving in Edinburgh this Saturday morning, Hamish, Jo and I caught the train to Glasgow to watch Rangers v Dundee United. We were impressed with the transport service. Trains run every 15 minutes and were very comfortable. I even caught a power nap within the 50 minute ride.

As we were making good time we decided to treat ourselves to a quick Fish & Chips takeaway while watching the buskers in busy George Street on this beautiful Glasgwegian day. The meal hit the spot with just the right amount of grease required.

(One reason why I decided to eat in the city was my expectations of extortionate food prices within the stadium. This expectation turned out to be ill-founded - the prices were quite reasonable. Although there were no alcoholic beverages for sale - I had been previously warned of this by a local when we were in Stirling)

We made our way to Ibrox via the local subway, which, while dated, is again very efficient and inexpensive. We arrived at the stadium with plenty of time to spare. After picking up our pre-purchased tickets we ventured into the club's merchandise store and made our obligatory injection ino the local economy.

Jo purchased a bling rangers top and I got hold of a club tie and a retro jersey from 1972. This is a very notable year in the history of the club. I even think the club's phone number ends in the numbers 1972. I understand it is homage to a particular fan who was born in that year. Oh and, of course, it also happens to be the year Rangers had their biggest success in Europe - winning the European Cup Winners Cup (for the younger readers, this is a competition that no longer exists and was merged into the UEFA Cup, now the Europa League). As the game was a Remembrance Day match, we also purchased a Lest We Forget scarf in Rangers colours. At half-time many servicemen came onto the park to a grateful Ibrox crowd who gave them a long standing ovation.

While we waited for the gates to open Hamish kept himself busy juggling his bouncy tennis ball sized ball occasionally kicking it against the external stadium wall. No-one seemed to mind. I did not see any scouts watching him. We were one of the first through the Turnstiles with over an hour to go before kick-off. We were seated in the first (A) row near the 18-yard box. While being at ground level is amazing, Hamish and I knew we would lose some depth in seeing the game played out. Hamish was eyeing other parts of the stadium that we might try to move to, as he was not expecting the stadium to be filled. Just like time lapse photography the stadium filled up with true football fans.

As the teams came onto the field to warm up we saw our fellow Aussie, Matt Mckay, join them. Matt moved from Brisbane Roar to the Rangers in the off-season but had only played in one SPL game as a substitute back in September against the same opposition. We were not expecting him to play, which explains our surprise and joy to hear his name over the PA as part of the starting 11. We were fortunate to witness Matt McKay's first start in the SPL!

While we knew how talented a footballer Matt was, we wandered whether the local fans knew. Behind me were comments like "what a wee boy that McKay is". We tried to get his attention from the sideline with intelligent Aussie calls such as "Onya Matty" - but to no avail. Maybe if I wore my socceroos top and brought an Australian flag...



Matt had the first kick of the game at kick off and was playing as a central attacking midfielder which was good to see as he usually plays as a left midfielder or left defender under Socceroos coach Holger Osieck. Matt was one of the better players on the park, holding and protecting the ball well, always looking for a ball to his feet, as well as showing some of that Aussie fight in hassling his opponents giving them little time on the ball. He assisted the first goal with a trademark whipping cross with his left foot from the right which found the head of Jelavic, the big Croatian centre forward, at the far post. 1-0 after 19 minutes. Matt also was involved in Rangers' second goal that made it 2-0. He won the ball just outside the 18 and played it into Jelavic who passed it out to Wylde who was fouled in the box. Jelavic converted the penalty in the 63rd minute. Matt was on the park for another 10 minutes taken off after Dundee United scored to make it 2-1. For a few minutes before he was taken off, his Aussie fight was at times getting a bit overzealous. Although his little fouls were not dirty, I was personally surpised the ref did not brandish a yellow card for his repeat offences. It was good to see him go off to a warm applause by the Ibrox faithful. The final score ended 3-1, after the right full-back, Wittaker, who I had reservations about throughout the game, made a pentrating run down the right wing before crossing a low cross that was met with a nice diving header from Jelavic into the back of the net. Later it would be noted as an own goal as the header hit a defender before being diverted into goal - something we did not see from our position.

Overall the match was entertaining with sufficent tension and intensity. The fans know their football and, in unison, let their feelings known to any Rangers player not playing up to standard. While physical and fast the match was not as brutal as I was half-expecting. More times than not, there was some decent football being played by both sides.

We all enjoyed our day out. Some local cuisine, some local football with a touch of Australia. I enjoyed the overall experience, Hamish enjoyed the intensity, and Jo has a new hearthrob in Matty McKay (he may be taller than my 12-year old daughter). It is an old but not overused cliche - there is nothing like being AT the game!

After the whistle we slowly made our way back to Edinburgh via a sardine subway full of happy fans and the less occupied comfy doze inducing train.

Ian
(born 1972)

photos to follow...

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Comments

[juleen]

soccer
Ian, you should be a soccer commentator, your game description even got me interested!!! Well done!!!Mumxx