They say over a season things even themselves out. That is kind of true in this seasons Scottish Premiership play-offs. Rangers struggled to really get going and when it came to the crunch they were found wanting.

Over the two legs of the final, the Gers were soundly beaten by Motherwell.

Unlike last season, when Hibs were in the play-off final, Motherwell actually had some confidence as they had secured five points in their last five league fixtures. The Hibees came into their final after sinking like a stone and it showed against Hamilton.

The fact is that Rangers have never been consistent enough to secure promotion this term.

They finished way behind top side Hearts and even slipped back to third place, with Hibs securing second spot in the Championship.

In the opening two ties of the play-offs Rangers couldn’t really gain much momentum as they stuttered in both second legs and struggled to get past Queen of the South and Hibs.

You then look at the squad and not enough of the first team seemed to have much in the way of fight. Ironically Bilel Mohsni kept his fighting spirit for after yesterday’s full-time whistle, when he landed a punch and kick on Well’s young striker Lee Erwin. A side note is that not enough Gers players actually helped out Mohsni, when they should have tried to calm the situation down, a few seemed to delibertly walk by or turn a blind eye.

That incident will be the last we see of Mohsni in a Gers strip and the Rangers fans will be thankful for that as he has proven to be a liability on more than one occasion.

Stuart McCall said as much after the game:

“I don’t think there is any doubt he (Mohsni) won’t be at the football club next season.”

More will need to follow the Tunisian out of the Ibrox exit door. Jon Daly has already left and surely Kris Boyd, Ian Black, Richard Forster, Stevie Smith, Steve Simonsen, Sebastien Faure and Kyle Hutton will follow.

It is also time for captain Lee McCulloch to leave Ibrox. I think a certain group of Gers fans acted disgracefully when they booed him during a game against Falkirk in April. But that doesn’t mean that his time at the club should be extended. I think he’s been a terrific servant to the club and helped massively in getting them this far, but his race has been run.

Now is the time that the current Rangers board need to prove they are up to the task of running the club. Messrs Dave King and Paul Murray have to now look at all that is wrong at the club and act quickly to sort the mess out.

Interim boss Stuart McCall tired his best to sort out a bad situation but alas his best wasn’t good enough. It is now time for a new young manager to come in and freshen things up at Murray Park. Preferably someone without a connection to Rangers glory years of the past, this Gers team is a different animal and needs new blood to add strength, ambition and guile.

A new director of football with plenty of experience in the role, would help the club no end.

The board need to sort out a new professional scouting system. A club the size of Rangers needs to have a network of scouts that can spot a bargain and can bring in the best available talent. That should have been a top priority and in place by now!

Then they need to rebuild the team and get rid of the old pals act that has taken over the dressing room in recent seasons. New players, ready to fight for the cause and work as a unit will enthuse the fanbase again.

To be honest, Rangers could actually be in a better position because of this enforced stay in the Championship for another year. That gives Dave King time to act on his promises and get things done properly. If he can do that then the club could go up and be ready for the Premiership in 2016.

Had they managed to overcome Motherwell yesterday, then they would have been in a huge rush to bring in a Premiership squad. Most probably they would have messed that up and struggled to make any real impact in the top flight. A season as also rans, finishing in mid-table or lower in the Scottish Premiership would have been much harder to take for the supporters.

Now they have that chance of going up with real confidence and with momentum as long as they have a strong summer and a new long-term project that is fully focused on making Rangers a better club for the future and not propped up by a selfish board.

If Mr Dave King and Rangers get it wrong this summer then next season could be just as long and problematic as Hibs and St Mirren will be just as desperate for the Championship title.

Posted on June 1st, 2015 by scott
Filed under: Article