Last week we were in hospitality for my sons 21st birthday and as it conspired Flag Day.

blueismycolour

Well-Known Member
Official Ticketer
A wee bit late with this, but by the time we got back down the road, then back to work the following Tuesday morning, this is the first opportunity I've had to put my wee post together.

Myself and my wife did hospitality a couple of years back, pre-Covid, for my 54th birthday, so last weeks visit was slightly different, but just as enjoyable, under the circumstances.

We were in the Davie Cooper Lounge the last time and as Davie Cooper holds such a dear place in my heart, he was my hero as a young boy growing up in Wishaw and that warmth I have for Davie, I hope (I'm sure I have) I've passed it on to my son and it was only fitting that we celebrated his 21st birthday in the same way, in the Davie Cooper Lounge.

We got out to Ibrox at just after 12.30, the last time we did hospitality, I'm sure we got into the Main Stand at just after 12.30, but this time it wasn't until the 1pm mark. That half hour difference did make the pre match hospitality experience just that wee bit more rushed I felt, but nevertheless a most enjoyable afternoon was had.

The last time we were there it was as I said, pre-Covid and things were a lot more relaxed that time. No face masks etc and the ex-players that were there that day were far more approachable and up for a wee chat and photo etc. This time though, you just felt it was better to be polite and just acknowledge them and give them their space.

We were greeted at the entrance with a warm welcome and invited in to what has to be said, the most beautiful of entrances at any football stadium, we are so lucky to have a Main Stand with so much original character and beauty. It really is a fantastic feeling, even at the tender age of 56 to walk through the main entrance on a match day and go up the famous Marble Staircase.

As we walked in wee Alex McDonald (Doddy) was stood there and I just acknowledged him by saying, good afternoon Alex, like I said, with all this Covid business, I thought it best just to give a polite gesture of acknowledgement. As we went up the marble staircase, at the top was stood Derek Johnstone with the club historian David Mason and for the life of me, at the time his name went right out my head and as I acknowledged Derek, I embarrassingly just nodded my head in the direction of David.

We were ushered along the corridor to the Davie Cooper Lounge, passing the trophy room and with it's door ajar, there it was in all it’s glory, the League Title trophy, sitting majestically in it's trophy cabinet. What an absolute pleasure it was to finally see it back home.

We have all been through it, some more than others over the last ten + years, so to see that trophy, as I said sitting there majestically in all it's glory, what a tremendous feeling that was.

We got a nice welcome by the staff in the lounge and for the next 2 hours pre-match and for the 1 hour afterwards we were very well looked after by everyone, working so hard under the restraints that this Covid situation has put upon us all, in one way or another.

We were sat at a table for 6 and I have to say, the company we met last weekend were an absolute pleasure to be with. An elderly couple down from Lossiemouth and their son who was up from Bristol were in our company for the afternoon and as I said, what a fantastic afternoon we had. We had so much in common in relation to places we had lived and frequented it was uncanny as they say. Again, great company.

As for the hospitality experience, just like with our last visit in there, we found it to be excellent. The food was to the standard expected in the ambiance of the main stand at Ibrox on a match day. We had Scotch broth soup to start with, followed by a small but very tender joint of beef, that just fell apart and melted in your mouth, it was accompanied by tatties, neeps and gravy. Finished off with a passion fruit cheese cake. All carefully presented and as I said, all served in a way you'd expect from our club.

All washed down over the course of the afternoon with a good selection of alcohol..........

At halftime you had waiting for you a steak pie and the refreshment you ordered to go with it.

Excellent stuff all round.

The time flew passed though and before we knew it, it was time to proceed to our seats in the Main Stand for the unfurling of the League Flag and as with the game that followed, it was to a certain degree, a bit of an anti-climax. This League Title win meant so much after the last 10 + years. I just think there should've had more of an emphasis put on the celebrations. Not sure if Covid came into play here, but things were a little flat, it has to be said.

As for the game, well the game is called football, I don't think Motherwell have grabbed the concept of the word football. It was clear from the off that it would be 10 men behind the ball, with them trying to get something on the break and unfortunately for us they did, but for me the blatant time wasting that started after only 20 mins and continued for the next 70 mins, was just so pathetic to say the least.

Anyway, at full time, we went back to the lounge and as we had put our names forward to have a look around the Trophy Room, it was our turn to go down. And as I've said, seeing the League Title trophy back in Ibrox, well that made up for the result to a degree, it was a superb feeling seeing it there, it really was. Our trophy room is an Aladdin’s cave of treasures and there is just too much to take in, in a short space of time. I've been in there on a few occasions and it's always the same, never enough time to fully appreciate it.....

We returned to the lounge just as the 1980’s Ian Ferguson was finishing his address and with that, it was time to say our good byes to the splendid company we had shared our day with.

Doing hospitality at Ibrox and especially in the Main Stand, is something every Rangers supporter should try to do, we've done it twice now and even with the Covid restrictions this time, we thoroughly enjoyed another excellent day.

And our day was topped off by Big Marvin Andrews. As we came down the marble staircase, he was sat on the long bench to the left and no sooner had I asked, is it ok to get a photo, he was up, face mask off and the resulting photo is below. Thanks for taking the time Marvin to give us another great memory of our day.

Again, excellent stuff from the big man.

And with that, we exited Ibrox with again some great memories that went a long way in making sure our sons 21st birthday celebrations will live long in the memory.

We all say it, but it is true, there is no other football club like the Glasgow Rangers. (The Rangers.)

With that, we made our way down to the Louden and in the process caught Stevie G making his way to his car, signing a few autographs along the way. After the Louden we went in a couple of other pubs along Paisley Road West, before it was time to call for a taxi to take us back to our hotel. Our son was staying with a good family friend and he headed off back there to enjoy the rest of his night with our friends son and his mates that were also at the game earlier.

Myself and my wife finished off the day with a wee night cap in preparation for our journey back to Southampton in the morning, safe in the knowledge that we'd had a great day, regardless of the frustrating 1-1 draw.

Please see a few photos of our day below.
 
Glad you enjoyed it. Great photos.

Hospitality is excellent. I once had dinner with Eric Caldow in the club deck suites. Lovely man.

Most other times it was Tom Forsyth and he was so friendly and can't believe he's no longer with us. He would take us to the trophy room and eventually he said to me at one game - you show them round son you know more than me which was quite funny.

Always special memories created. A lovely present to give also.
 
Well done mate, I'm glad you enjoyed your day. You're son will always remember the unique experience that you organised to celebrate his 21st.
 
Belated birthday wishes to the young bear cub
glad he had a great day out
Pics are immense buddy

Wish I had the balls to wear a suit like That :)
 
Thanks for sharing OP. I really appreciate you posting this. Great photos as well.

The club’s hospitality certainly isn’t cheap, with the prices starting at £200 pp, so it’s good to have a thorough and honest review of the day.

I’ve done it a few times myself but not for a few years now. I’ve always found it an amazing day out.

With the cheapest package being £200, it’s handy to have a review of the experience on here.
 
Great pics and glad you enjoyed your day out, nice experience for lads 21st.

I have to say I was in Cooper Suite a few times recently and think the experience has gone downhill compared to pre COVID years.

Tables are packed together like sardines, there was no past or present players who made an appearance on two occasions, and they say the keep bar open 1 hr after full time is not exactly true. Prime example v Lyon, game finishes around 9.55, get back down to the Cooper suite and they take last orders at 10.20 with bar closing and on your way by 10.45….. they assume the midweek games finish by 9.45 for a 8pm kickoff which never happens.

A few minor complaints in grand scheme of things but can’t help but notice a change in how they do it now. Tickets alone are near 300 quid each too for Cooper suite so we must be making a fair bit of dough off the hospitality suite alone.
 
A wee bit late with this, but by the time we got back down the road, then back to work the following Tuesday morning, this is the first opportunity I've had to put my wee post together.

Myself and my wife did hospitality a couple of years back, pre-Covid, for my 54th birthday, so last weeks visit was slightly different, but just as enjoyable, under the circumstances.

We were in the Davie Cooper Lounge the last time and as Davie Cooper holds such a dear place in my heart, he was my hero as a young boy growing up in Wishaw and that warmth I have for Davie, I hope (I'm sure I have) I've passed it on to my son and it was only fitting that we celebrated his 21st birthday in the same way, in the Davie Cooper Lounge.

We got out to Ibrox at just after 12.30, the last time we did hospitality, I'm sure we got into the Main Stand at just after 12.30, but this time it wasn't until the 1pm mark. That half hour difference did make the pre match hospitality experience just that wee bit more rushed I felt, but nevertheless a most enjoyable afternoon was had.

The last time we were there it was as I said, pre-Covid and things were a lot more relaxed that time. No face masks etc and the ex-players that were there that day were far more approachable and up for a wee chat and photo etc. This time though, you just felt it was better to be polite and just acknowledge them and give them their space.

We were greeted at the entrance with a warm welcome and invited in to what has to be said, the most beautiful of entrances at any football stadium, we are so lucky to have a Main Stand with so much original character and beauty. It really is a fantastic feeling, even at the tender age of 56 to walk through the main entrance on a match day and go up the famous Marble Staircase.

As we walked in wee Alex McDonald (Doddy) was stood there and I just acknowledged him by saying, good afternoon Alex, like I said, with all this Covid business, I thought it best just to give a polite gesture of acknowledgement. As we went up the marble staircase, at the top was stood Derek Johnstone with the club historian David Mason and for the life of me, at the time his name went right out my head and as I acknowledged Derek, I embarrassingly just nodded my head in the direction of David.

We were ushered along the corridor to the Davie Cooper Lounge, passing the trophy room and with it's door ajar, there it was in all it’s glory, the League Title trophy, sitting majestically in it's trophy cabinet. What an absolute pleasure it was to finally see it back home.

We have all been through it, some more than others over the last ten + years, so to see that trophy, as I said sitting there majestically in all it's glory, what a tremendous feeling that was.

We got a nice welcome by the staff in the lounge and for the next 2 hours pre-match and for the 1 hour afterwards we were very well looked after by everyone, working so hard under the restraints that this Covid situation has put upon us all, in one way or another.

We were sat at a table for 6 and I have to say, the company we met last weekend were an absolute pleasure to be with. An elderly couple down from Lossiemouth and their son who was up from Bristol were in our company for the afternoon and as I said, what a fantastic afternoon we had. We had so much in common in relation to places we had lived and frequented it was uncanny as they say. Again, great company.

As for the hospitality experience, just like with our last visit in there, we found it to be excellent. The food was to the standard expected in the ambiance of the main stand at Ibrox on a match day. We had Scotch broth soup to start with, followed by a small but very tender joint of beef, that just fell apart and melted in your mouth, it was accompanied by tatties, neeps and gravy. Finished off with a passion fruit cheese cake. All carefully presented and as I said, all served in a way you'd expect from our club.

All washed down over the course of the afternoon with a good selection of alcohol..........

At halftime you had waiting for you a steak pie and the refreshment you ordered to go with it.

Excellent stuff all round.

The time flew passed though and before we knew it, it was time to proceed to our seats in the Main Stand for the unfurling of the League Flag and as with the game that followed, it was to a certain degree, a bit of an anti-climax. This League Title win meant so much after the last 10 + years. I just think there should've had more of an emphasis put on the celebrations. Not sure if Covid came into play here, but things were a little flat, it has to be said.

As for the game, well the game is called football, I don't think Motherwell have grabbed the concept of the word football. It was clear from the off that it would be 10 men behind the ball, with them trying to get something on the break and unfortunately for us they did, but for me the blatant time wasting that started after only 20 mins and continued for the next 70 mins, was just so pathetic to say the least.

Anyway, at full time, we went back to the lounge and as we had put our names forward to have a look around the Trophy Room, it was our turn to go down. And as I've said, seeing the League Title trophy back in Ibrox, well that made up for the result to a degree, it was a superb feeling seeing it there, it really was. Our trophy room is an Aladdin’s cave of treasures and there is just too much to take in, in a short space of time. I've been in there on a few occasions and it's always the same, never enough time to fully appreciate it.....

We returned to the lounge just as the 1980’s Ian Ferguson was finishing his address and with that, it was time to say our good byes to the splendid company we had shared our day with.

Doing hospitality at Ibrox and especially in the Main Stand, is something every Rangers supporter should try to do, we've done it twice now and even with the Covid restrictions this time, we thoroughly enjoyed another excellent day.

And our day was topped off by Big Marvin Andrews. As we came down the marble staircase, he was sat on the long bench to the left and no sooner had I asked, is it ok to get a photo, he was up, face mask off and the resulting photo is below. Thanks for taking the time Marvin to give us another great memory of our day.

Again, excellent stuff from the big man.

And with that, we exited Ibrox with again some great memories that went a long way in making sure our sons 21st birthday celebrations will live long in the memory.

We all say it, but it is true, there is no other football club like the Glasgow Rangers. (The Rangers.)

With that, we made our way down to the Louden and in the process caught Stevie G making his way to his car, signing a few autographs along the way. After the Louden we went in a couple of other pubs along Paisley Road West, before it was time to call for a taxi to take us back to our hotel. Our son was staying with a good family friend and he headed off back there to enjoy the rest of his night with our friends son and his mates that were also at the game earlier.

Myself and my wife finished off the day with a wee night cap in preparation for our journey back to Southampton in the morning, safe in the knowledge that we'd had a great day, regardless of the frustrating 1-1 draw.

Please see a few photos of our day below.
Cracking photos and that suit wins it for me. You're more like the Laird o' Cowcaddens than someone fae Wishaw. Glad you had a great time.
 
Great pictures, always great to hear from a fellow ML2 bear!

I’ll leave the sartorial asides around shirt tails and Windsor knots for another day. :D
 
Great pictures D - glad you had a great day.

Just like the time you arranged Tickets for me when Liverpool visited Southampton. Was worth the drive down from Inverness even although Liverpool lost 3-2 after being 2-0 up :mad:

R (rfc1952)
 
Aye, he said it's the fashion now.....
Fashion is fleeting, style is permanent:p

Joking aside... what a brilliant post. It sounds like you and you’re family had a brilliant day (the game aside) and one your son will remember for the rest of his life.

I reckon the club should be making more of reviews like these as it shines a positive light on the hospitality experience and the club as a whole.

Well done Rangers and the OP.
 
Cracking tale! I had my 21st at Ibrox (though not hospitality) in Argyle House. Andy Goram was playing for Motherwell at the time and was in having a meal with his pal, but took time out of his day to come and sign autographs, pose for photos etc. He was one of my heroes so I'll always treasure that memory. I worked in hospitality years after that and loved it as I got to see at least half the game, got fed, got a programme and more often than not got great tips! Meeting Sandy Jardine was a particular highlight. I'm fortunate enough to have a ST now but I really want to go and try hospitality so I can experience it from the other side- this post has made me even more up for it! WATP :))
 
Great read OP; some great moments captured in those photographs; a 21st birthday treat that any young man would be delighted with.
Thanks for sharing.
 
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