You can’t imagine Giovanni van Bronckhorst standing for the pre-match preparations these days. But he certainly would take the result of Rangers’ one and only trip to Anfield in their history as he prepares to take on Liverpool in the Champions League.
But the Ibrox side’s only previous game at the Merseyside ground was NOT against the Reds but instead against city rivals Everton who initially played at the iconic stadium before moving to Goodison Park due to a dispute over rent.
The light blue legions are licking their lips at the prospect of a match against Jurgen Klopp’s side as they prepare to take on the Merseyside giants in the Champions League. Celtic, Hearts and Aberdeen have played at Anfield on European duty but Rangers have not. However, they did play take on Everton at the ground in an FA Cup 136 years ago - 24 years after they were founded - and won an FA Cup tie 1-0 back in the days when Scottish clubs featured in the knockout tournament for English sides.
However, the Toffees had forfeited the match ahead of kick off due to the fact three players were ineligible and Rangers went all the way to the last four that year, where they lost to Aston Villa. But preparations were’t ideal as the Scots players were THROWN OUT of their digs after a lively night on the eve of the big game and had to check into another hotel on the morning of the tie to prepare.
Details of the match feature in the The Gallant Pioneers book on the origins of Rangers and it reveals: “There was certainly mischief in the mind when Rangers travelled to Merseyside the evening before the game against Everton, who had been knocked out of the FA Cup the previous season 3-0 by Partick Thistle.
“The Kinning Park squad arrived in Liverpool the worse for wear for a game in which they were overwhelming favourites. These days, the former Compton Hotel in the city’s Church Street houses a branch of Marks and Spencer, but it was bed and not bargains on the mind of the bedraggled Rangers squad as they trooped in there on the morning of the game after being thrown out of their original digs.
“The columnist ‘Lancaster Chat’ noted matter-of-factly in the Scottish Umpire of November 2 1886: ‘The Rangers arrived (in Liverpool) soon after midnight and roused the ire of the hotel proprietor in their night revels. In fact, the Rangers squad were bundled out bag and baggage without breakfast and took up their quarters at the Compton Hotel. They dressed at the hotel and the game was started pretty punctually.”
“In these days of Premier League billions, it is perhaps surprising to learn that Rangers were strong favourites in the first round against Everton, even though the home side had recently won the Liverpool Cup and had been undefeated all season.
“In a burst of patriotism, the Scottish Umpire declared in its preview to the game: ‘Dobson, Farmer and Gibson are not eligible (for Everton). And without them they have not much chance of winning… without the three named, Everton cannot possibly defeat a decent team of the Rangers.’
“Rangers were handed the tie before kick off - unsurprisingly, delayed 15 minutes to give the players time to arrive at the ground after shaking off their excesses - when Everton ‘scratched’ the tie to give their three ineligible players the chance to play and make the encounter more competitive.
“The game almost did not start as a result of a morning deluge that had turned the playing surface into a mudbath, but the skies cleared to blue by lunchtime and soon the crowds were rolling up in their thousands.
“The match was played at Anfield and the Scottish Umpire remarked that the ground was not a very good one, particularly as it was situated a couple of miles from the nearest railway station. However, football in Liverpool at that stage was according to the newspaper, ‘leaping and bounding’.
“Rangers won the game courtesy of a one-yard tap-in from striker Charlie Heggie after 20 minutes. Everton fought valiantly to get back into the game, but Rangers held out and even had a second goal disallowed late on.”
The Gallant Pioneers - 150th Anniversary Edition' by Gary Ralston, with Gordon Bell and Iain McColl, is available from Amazon and all good book retailers priced £14.99. Check out www.thegallantpioneers.com
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