JUST LIKE SOUNESS
Ibrox legend Durrant has studied Gerrard’s Rangers revolution and reckons it is...
IAN DURRANT recognises the effect. The way Steven Gerrard has quickly galvanised Rangers very much reminds the Ibrox great of the transformative impact Graeme Souness had upon the club some 32 years ago.
Simply sensing the optimism among Light Blues fans feels refreshing to Durrant after the gloom that has darkened recent seasons. A positive start to a new campaign — unbeaten after seven games under Gerrard and poised to make progress in the Europa League — is causing some to adjust their expectations about what might be possible.
Durrant sincerely hopes that harmonious mood persists. And it hasn’t escaped his attention that it stands in contrast to events across the city as Brendan Rodgers vents frustration about how Celtic have handled the current transfer window.
The former Scotland midfielder will, however, reserve any judgments about how things might unfold from here. In his eyes, a high-noon visit to Parkhead on September 2 will be the acid test of precisely where Gerrard’s Rangers stand.
Back on August 31, 1986, Durrant scored the only goal of the game as Souness marked his Old Firm debut with success. Given that Rangers endured 4-0 and 5-0 derby hammerings last term, next month’s head-to-head provides a chance to prove how much the gap has closed.
‘Steven Gerrard has got people smiling again,’ said Durrant. ‘There’s a feelgood factor about the place, which hasn’t been there for a long time. Everything about the club is on the up at the moment.
‘I hate going on about it but it’s like when I was there and Graeme Souness came in. Rangers have had a similar lift with Gerrard, compared to where the club had been before.
‘You can tell by the way fans are turning up for games now. You see the way Gerrard talks. Everything is positive and long may that continue for him.
‘We will find out where Rangers are in a couple of weeks and if they can take advantage of what is happening at Celtic. Between then and now, Celtic have a tough game in Athens, Rangers have a tough game on Thursday (against Maribor), then Rangers have got to go to Kilmarnock on Sunday.
‘If Rangers get through in Europe, they will play in the next round on the Thursday before the Old Firm game. So there are tough games and even this early in the season, this is when the squad comes into play.
‘The game against Celtic is the ultimate marker. Of course it will be. I’m not saying the games will determine who wins the league but everyone will be looking at them to see how far Rangers have progressed.
‘They were unlucky in a couple of the games last season. There were moments here and there when they might have got in front. Celtic proved just that wee bit too strong on several occasions.
‘It is funny. There is the best bit of a month to go before the Old Firm game and we’re talking about it. But that’s what it is. It has been a mismatch in some of the previous games and now we will find out how close the teams are.’
Rangers sit a point ahead of Celtic in the embryonic Premiership standings after the champions suffered a 1-0 loss at Tynecastle on Saturday. That result added to a sense of discord exposed by Rodgers’ recent comments on transfer activity. Losing out on long-term target John McGinn appears to have been the final straw for a manager who has won back-to-back Trebles. ‘Brendan wanted to bring in players to put a challenge down in Europe and he will be sorry to miss out on McGinn,’ said Durrant. ‘But if you analyse Celtic, they do have an abundance of players in that position. I thought that with McGinn being a Celtic man, he would have gone there but he’s obviously tried his luck down in England and, by every report, had an excellent debut for Aston Villa. ‘Celtic are looking for players because they want to challenge in Europe. I am sure that before long, they will acquire a few players, as will Rangers.’ Durrant was yesterday back at Rugby Park, where he played in the twilight of his career, to help promote Kris Boyd’s testimonial. The 34-year-old striker has been given the honour for his three, free-scoring spells at Kilmarnock and Durrant sees little prospect of the goals drying up any time soon. Not that the Dumbarton assistant manager felt much like celebrating Boyd’s gifts when they last met. ‘I was sitting on the bench with (Dumbarton manager) Stevie Aitken when we played them at home in the Betfred Cup group stage a few weeks ago,’ recalled Durrant, who was also a coach at Rangers during Boyd’s first Ibrox stint. ‘We were 2-1 up and quite comfortable when Kris came on and I said to Stevie: “You know what’s going to happen, don’t you?”. He had four touches and scored a hat-trick — a great header, a first-time finish from a ball into the box and then a terrific strike. And our keeper saved his effort from his other touch.
‘He’s always had goals in him, so I’m not surprised he’s still scoring but, being honest, I couldn’t have known he’d still be doing it at this level.
‘He was a wee bit disillusioned before Steve Clarke came in (at Kilmarnock). He’d picked up a couple of injuries and he was finding it hard. But now he has a new lease of life.
‘For him to have been the Premiership’s top scorer last season — at his age and playing for Kilmarnock — is an unbelievable achievement.
‘When he joined Rangers in 2006, he gave his signing-on fee to Killie’s youth development operation. Steven Naismith did the same when he followed him to Ibrox. It says a lot about how both of them were brought up, that it was their first thought when they got their big moves.
‘It was a great gesture to donate that money and you can see from the players they’ve produced here that it’s been money well spent.’
IAN DURRANT was speaking at the launch of The Kris Boyd Testimonial. Boyd has been granted a Testimonial after years of sterling service during three spells with Kilmarnock FC. He has scored 223 league goals during his time at Kilmarnock FC and Rangers FC. For details on Testimonial events, including a Sportsman’s Dinner on 8th September, follow @boydyofficial