What kept your spirits high?

napierblue

napierblue

Well-Known Member
Through 2012 into the Gerrard era what inspired you on the dark days? What or who kept you going? Players, staff, maybe even someone personal to you?

For me initially it was seeing kick off delayed in the Ibrox legends match as the fans filed in to support the club. I get chills thinking back to that day and the atmosphere, it was clear we would never go away.

Then it was Lee Wallace, and to a slightly lesser extent Lee McCulloch, staying on for Division 3. Not just for the loyalty they showed but for the hope it gave me (us) as fans as it signified we were still significant and that it really was just a matter of time. Beating Motherwell in the league cup that season was huge as well.

Regime change is one of the most significant days in our history, if not the most significant and whilst it hasn’t been plain sailing since at least we knew on that day and beyond that the best interests of Rangers Football Club would be at the forefront of any decisions take. Clearly a huge day for restoring hope!

After a couple of tougher years on the pitch my next big one was 2015 at Easter Road, scoring 6 against Hibs and playing some great football. Once again it gave me hope that we were on the right track and the buzz of winning that game was monumental compared to the boredom of the previous seasons.

Hampden 2016. Need I say more. Met Numan pre match and the day just got better and better from then on.

Just when it seemed we were on the move progress slowed down and I felt it was going to take something monumental to kick us back to the level we should always be at, enter Steven Gerrard. I’m sure we all harboured some doubts raging from mild to downright panic that an inexperienced man was taking over the reigns, but what a man it was. Immediately restoring us to prominence within the UK and beyond it was a huge step in bringing back the quality that is required to keep this club at the top level.

I’m sure I’ve missed some people and dates that gave me hope at the time, hopefully I’ll remember them again one day but for now whilst it was painful at times it all seems to fading away as we approach the day we see Rangers lift the title once again. My love for Rangers never waned, it’s only ever grown stronger and will continue to grow still. It’s almost time to party and in the words of the the soon to be Rangers legend ‘Lets go!’
 
I was genuinely just grateful I had a team to support, the club I loved very nearly died but I knew we would get back to the top if we survived.

It’s been a long 10 years, but all those years of hurt are about to be worth it.

The Warburton reign really hit home to me we were on our way back, he was very highly rated in England and played some cracking stuff.

The way he left was a real kick in the balls, but that doesn’t detract from the excitement the first 8 months of his reign brought.
 
My Granda said he wasn't bothered whether we were in the Premier league, Division 1 or 3rd division "as long as there is a Rangers to watch". So he kept his season ticket and I got to be beside him watching us struggle against Berwick and other dross on TV on the way back up and we wouldn't have it any other way.
 
It was always a question of when & not if we’d be back.

Good always triumphs over evil in the end.

The “banter years” although sometimes horrific, sometimes awful scenes on the park & in the boardroom, were some of the best days oot on the supporters bus.
 
The summer of 2012 was particularly dark for me but the seasons in the 3rd division & 2nd divisions were enough of a novelty to get through for the most part.

That first season back in the championship with McCoist however was a nightmare and was as dark as it had ever been. I left the Hibs game at Easter Road (mcdowell) and couldn’t even look at or speak to my pals the whole way home. I was gone and didn’t think things would improve.

The Warburton season things looked much better but the warning signs were still there towards the end.

The spiral continued with Pedro and didn’t improve until SG came in. Even then it’s been a slow build.

Hopefully the rollercoaster gets to the end with one final charge towards a title and European glory!
 
Knowing that one day we would be back where we belong.
It’s not been easy but that’s what’s going to make 55 so so special.
 
Alcohol but mainly just knowing this wasn't going to last forever and make it worth it when it did eventually come time.
 
Its a simple but complicated question as it changed perhaps week to week or whenever something off the park happened.

Got to say the one thing kept you going was that the hell was hell for everyone connected with the club.

What I would say that did disappoint was there were some that just fell away and weren't interested in going or watching. Which I never got my head around then or now.

I have to say the semi final v them was a stop gap to give you some faith again.....well till the final :D

Once we win 55, I guess its a time to self reflect on what was the ultimate high and low.....the latter.....christ knows where you start and stop :D

There is almost to many......however what always sticks in my mind was being hammered by them at Ibrox and standing there taking it all till game done simply as my mate said 'we will stand here and take this as we will remember it when we are back'.......he was right......I remember that as my first thought.
 
having a beer on match day

tunes on pre match and post match

matchday text to a friend of mine always that always keeps me smiling
( you know who you are mate )

seeing mates ( while walking past my house :p )

us having a belter of a season has certainly helped

thought of the party at Ibrox, GS or elsewhere keeps me going .........and then freedom from this mess

already got a summer adventure planned in june :)
 
Initially it was the "us against the rest" sort of mentality that kept me going, plus watching Rangers play in different stadia, it was refreshing really.

Seeing a couple of talented academy players in Barrie McKay, and Lewis Mcleod was also a additional bonus.

It then as you say got harder, and was down to our own mistakes and i fairness to them having Rodgers.

Since Gerrard has come in though, I have been buzzing, yes there have been disappointments along the way, but I could see the progression, and obviously european football being back was a massive boost for everyone.

One thing for sure is how we as a fan base never left this club, from the deepest days in the 3rd division, to the major disappointments once being back in the top flight, we deserve this more than any other fan base.

One day someone will make write a book and make a documentary about our return to the top. It will be some watch.
 
The first 2 years of the divisons were ok for me it was just great having rangers to support, the shocking championship year I always felt we would get back up even going away to fir park for that play off, for me the worst years were when we got back up to top flight and took some hammerings off them and felt like we'd never get back to where we should be and had them constantly slagging us and shouting about ten in a row
 
I found coming on to FF and chatting with fellow bears about our awful situation almost therapeutic. I was on FF constantly in them first few years, it was the only place I felt I could get information. The semi final win against the tims was a rare glimmer of light. It won't be till we finally clinch the title that I will declare the nightmare over.
 
If Rangers were never to have won another trophy in my lifetime, I'd have been a Rangers fan until I died.

Like many others, the love for the club kept me going. The hypothetical above wasn't something I've had to face, but I know it to be true.

Good and bad times when it comes to football are almost always temporary.
 
Yorkhill_True_Blues said:
Its a simple but complicated question as it changed perhaps week to week or whenever something off the park happened.

Got to say the one thing kept you going was that the hell was hell for everyone connected with the club.

What I would say that did disappoint was there were some that just fell away and weren't interested in going or watching. Which I never got my head around then or now.

I have to say the semi final v them was a stop gap to give you some faith again.....well till the final :D

Once we win 55, I guess its a time to self reflect on what was the ultimate high and low.....the latter.....christ knows where you start and stop :D

There is almost to many......however what always sticks in my mind was being hammered by them at Ibrox and standing there taking it all till game done simply as my mate said 'we will stand here and take this as we will remember it when we are back'.......he was right......I remember that as my first thought.
Click to expand...

I thought you’d have written about the day you met Charles Green while we were all tanning Capri Suns. :))
 
napierblue said:
Through 2012 into the Gerrard era what inspired you on the dark days? What or who kept you going? Players, staff, maybe even someone personal to you?

For me initially it was seeing kick off delayed in the Ibrox legends match as the fans filed in to support the club. I get chills thinking back to that day and the atmosphere, it was clear we would never go away.

Then it was Lee Wallace, and to a slightly lesser extent Lee McCulloch, staying on for Division 3. Not just for the loyalty they showed but for the hope it gave me (us) as fans as it signified we were still significant and that it really was just a matter of time. Beating Motherwell in the league cup that season was huge as well.

Regime change is one of the most significant days in our history, if not the most significant and whilst it hasn’t been plain sailing since at least we knew on that day and beyond that the best interests of Rangers Football Club would be at the forefront of any decisions take. Clearly a huge day for restoring hope!

After a couple of tougher years on the pitch my next big one was 2015 at Easter Road, scoring 6 against Hibs and playing some great football. Once again it gave me hope that we were on the right track and the buzz of winning that game was monumental compared to the boredom of the previous seasons.

Hampden 2016. Need I say more. Met Numan pre match and the day just got better and better from then on.

Just when it seemed we were on the move progress slowed down and I felt it was going to take something monumental to kick us back to the level we should always be at, enter Steven Gerrard. I’m sure we all harboured some doubts raging from mild to downright panic that an inexperienced man was taking over the reigns, but what a man it was. Immediately restoring us to prominence within the UK and beyond it was a huge step in bringing back the quality that is required to keep this club at the top level.

I’m sure I’ve missed some people and dates that gave me hope at the time, hopefully I’ll remember them again one day but for now whilst it was painful at times it all seems to fading away as we approach the day we see Rangers lift the title once again. My love for Rangers never waned, it’s only ever grown stronger and will continue to grow still. It’s almost time to party and in the words of the the soon to be Rangers legend ‘Lets go!’
Click to expand...
Sandy Jardine's speech on the pitch at Ibrox. "Rangers Then, Rangers Now, Rangers Forever"
 
Just waiting and kicking every ball with them til they arrived back at the summit. Much of first few years were not enjoyable at all but we made it, can enjoy it and have the full journey to look back at.
 
The supports reaction to going into administration will stay with me forever. We got swatted at home to fucking Kilmarnock the next game but the support by and large stuck with the team regardless. And it remained that way from then until the end of the season, hoovering up every ticket available for Ibrox, selling out the Legends game .........

And that game at the end I saw an old boy in the Govan having a wee cry to himself, I can only imagine it was the emotion of what had been happening to the club, and that wee feeling of nostalgia that night watching the Legends, got the better of him. I hope he's basking in the excitement of whats to come, along with the rest of us.
 
My son, @romadamus_prime and this forum have been the major factors in keeping me sane over the last 10 years. When I go on FF and blow a gasket, he's the man to put things in proper perspective. Best advice he ever gave was 'stay away from the matchday thread' :p . He's the guy I go to games with and the guy I discuss everything Rangers with. It's rarely we disagree and we've provided great support for each other over the years. Just so glad still to have our club around to support. Best club in the world.
 
What else can we really do but support them ever more?

It’s our team. Third division, second division, we rolled up in record numbers because the desire to see Rangers is in our very blood.

Even despite the dark days of Somers, Ashley and the Bus Brothers I was convinced that one day we would be back.

Because as they say, what doesn’t kill you only makes you stronger.
 
napierblue said:
Through 2012 into the Gerrard era what inspired you on the dark days? What or who kept you going? Players, staff, maybe even someone personal to you?

For me initially it was seeing kick off delayed in the Ibrox legends match as the fans filed in to support the club. I get chills thinking back to that day and the atmosphere, it was clear we would never go away.

Then it was Lee Wallace, and to a slightly lesser extent Lee McCulloch, staying on for Division 3. Not just for the loyalty they showed but for the hope it gave me (us) as fans as it signified we were still significant and that it really was just a matter of time. Beating Motherwell in the league cup that season was huge as well.

Regime change is one of the most significant days in our history, if not the most significant and whilst it hasn’t been plain sailing since at least we knew on that day and beyond that the best interests of Rangers Football Club would be at the forefront of any decisions take. Clearly a huge day for restoring hope!

After a couple of tougher years on the pitch my next big one was 2015 at Easter Road, scoring 6 against Hibs and playing some great football. Once again it gave me hope that we were on the right track and the buzz of winning that game was monumental compared to the boredom of the previous seasons.

Hampden 2016. Need I say more. Met Numan pre match and the day just got better and better from then on.

Just when it seemed we were on the move progress slowed down and I felt it was going to take something monumental to kick us back to the level we should always be at, enter Steven Gerrard. I’m sure we all harboured some doubts raging from mild to downright panic that an inexperienced man was taking over the reigns, but what a man it was. Immediately restoring us to prominence within the UK and beyond it was a huge step in bringing back the quality that is required to keep this club at the top level.

I’m sure I’ve missed some people and dates that gave me hope at the time, hopefully I’ll remember them again one day but for now whilst it was painful at times it all seems to fading away as we approach the day we see Rangers lift the title once again. My love for Rangers never waned, it’s only ever grown stronger and will continue to grow still. It’s almost time to party and in the words of the the soon to be Rangers legend ‘Lets go!’
Click to expand...
Knowing the somehow we would be back and challenging but I never thought it would feel so good!
 
bar72bear said:
I quickly accepted that the glory of winning wasn't what was important, it was simply following the club you love. The abuse/ mockery that we endured merely galvanised our support and in some ways I think its made most of appreciate the club alot more
Click to expand...

Great post B72B.
 
HandsomeHead said:
What else can we really do but support them ever more?

It’s our team. Third division, second division, we rolled up in record numbers because the desire to see Rangers is in our very blood.

Even despite the dark days of Somers, Ashley and the Bus Brothers I was convinced that one day we would be back.

Because as they say, what doesn’t kill you only makes you stronger.
Click to expand...
I had forgotten about him ffs :////
 
Cammy Fraser's Tache said:
My son, @romadamus_prime and this forum have been the major factors in keeping me sane over the last 10 years. When I go on FF and blow a gasket, he's the man to put things in proper perspective. Best advice he ever gave was 'stay away from the matchday thread' :p . He's the guy I go to games with and the guy I discuss everything Rangers with. It's rarely we disagree and we've provided great support for each other over the years. Just so glad still to have our club around to support. Best club in the world.
Click to expand...

Thats great youve came through it together CFT.

Many great bears aren’t here to see this special day we are going to have in the coming weeks, so enjoy it mate.
 
The buzz about the fans, no matter the situation, circumstances, the absolute shite we went through you could always bet on having good laugh with the people around you within the stadium. The sense of genuine unity amongst the fans that no matter what we will always have a team to support.

The first year I got a season ticket was the 11/12 season (sorry it may all have been my fault) and I enjoyed every match, not because of the players on the pitch, the opposition we were playing but because of the people around me and the feeling amongst the support.
 
erskine bear said:
I had forgotten about him ffs :////
Click to expand...
There were others more deserving of our hatred - Whyte and Ashley to name but two - but I detested the very sight of that odious fat bastard.

The image of him sitting in that f**king tent with his club tie on, contempt for the support oozing out of his snyde Porky Pig face, still enrages me even now.
 
HandsomeHead said:
What else can we really do but support them ever more?

It’s our team. Third division, second division, we rolled up in record numbers because the desire to see Rangers is in our very blood.

Even despite the dark days of Somers, Ashley and the Bus Brothers I was convinced that one day we would be back.

Because as they say, what doesn’t kill you only makes you stronger.
Click to expand...

Well said HH.

Ive been a bear since I was a kid. As long as I had my Rangers I was always going to be there, no matter the league we were in.

We’ve been so lucky as a Fanbase & so many fans haven’t seen their team win anything, so no matter what I was always going to be supporting the club and the team.

When us older guys sang ‘We’ll support you ever more’ we meant it.
 
HandsomeHead said:
There were others more deserving of our hatred - Whyte and Ashley to name but two - but I detested the very sight of that odious fat bastard.

The image of him sitting in that f**king tent with his club tie on, contempt for the support oozing out of his snyde Porky Pig face, still enrages me even now.
Click to expand...
The fact you’ve only scratched the surface there and no mentioned the likes of Ahmed shows how much of a shit show we were.

I’m naming my house “Dave King palace”.
 
Mine was the smiles on my 3 youngest girls faces, when I surprised them with their first trip to Ibrox, in division 3 V East Stirlingshire. (5-1)

Pulling off motorway from greenock and their faces when they seen the stadium close up. Walking up, wanting a scarf, pics at the big gate. Their excitement of climbing the stairs to cd3 and there first look inside, all caught on camera.

The sheer enjoyment as penny arcade rang out. They spoke about it non stop and could not wait to go back, and they did, to every home game, in div 3.Their scarfs take pride of place in their rooms along with the tickets in a scrap book.

Always makes me smile and seen me through the dark days.

Sorry if I bored anyone...
 
McCoist/Mcdowal in the championship was quite hard to take, then losing the playoff to Motherwell.

Lowest I’ve felt tbh was losing the cup final to Hibs especially the way their fans behaved after.

Seasons under Warburton and Caixhina especially the latter were tough but there was always the hope things would get better.

Once King came in I felt it would be a long journey but we’d get to the promised land.
 
CaleDiablo said:
Mine was the smiles on my 3 youngest girls faces, when I surprised them with their first trip to Ibrox, in division 3 V East Stirlingshire. (5-1)

Pulling off motorway from greenock and their faces when they seen the stadium close up. Walking up, wanting a scarf, pics at the big gate. Their excitement of climbing the stairs to cd3 and there first look inside, all caught on camera.

The sheer enjoyment as penny arcade rang out. They spoke about it non stop and could not wait to go back, and they did, to every home game, in div 3.Their scarfs take pride of place in their rooms along with the tickets in a scrap book.

Always makes me smile and seen me through the dark days.

Sorry if I bored anyone...
Click to expand...

Good post mate. A wee tear jerker.
 
For a few years leading up to 2012, my personal life was a bit up and down as I was finding my feet again after divorce and making sure I spent quality time with my kids. Rangers, amongst many other things, had to take second place. In 2012 it struck me that our club could disappear but there seemed little any of us could do. I joined the London Branch of the RSA and became more involved in actively supporting my team again. I quickly realised how much I’d missed the Rangers but more than anything I realised how much I’d missed the company of good Bears. That was my defining moment. Spending time with like minded men and women is what kept me, and I’m sure many others, believing that we would be back. Now that we are, it feels good.
 
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