Occasions like last Monday’s visit of Hibs to Ibrox were the reason that Rob Kiernan opted to join Rangers last summer and it lived up to all of the former Republic of Ireland under-21 captain’s expectations.
A career that began with such promise has not yet lived up to expectations as he has been signed by ambitious clubs in Watford and Wigan Athletic, but has spent most of his time learning his trade on loan all round Britain – spending time in Kilmarnock, Yeovil, Bradford, Accrington, Burton, Brentford, Southend and Birmingham over the past five years.
Having worked with Rangers manager Mark Warburton before, however and been persuaded that there could soon be a real prospect of getting the chance to play European football if all goes as expected at Ibrox he has seized the opportunity to play regular first team football. All that surrounded the match which saw Rangers claim the win which ensured they began 2016 in pole position for automatic promotion to the Premier League went a long way towards justifying the move.
“Some of the boys who have been here longer than I have said that if we can get back to where the club was then Ibrox would be like that every week,” the 24-year-old said with obvious and understandable relish.
“What an atmosphere that was. It’s certainly the biggest crowd I’ve played in front of and the noise was unbelievable. We all want to play in games like that so we have to strive to do that.”
He notes that there are disadvantages, from the on-field matter of having to whistle to team-mates who are only 10 yards away when trying to communicate with them, to the way that off-field issues involving the club are, in his words, “blown up.”
However in broad terms dealing with the din, both real and metaphorical is the sort of difficulty everyone involved in professional sport wants to have and while Kiernan hints at an awareness that a capacity Ibrox crowd can also be a dangerous thing for a home team if they are not winning as convincingly as they did on Monday, his satisfaction at establishing himself at a major football club is evident.
“We all know the potential is there,” he said.
“With 50,000 there the place is rocking. I don’t know if it gives us a head start but when they’re behind us it’s something special. When you come out of the tunnel and the flags are flying it’s something else. You can’t really put it into words.
“It was part of the attraction of coming here. You’re not going to get that down south unless you’re at one of the six biggest teams. I know we’re up there.
“You feel like you’re part of a big movement and with them behind us it gives you an extra ten per cent. I feel like it gives you an extra boost and you want to impress them even more.
“We have a saying on our wall, we want to send the fans home happy. That’s what we aim to do every week. When they’re all roaring like that it spurs you on.”
All of which only serves to underline the message offered by his boss when Warburton claimed that Scottish football must reduce its focus and reliance on the Old Firm in recognising that less is more in terms of generating interest while also seeking to ensure that other clubs can contribute fully to the mix as the Edinburgh clubs did last week.
The Rangers manager said that view had been reinforced by the reaction he has received from south of the border following those big inter-city clashes at the top of both the Premiership and the Championship. That, in turn, has strengthened his confidence that others will follow Kiernan in opting to join a club that has European aspirations if all goes as planned in 2016 and beyond.
“Looking at those two games (Rangers v Hibs and Hearts v Celtic), I got texts from down south, from Brentford players and staff and other people I know in football, including plenty of managers,” said Warburton.
“They hadn’t previously been aware of the fantastic atmosphere at Tynecastle and it was a great game, with the last-minute equaliser.
“Then they watched our game against Hibs at Ibrox and the quality and intensity of the game were really good. It was two really good adverts for Scottish football and touch wood that helps us recruit the kind of players we’re after.”
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