The Journey

I was in NN10 for the away leg with Osijek in Stevie G's first season. Place was bouncing when Morelos header hit the net.

Also the cup semi with them where we won on pens. Me and my dad watched it in mine and there were tears shed after the shootout...mostly mine
 
Getting called an orange bastard off the Brechin number 8 then after Peterhead woke up the next morning in the auld dears garden on the hammock
Some of the bevy trips were class to be grain but thank %^*& they are never happening again
 
Maybe just me but I honestly hate that phrase, The Journey

It was used to begin with as a way of bears genuinely pretending to be happy at playing in the lower divisions against part time diddy teams at the same time that lot were in Europe and winning league after league

There was nothing enjoyable about those days in the lower leagues aside from a bevvy in new towns across the country.

Quite frankly a horrible chapter that I for one try and forget as I cringe when I think back to seeing lots of bears pretend they were delighted about being in the lower leagues
 
Delboy Trotter said:
Maybe just me but I honestly hate that phrase, The Journey

It was used to begin with as a way of bears genuinely pretending to be happy at playing in the lower divisions against part time diddy teams at the same time that lot were in Europe and winning league after league

There was nothing enjoyable about those days in the lower leagues aside from a bevvy in new towns across the country.

Quite frankly a horrible chapter that I for one try and forget as I cringe when I think back to seeing lots of bears pretend they were delighted about being in the lower leagues
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Yip, the journey lost it charm very very quickly.

it’s a testament to our support that us and the club survived and thrived the goings on from 2012 onwards.
 
Unfortunately not a happy memory but i can remember a game in the 2nd Division i think when the poor man collapsed and sadly passed, can remember it was in the Broomloan upper near the Union Bears then everyone in the ground went silent as you could tell something serious was happening, all that could be heard was the players voices on the pitch. Raise a glass to a fallen Bear when the title is lifted in a few months time
 
Bowery Boy said:
Hate the term "the journey" (no offence to the OP).

For me it'll end when we're back in the CL.
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It should be called what it was for the vast majority of it. A shit show. If the right people were in charge in the boardroom and dugout from 3rd division it could've been something to build on. Instead we just bought shite and played shite for the most of it and got fiscally raped.
 
Spider-sashman climbing the floodlights at Glebe Park and the inevitable "with great power comes great responsibility posts" later that night stick out.

On a side note the journey must be some kind of record. A club going from 4th division football to champions of a country in the space of 9 years?
 
Delboy Trotter said:
Maybe just me but I honestly hate that phrase, The Journey

It was used to begin with as a way of bears genuinely pretending to be happy at playing in the lower divisions against part time diddy teams at the same time that lot were in Europe and winning league after league

There was nothing enjoyable about those days in the lower leagues aside from a bevvy in new towns across the country.

Quite frankly a horrible chapter that I for one try and forget as I cringe when I think back to seeing lots of bears pretend they were delighted about being in the lower leagues
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Agree with not romanticising it - 2014/15 in particular was so horrific i’ve mentally blanked out large chunks of it (we lost 3-0 to Alloa?!) - but i think the term ‘journey’ is appropriate. End of the day, its a testament to the fans loyalty and shows how strong and resilient we are as a club. From Peterhead away in Div 3 to champions (touches wood) and a European force in under 10 years - that’s amazing.
 
The Journey metaphor was dropped very quickly after failure to get promoted under McCoist et al.

I can remember the buzz of Brechin and Peterhead but kicking about these grounds lost its allure soon after. By the time the second season started and we were out of the league cup after extra time against fcking Forfar (Marvin Andrews played against us), I was sick of it all.
 
It's hard to romanticise too much - as when you look back (post 31) most of the games that stand out weren't the victories. Up until Gerrard arrived (with the exception of the Scottish Cup semi against them) it was the defeats to Annan, Stirling Albion, Raith Rovers, and others that you remember.

And the positive memories are us fans. Selling out Ibrox week in week out in Division 3. The 40,000 at Hampden v Queens Park. Three Little Birds.

The football was also constantly over-shadowed by the Spivs and off-field goings on which doesn't help either.
 
Papa_Sasac said:
When we beat Dundee.

Was it Harry Forrester maybe who scored? Was a good performance.

I have scrubbed a lot of it and romanticised some parts. So I may not even have that one correct :)
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I was just walking up the steps to my seat after putting a tenner on at the Ladbrokes kiosk for Harry to score first!!! Everyone is going nuts and I’m standing in the isle shouting “ who fuckin scored??”
“Yas!!!”

Great day out
 
Hopefully we purchased a return ticket for this journey and celtic can use it on their way down after losing in the courts on the many cbc cases.
 
ABBear1872 said:
Should we win the title this season, the 'journey' will be complete. Looking back there were some very, very low points and some absolute smashers of games to watch. Few which really stand out for me outside of Old firm wins:

1) Rangers v Motherwell when in Division 3. I think it was Jig and Dean Shiels who scored for us that evening. If memory serves me correct, motherwell were top of the league at this point albeit early in the season. Despite not being full, Ibrox was absolutely rocking that evening. We started at a real high tempo.


2) Rangers v Hibs at Ibrox just after Christmas which ended 4-2. Again, Ibrox was buzzing and wee Jason holt had a smasher that day. I think we conceded early that game too which made it all the nicer winning that day.

3) Rangers v rapid Vienna in the Europe league - Rapid Vienna took the lead and we hit back instantly. Then finished off with a last minute goal from buff to put the game to bed at 3-1. Ibrox was bouncing that night, and the rapid fans kept the atmosphere going the full evening.

Any others which stand out? Im sure there are plenty but the above are three games i look back upon fondly.
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The journey will never be complete.
 
Grigo Yossarian said:
As long as Gerrard’s team stay I’m confident that we will progress further DB.

The big risk is when he will go & who we replace him with imo.
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At this point, I’d be happy with him staying longer than Struth himself.
As unlikely as that is, I’m hoping this is where Ross Wilson earns his salary and has a new team constantly in mind so that a seamless transition in all positions can be made,
 
tazzabear said:
At this point, I’d be happy with him staying longer than Struth himself.
As unlikely as that is, I’m hoping this is where Ross Wilson earns his salary and has a new team constantly in mind so that a seamless transition in all positions can be made,
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Yes exactly Tazza.

I do expect him to honour his contract & lead us into the Champions League Group stages.

After that, as you say, hopefully Ross Wilson gets his replacement spot on, because I love the balance of football we are playing.

Solid defensively, but some outstanding flair at times, such as on Saturday.
 
Grigo Yossarian said:
As long as Gerrard’s team stay I’m confident that we will progress further DB.

The big risk is when he will go & who we replace him with imo.
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The Club seems to be building for the long term GY and I can’t see us being left with the current scenario of that lot across the city. I would hope that SG departure will be well planned to have as little effect as possible. It might not work out that way but I just can’t see SG spitting the dummy like Rodgers. That’s what I am hoping anyway. Three more years at least is my guess If we continue to improve at our current rate.
 
Grigo Yossarian said:
To an extent that night with Rapid Vienna was a real moment for me, and the little video done be one of our own ( Rob - Forget his whole FF name ) for BT Sport was very emotional for that night.

A packed & vibrant Ibrox, with Morelos in destruction mode.
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Kind words for Robandmundt there.

I'm sure he'd greatly appreciate it, and other supportive comments from yourself he might've noticed while trawling the forum in his absence.


;)
 
I dont have any good memories of it.
Like many , I thought we would breeze through the divisions back to the Premier. That changed after the draw at Peterhead. After the initial optimism we then started to realise the club was not in safe hands and like many, I really feared for the future. Especially when the fat man got his fingers on us. The first season in the Championship was dire. We will forever be indebted to the 3 bears, who took over that season. Some of the performances against the Filth when we got back in the top flight were hard to take. But we are in a better place now and hopefully 55vis just the start.
 
Cambuslangger said:
The Club seems to be building for the long term GY and I can’t see us being left with the current scenario of that lot across the city. I would hope that SG departure will be well planned to have as little effect as possible. It might not work out that way but I just can’t see SG spitting the dummy like Rodgers. That’s what I am hoping anyway. Three more years at least is my guess If we continue to improve at our current rate.
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Id take him as long as we can get him CG.

Contractually it’s until the end of next season, so here’s hoping.

I’m sure he loves the club & fans, but at times Scottish football culture must piss him right off.
That’s my concern. And of course he must miss his family a lot.
 
Not that many highs to be honest. I enjoyed the 6-1 game against Ayr in the snow and the 2016 semi against celtic obviously. But its the defeats from Annan at home, Alloa from being 2-0 up and Raith in the diddy cup final at Easter Rd that have scarred me for life. And my one and only trip to darkest Cowdenbeath to endure a freezing cold 0-0 draw. One thing for sure- we as a support have earned the right to party!
 
There were times we wondered if our club would still be there, so despite some shit on the park, and some bad strategic decisions, we at least had our Rangers.
 
From 2012 until recently it has been long and hard at times.

At first it was seemingly a " breath of fresh air " playing against teams we haven't played for many years according to many until we realised that there were going to be dark days amongst the wait to get back up.

However , for those who say that they try to forget those days , never ever forget that we were there because of what was done to us.

We're nearly over the finishing line so , lets soak it up , enjoy it and never allow our support to accept anything other than a strong and powerful place in Scottish football forever more and remind them all at every opportunity.
 
prenzlauerbear said:
Hate the term too and look back on our time in the lower leagues with no fondness whatsoever.
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Don’t mind the term personally but have to say I disagree re our time in the lower divisions. What happened to us has made me appreciate Rangers more. I wouldn’t say I ever took them for granted as such but I certainly will cherish every title/cup going forward. So many tried to take Rangers away from us and they failed, we endured for that reason out time in the lower leagues doesn’t sting anymore as much as it could. Makes it far easier to say that mind with 55 on the way.
 
wilso10 said:
Painfully, I remember the two leg play-off affair against Motherwell to get back into the SPL in 2015. Sitting in the Copland Rear that day when they beat us 3-1 I vividly remember watching a Rangers team look absolutely devoid of ideas, creativity, movement and ultimately quality.

Was one of the most painful Rangers games I've ever attended.

So, whilst things are rosier now I think it's worth also reminding ourselves how far we've come in a fairly short space of time.
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Give ourselves a pinch in the arse and never forget! WATP!!
 
In 2013/14, I seriously considered giving up my season ticket. I was getting no joy out of it and the ‘journey’ seemed never ending. I remember having tears in my eyes as I went to tell my dad I was considering it. I eventually stuck with it and I’m so happy I did.

I also remember the anger in 2012 at how we were treated by the governing bodies and it felt like everyone was piling in to condemn us. Our fans, as ever, paying for the actions of two cowardly businessmen. And in 2016, when we were promoted, I was possibly the happiest I’d been as a Rangers fan. Four years felt like a lifetime but now we were back.

The lows then trumped the highs in the next four years, but 55 will make up for it, especially stopping Celtic’s bid for 10, a row of titles their fans have had in the bag for many years.

They’ll never understand what 55 means to our fanbase and they’ll never understand what it’s like sticking with a club who were on its knees.
 
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g66bear said:
I recall, as if it were yesterday, that 1st game back at Ibrox after demotion.
An evening game in the cup against Durie's Raith Rovers, seated in the Copland Rear with shades on staring into the August sunset.

I remember the heart strings being pulled at that evening, when we all sang Three Little Birds for that first time...sad times, but the start of our fightback.
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I think it was East Fife that game bud but might be wrong? I was in the Govan Front with the sun in my face too and remember the KO got delayed due to the amount of Bears turning up. They had to open up the Club Deck to allow everybody to get in. It was then I knew the Bears were never going to abandon our Club in its time of need. So “Three Little Birds” was quite an apt song to be playing that night. And here we are because WATP!!! NS
 
Much refreshed reprobate climbing the tower, hedge-side @ Brechin, to conduct the choir with his shoe. Officers waited patiently for him to descend....
 
The footballing side of it aside. Their was a point when on here that everyday for what felt like months upon months there was no football chat, it was just Easdales, charles green, mike ashley and about 100 other peoples names and companies nobody had ever heard of. The word depressing doesn't do it justice.
 
Papa_Sasac said:
When we beat Dundee.

Was it Harry Forrester maybe who scored? Was a good performance.

I have scrubbed a lot of it and romanticised some parts. So I may not even have that one correct :)
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I was giving my grooms speech as this very goal went in.
“1-0 FORRESTER” from the back of the room :D
 
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