MY 10 IN AWOE
Davis ready to party as veteran reveals agony at long journey back to summit TODAY, 3PM, IBROX
FEW people would have believed it would’ve taken this long for Rangers to be champions again when Walter Smith led the club to their last league success a decade ago.
And Steven Davis, part of that title-winning side, admitted he’d have been shocked if someone told him a year ago they would be on the verge of glory with two months of the season left.
That’s because it was 12 months ago this week the Light Blues slumped to a shock home loss to rock-bottom Hamilton.
But they have remarkably gone an entire year unbeaten in the league since then to be on the brink of the title.
So while this weekend could finally complete a decade-long journey for the club, it will also be a remarkable 12-month turnaround for Steven Gerrard and his crop of players.
Davis falls into both camps. The Northern Irishman won eight major honours – and a UEFA Cup runners-up medal – during his first Ibrox stint.
But he admitted this one will be extra special after the pain and hurt of a decade-long journey back to the top.
The veteran midfielder and Allan McGregor are the only members of the current squad to have lifted a major trophy with Rangers as they close in on the Premiership crown.
It could be as early as tomorrow if Gerrard’s men beat St Mirren today and Celtic slip up at Tannadice.
Davis will milk the historic moment when it arrives, having been at the club when it went through the hell of the financial collapse that saw them sent to Scottish football’s bottom tier.
The 36-year-old left for Southampton during that time but still insisted on his new club paying a transfer fee to Gers despite becoming a free agent.
Davis rejoined in January 2019, initially on loan, and has helped end a decade of darkness with silverware now within touching distance.
And he doesn’t want his Ibrox love affair to end there as he eyes a new deal and a crack at the Champions League.
Davis said: “From where the club have been in the last 10 years and the hurt the fans and everyone associated with the club have had to go through, then it’s going to be huge whenever we eventually do get over the line.
“Every trophy at the time is the most important and most special. That’s just the way it is.
“I cherish the trophies I’ve won up to this point.
“But, of course, from what the club have been put through and where it’s come from in the last 10 years, to get ourselves back to the top of Scottish football is huge.
“Even the majority of the squad as a group, in the last
It would’ve been a shock if someone had told me a year
couple of years, have had to take a lot of criticism at different times, so it’s going to be huge for all of us.
“It would have been a shock if someone had told me a year ago we’d be in this position.
“We knew how strong Celtic were and while we believed in the quality we had in our squad, we would never have expected to be in this position so early, especially with some of the results we’ve had in previous seasons.
“But we’ve shown an unbelievable consistency, a real drive and energy in every single game, and one of the positives for me has been the strength of the squad.
“The manager has continued to try to progress and recruit well. And the board have backed him in terms of that.
“That has been a big factor in terms of being able to deal with key players being missing, which is something we might not have been able to deal with previously.”
The strength in depth has also allowed Gerrard to give Davis vital rest time.
Although he was bemoaning the fact he had to call upon his experience and quality when the starting XI struggled away to Accies last month.
Despite his advancing years, Davis still offered hope he’ll stick around next season and will discuss a new contract with his manager and director of football Ross Wilson, who he worked with at St Mary’s.
Sure enough, the prospect of hearing that famous Champions League theme tune blaring out at Ibrox again is a huge motivation for the veteran star.
He said: “I feel good at the minute and I’m enjoying my football.
“How could you not with the season we’ve
had? I don’t see myself finishing at the end of the season.
“My approach has been the same as the club’s, which has been to focus on football first and foremost to get ourselves in this position first. But I have an open relationship with the gaffer and Ross at the club, so I’m not under any pressure or worried about the situation moving forward.
“The Champions League would be massive for everyone associated with the club and players are no different. “It’s a stage they want to play on and to get another taste of it at my age would be very nice.”
ago we’d be in this position