Athletic Bilbao 0 – 1 Rangers – Juan Gamper Trophy – 20th August 1974
Camp Nou – Barcelona att. 100,000
Rangers: Kennedy, Denny, Miller, Johnstone, Jackson, Jardine, Forsyth, McLean, Young, Fyfe, Scott
Subs: Parlane
As Rangers fans prepare to embark on yet another European adventure, I must admit, I’m always keen to seek out the anecdotes and tales of previous encounters and journeys past. Travelling to Spain is nothing new for Bluenoses of course however, when you come up against a team you haven’t faced competitively in 55 years (and in any game for 50), I always think it adds to the drama and excitement of it all.
It’s a trip into the unknown, to a new City for most, and for many of us it’s a journey that isn’t going to be without its challenges, not least due to a distinct lack of direct flights and eye watering prices being charged by the local hoteliers and ‘budget’ airlines.
This of course is the proverbial definition of ‘first world problems’ and it always makes me wonder how some of us would’ve fared in the pre-internet days whereby connection flights and routes couldn’t be booked within a few seconds of the draw being made, whilst standing at a bar or sitting on a supporters bus. Indeed the last time Rangers faced Athletic Bilbao, a friendly (of sorts) in 1974, the only way to get there was to do it the old fashioned way.
Finding basic details of the match easy enough but, any sort of context not so much. You see this game was part of the four team Juan Gamper tournament, hosted by FC Barcelona, in which Rangers had been invited only two years after they were victorious, in the very same City, in what was to be the biggest night in their famous history. After defeating Bilbao 1-0 in the first of two semi-finals, at the Camp Nou, the Gers would line up against the hosts, boasting an attack featuring Cruyff and Neeskins, who had seen off Dutch giants Ajax in the other game.
Unsurprisingly, it was the Final which made most of the headlines and subsequent newspaper reports were dedicated to a match which saw Rangers eventually lose out 4-1, after taking the lead in the game through Graham ‘Johan’ Fyfe, who received huge plaudits for his display in the match and in particular by one Spanish journalist who declared him ‘as good as Cruyff’.
However, whilst that performance was to be admired, Rangers had produced an equally fine display in the semi-final match, which they ran out 1-0 winners, thanks to a Sandy Jardine goal. After initially coming up short, respected author Robert McElroy, whose book, ’Rangers – The Complete Record’ adorns many of our shelves, was only too willing to fill in some gaps. Robert has a quite incredible record of watching Rangers abroad (the only games he has missed since Torino 1972 has been due to Covid) which meant he was one of the 100k in attendance and he shared details of his journey back to Barcelona, where he had seen us triumph, two years previously.
It wasn’t quite as easy in those days as it is now, I travelled to every European away game between 1972 and 1977 with Cross Travel, a company based in Tollcross. They were a decent company but, even they had to book us onto three separate flights to get there, which saw me arrive in Barcelona on the Sunday evening via Heathrow and Madrid. I know some people might wonder why I went to such lengths for a friendly but; this tournament was a big deal in Barcelona. It was their 75 year anniversary and featured arguably two of the best teams on the planet, in the hosts and three-in-a-row European Cup winners, Ajax.
There was a huge buzz around this tournament, particularly with the arrival of Dutch Masters, Ajax, who had seen both of their star players join the hosts, a year apart, after winning three successive European Cups from 1971 – 1973. However the inclusion of Rangers was also big news and seemed to fly in the face of the reports that ‘Rangers fans would never be welcome in Barcelona again’ and stuck the proverbial ‘two-fingers’ at the ridiculously harsh UEFA ban from European competition, following the aftermath of the ECWC Final.
‘The inclusion of Rangers’ said Robert, ‘spoke volumes! There was no official reason given as to why Rangers were invited, other than them being one of the biggest clubs in Europe of course. But regardless, the Club were delighted to accept the invitation so soon after the events of 1972, where they felt they had been unfairly demonised by the authorities and football’s governing body. I was there that night and I had to agree, it was a completely over the top reaction on both fronts to what was ordinary punters celebrating a huge victory.’
Robert is of course referring to Rangers fans invading the pitch to celebrate European triumph in the aforementioned 1972 ECWC Final over Dynamo Moscow only to be attacked by a Police force still under the control of fascist Dictator, General Franco. Known for their brutality and unforgiving nature, the Police wielded batons striking out wildly and after fans retaliated, the narrative was soon spun that Rangers thugs had rioted and were solely to blame for the ugly scenes which saw captain, John Greig receive the trophy in the bowels of the Camp Nou.
Rangers were no angels, that much is true but, they were far from unwelcome in the City of Barcelona with many locals sharing their happiness (and huge surprise) that a group of football supporters from Scotland would stand up to the Police of that time. Indeed the fact that Rangers had been invited back to the City and welcomed with such open arms and for what was at that time, regarded as a very prestigious tournament, was proof enough that the light blues had touched the hearts of the Catalan’s, contrary to some rather unfavourable Spanish newspaper reports prior to the first match.
The game itself was very much a carnival affair with the terraces absolutely packed and they weren’t there just to see Cruyff and Barcelona. Rangers and their Bilbao counterparts were to kick the tournament off with the Gers playing the first of two matches in two days with a squad of only 12 and Rangers received huge plaudits for the way they approached the game.
The team were hungry from the first whistle, full of desire and running and had the Spanish crowd in raptures at the energy and guile on display. Indeed, even Cruyff and legendary Ajax midfielder Gerri Muhren felt the need to comment on the composure from Rangers ‘youngsters’ on the ball and how impressed they were with their play. High praise indeed. For Robert McElroy, he himself blown away by the occasion he had a sneaky feeling that Rangers might just surprise a few people.
‘Everyone is aware of the legendary demands Jock Wallace put on his players. He wanted them to be strong, full of running and direct. However I always felt that Rangers team were so much more than that. Of course they could be direct when they needed to be but, a good few them couldn’t half play. I thought at the time, Barcelona was the best team I had ever seen in the flesh and was completely blown away with their style of play. I was sure they were favourites for that seasons European Cup so it really was quite something to see the likes of Johnstone, Jardine, McLean and Fyfe to more than hold their own’
For the Rangers fans who had made the journey (Robert estimates there was at least 20 – 30 on his flights alone) they were treated to a fine display in that opening match, with the 1-0 score line very much flattering the Spaniards, as it’s a game the Ibrox men should’ve won a lot more comfortably.
Jock Wallace, who was to see his team leave the field not once but, twice to a standing ovation from the capacity 100k crowd, was keen to play down the significance of the accolades his team received, reminding everyone that ‘they hadn’t won anything yet’ but that they were hungry for success and acknowledged that the tournament could prove to be a huge motivation for the title challenge ahead. Asked if he felt Rangers being runners up in the tournament had any bearing on that forthcoming season, Robert McElroy was unequivocal.
‘Definitely. Rangers played Dundee that weekend, fielding an almost identical side to the one that had played in the two midweek matches and completely overwhelmed a strong Dundee side in the league cup at Ibrox. It was 4-0 going on ten and I honestly believe the spring from that tournament give the team a massive lift going into the league campaign that finally seen us wrestle the title from Celtic.’
He isn’t wrong. After narrowly losing out to Hibernian in the league cup section, Rangers started their league campaign in rampant form, going undefeated in their first 12 matches, winning 10 of them before finally losing their first league game of the season at the end of November to long time challengers Hibs. Thankfully that defeat only seemed to touch the brakes of Jock Wallace’s steam train as they powered to the title with that famous Colin Stein goal at Easter Road, with four matches to spare.
Rangers had gone into that tournament expecting little but, gaining a lot. The circumstances this week might well be different, not least because a European semi-final is up for grabs but, one thing the is for sure. The current crop, despite a disappointing domestic campaign have proven time and again they are capable of a huge performance on the road in Europe, just as their counterparts did 50 years ago.
Just win Rangers!
Lee Clark
