YOU CAN’T BE OVER THE HILL AT CLUB LIKE RANGERS

Playing at Ibrox is more intense than anything Clint has seen in long career

CLINT HILL thought he had seen everything in the game.

At 38, the defender has been around the block a few times.

But nothing has prepared him for life at Rangers.

The centre-half has cut it for nearly two decades in the top two divisions in England and reached a stage when he thought he would be digging out the pipe and slippers rather than sticking on the boiler suit every week.

But he’s relishing the late bloom at Ibrox and is determined to savour every second – even if the game in Scotland is far tougher than he ever imagined.

Hill said: “Listen, this is a massive club. To come here at my age is unbelievable and to play in front of 50,000 every other week is a massive achievement.

“I’m very proud to be here. I just want to do my best for the club – I don’t think you realise how big it is until you actually step into it and experience it.

“The Scottish league is probably frowned upon a little bit down south.

“They are quite dismissive saying, ‘Ah the standard is not there’ or ‘The quality is not there’.

“But it’s hard here. Especially when you pull on a Rangers shirt. People want to beat you.

“They want to rough you up and take points off you, so you have to be constantly at a decent level or you’ll be found out.”

Hill has found his feet in recent months as the Rangers defence has got its act together following a shaky start to the season.

Mark Warburton has given his Plan A a tweak or two but it’s the tightening up at the back that has been the foundation of a four-match winning streak that has fired the club clear into second spot in the Premiership.

It hasn’t gone unnoticed Gers have shifted their system and Hill admits the Ibrox club are constantly under the microscope.

He said: “I have never been at a club when there is as much scrutiny and analysis, not just from the media but as a team.

“We do analyse ourselves a lot. We are constantly improving as a team every day. It is just looking at the things you can improve on and practising that.”

Gers haven’t abandoned their passing game but have shown in recent weeks they can also get down and dirty when needed.

The defender said: “Credit to the gaffer. The philosophy he brought to the club is possessionbased football but then he gives us the responsibility and the flexibility to work within that.

“If we do find that it is a high press then we can combat that. It is not a long ball, it is a good ball into the striker, into his chest or onto his head.”

Hill might stick the feet up for the St Johnstone game in Perth tomorrow night as Warburton shakes his side up ahead of the Old Firm derby on Saturday.

The gaffer and his players won’t take their eyes off tomorrow’s match at St Johnstone but everyone else in the blue half of Glasgow and beyond are looking at the Celtic clash at Ibrox.

Hill said: “I don’t know if I’m a bit different because of my age or the fact I haven’t been involved in many of these games. But I can take myself away from it all. I can step away.

“I don’t buy papers every day, I don’t look at what people say on Twitter. I just try to go into the games as calmly as possible.

“You need to step away from football – as mad as it sounds. It’s a bubble – and if you are constantly looking at things on Twitter or social media or papers it can drain you.

“I have three kids as well. You have no chance of watching games or any normal TV.

“Ten years ago I wouldn’t have thought I would be here and the time has gone like that.

“You have to enjoy every moment. Coming across an Old Firm derby – it doesn’t get much bigger than that.

“You have to try to enjoy it but the truth is you only really enjoy it when you win.”

And Hill is looking to sign off from 2016 with a victory that can help Rangers march all the way to continental competition.

He said: “We are sitting second and one of the objectives this season is to get this club back to where it belongs and into Europe.”