Zak is star for Gers
Young G er is star turn in Portugal
Talented youngster nets hat-trick in Portugal
A talented 10 year old from Cambuslang fired his youth side to cup glory against the cream of Europe recently. Zak Richford, who stays in Newton, netted a hat trick to land Rangers Under-12s the Algrave Cup in Portugal. And Zak and his team mates even got to enjoy an open top bus celebration afterwards. The Newton Farm pupil dazzled in the final of the international tournament, with his three goals helping the Gers beat Dynamo Zagreb 7-5.
And his proud mum Gillian was among the family members who had travelled to Portugal to watch.
She said: “The whole family was there and we were all really proud of him.
“He absolutely loves football and always has – he’s been playing it since he could walk, almost!
“The whole trip was an amazing experience. There were lots of big teams there, like Benfica, Lyon and Olympiakos.
“When they reached the final the organisers did everything they could to make it feel really special.
“They were playing the national anthems beforehand, and after they won they were able to get on a bus and have their trophy parade. It was brilliant for him.”
Zak, who plays in midfield, lists his favourite players as France’s World Cup winning star Kylian Mbappe and Rangers midfielder Ryan Kent.
The youngster was originally on the books of Old Firm rivals Celtic, before joining Motherwell and Hamilton, and finally ending up at Rangers.
Gillian added: “He trains three times a week and at the weekend, so he works hard.
“The school have been great too, as they let him have the time off to travel to Portugal for the tournament.”
And there could be more success for Zak in the coming weeks as he is also set to take part in the Hamburg Cup in Germany with Rangers in June.