After some reflection I share a few photos from Tuesday night. To recap, the score was Rangers 2 Hibernian 1 AET in the Scottish Challenge Cup. Admission £21 programme £3. As some of you know I was hoping to go elsewhere, I had visited Ibrox twice and for the Rangers game was not impressed by what I found. That was for a league cup v Dumbarton in the late 80s or early 90s and pulled in around 35,000. This game attracted little more than half this number (18,138) for what on paper was a far more exciting and evenly balanced prospect. That said, Rangers I had understood are essentially a new entity who are climbing back through the leagues, a fact incidentally belied by what is printed and written including on the back of their shirts (see picture 1)! No different to AFC Wimbledon you might well say, if anything their claim to me seems even more wild but I get that it is about history and that does matters. Even with a recent and significant court case victory fans worry for the financial situation. The anxiety was palpable among the faithful who turned out, the atmosphere - but for a few die hards thoughtfully sat right next to the seemingly sold out but ridiculously small away end (picture 2) - was at best subdued. People muttered about their concerns and eye the future was caution even though nothing less than a third straight promotion will be acceptable. Few conversations focused on the football and to me this was a sad state of affairs. But I found the football experience to be generally positive. Some questions could be asked about certain items sold in the surrounding streets (picture 3) though it is generally a colourful spectacle. I cannot tell you about the full meaning of some of the songs played before during and after and before this comment prompts any criticism I am sure I would have asked similar questions had I been at Parkhead. The single most unpalatable issue this time was the appearance of a flag with no place in the ground but I think even the other ultras quickly saw this and took action. Other flag waving on the pitch before the game is in itself part of the ritual that many home fans enjoy (picture 4). Overall I enjoyed much of what I saw and experienced. Ibrox is an impressive ground, the exterior of the main stand almost iconic (picture 5). The main stand also retains character (picture 6) that the other stands lack (7). Seeing it full as I did when Falkirk and Kilmarnock did in a Scottish Cup Final is memorable. But to return when it is a little more than a third full probably made the lack of atmosphere all the more pronounced. However, I saw from both sides behaved well and for an early season cup tie the game had some decent moments. I would be less reticent about going again if I again find this the only option in reasonable distance though I probably need to revisit the green half to maintain some balance. What experiences have you had of Ibrox?
Posted on: Fri, 08 Aug 2014 22:07:45 +0000
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