IOO years of glory continued
"S" oo ..cm every game:IS '1
Four of the great team who brought the Scottish Cup back to
Ibrox in 1928, after an absence of 25 years. Left to right: Bob
McPhail. Tuiiy Craig, Davie Meiklejohn, and Jimmy Fleming.
In the final they beat Celtic 4-0.
RaI^rcWaSththe( 0r'or,CUP W2n b\ That winning team is worth recalling: Smith, Jacky Robertson, centre R C
Rangers n their first 20 years^ Part of Haddow; Smith and Drummond: Hamilton and outside left Alec Smith
the trouble was that many of the young Marshall, A. McCreadie and Mitchell; who was to spend 21 seasons with
Scottish stars were lured south of the Steel, H. McCreadie, Gray, McPherson, Rangers
the' perobremfsythatroldn9'iSh C'UbS' Y6S' Ba;kher h k h. Rangers entered the 20,h century as
i "at 0|d The players, who were by this time one of the great teams of British football
Officially players in England didnt legitimate professionals earning £2 a and won the Scottish Cup aqain in
:fnC,r„rTnnt7^S WaS,hl if93,lsed week in the first team and £1 in the 1 902-03, beating Hearts 2-0 in a second
until July 20, 1885, with Scotland reserves, were given a bonus of three replay.
following suit some eight years later. guineas. The Glasgow Cup was also The club was in the middle of a
tnnVfho 'J,wast money which retained that year. financial crisis at this point and had
took the Scots south just as it is today. actually put 22 players on the transfer
parlvin^hp an'3 PH°rt pa tahC!? 'RSflOerS WOfl list This was because of the disaster at
early in the 80 s and at one point had to virun Ihrox on Anril R 1 Qn? tAzhon r»=»rt tkn
hurinl 9p0ln9' i j i j Scotland-England international,
tn?™ thBp?r s Ra"9%s a s° dac,ded In 1896-97 Rangers lifted all three Twenty-five people were killed, and
to try their luck in the English Cup— major Cups—the Scottish, Glasgow and hundreds injured. All the club's effort
"til p®rm'sslble m those, days-and Charity—and almost did it again the next and resources were directed towards
l!f d,stm.ctl0.n of through season, losing by the only goal in the helping the relatives of the dead and
to the semi-final in 1886—87 before Charity Cup final to Third Lanark. injured.
losing to Aston Villa at Crewe by 3-1The League championship was won Sadly, Rangers were to be numbed
1 oqoqi j d aQUe was 0r,med in outr'9ht for the first time in 1889-90 by this kind of tragedy again at the Old
1890 91 and Rangers came close to in spectacular circumstances—the team Firm New Year match two years aqo
f lmf'r5,hlP 3l the VerV won EVERY 0NE of their 18 9ames when 66 people died in the accident on
first attempt, but had to be content And the title was retained the next the exit staircase at the Copland Road
with sharing the title with Dumbarton season with only one defeat, an in- end of the ground,
after a deciding game had finished 2-2. credible record of consistency over two That Cup win over Hearts was to be
in 7ho°SaemfiSX VearS W6r,! V^gg'f, bu! seasons. Rangers' last for 25 years-the start of
in the 90 s Rangers really took off, and Two more flags were annexed in the famous Scottish Cup hoodoo which
produced a dazzling series of successes. succession, and in those four seasons haunted the club for quarter of a
t LinYtheri r VfoyQoirnot,me the team won 63 of the 74 9ames Century until it was banished for ever
to win the Glasgow Cup in 1892-93 played. In the ranks of the men who by the 4-0 win over Celtic at Hampden
and proceeded to win the Scottish Cup achieved this staggering consistency on April 14, 1928
for the first time the following year, were some of the giants of football at In those' 25 years Ranqers with a
beating Celtic 3-1 at Hampden. that time goalkeeper Matt Dickie, team which included some of the
i wing half Neil Gibson, full back Nicol greatest players the club has ever
