THE story of how Rangers won a European trophy in Barcelona 36 years past is bound up with regret as well as pride.
For the players who orchestrated a famous 3-2 victory over Moscow Dynamo, there was enduring frustration at not being given sufficient credit for an astonishing campaign in which they defeated the cup holders from France, Portugal, Italy, Germany
and Russia.
For the club, the aftermath of a boisterous pitch invasion by fans celebrating Rangers' first European triumph in the Nou Camp turned out to be a monster of dishonour. The ensuing battle with the Spanish police, who reacted with heavy-handed aggression, eventually provoked condemnation from Uefa. Rangers were subsequently banned from Europe and their players denied an opportunity to defend the Cup Winners' Cup. Instead of recalling events in Barcelona with justifiable pride, the occasion occupies an ambivalent place in Ibrox history. From a footballing perspective, however, the achievement of manager Willie Waddell and coach Jock Wallace, along with a group of notable footballers, has been undervalued by posterity.
Unlike today when Rangers are heavily involved in the chase for glory on the domestic front, the club's European success in season 1971-72 was at odds with some indifferent performances on the home front. Rangers pipped Hibernian for third place on goal difference in Division One of the Scottish League, but trailed Aberdeen in second spot by six points and champions Celtic by 16.
Peter McCloy, the club's reliable goalkeeper, recalls Rangers using different tactics in Europe from the style they played in Scotland. When the opposition had the ball, Rangers would retreat and mark man for man. "It was effective and we only lost one game on our travels that season," said McCloy, who now works as the starter on the Ailsa links at Turnberry. "We were better suited to European football."
French club Rennes were disposed of in the first round, ushering Rangers into what would prove to be a dramatic encounter with Sporting Lisbon. Rangers went three up at Ibrox thanks to a brace from Colin Stein and one from Henderson. Sporting, however, countered with late strikes from Chic and Gomes.
Rangers' troubles at the second leg began in London when their connecting flight was grounded due to fog. It took the team 36 hours to reach Lisbon from Glasgow. The game was free-flowing and this time Sporting won 3-2. With the match tied at 5-5, the tie went into extra-time when Willie Henderson scored for Rangers and Perez for Sporting.
Unaware of the new away goals rule, the referee ordered a penalty shoot-out which the Portuguese side won. While Sporting celebrated, the late John Fairgrieve, one of Scotland's most distinguished football writers, brought a copy of the Uefa rule book to the dressing room and told Waddell the shoot-out was invalid. Once Fairgrieve and Waddell found the referee, the official acknowledged his mistake and Rangers were through.
The prize in the quarter-finals was a tie against Torino. With Colin Jackson deputising at centre-back for Ronnie McKinnon, who broke a leg in Lisbon, Rangers earned a notable 1-1 draw thanks to an away goal from Willie Johnston. The second leg at Ibrox was just as closely fought until Alex MacDonald's goal separated the sides.
In the semi-final, Rangers again crossed swords with Bayern Munich, the side which knocked them out of the Uefa Cup (then the Fairs Cup) in 1970 as well as beating them in the 1967 Cup Winners' Cup final. There was a strong argument for regarding this Bayern side as the best team in Europe – they would go on to win the European Cup in three consecutive seasons between 1974 and 1976 – thanks to the outstanding talents of players of the calibre of Paul Breitner, Uli Hoeness, Gerd Muller and Franz Beckenbauer.
Rangers were fortunate to trail by a single goal at half-time of the first leg. Wallace's training regime, however, meant Rangers were as fit as any of their opponents. After Colin Stein's cross was turned past his own goalkeeper by Zobel in the second half, Rangers finished the game strongly and might even have brought a lead to Glasgow.
As it was, Sandy Jardine soothed any nerves with a first-minute goal and Derek Parlane, making his European debut for the club in midfield, contributed a second after 23 minutes. In front of 80,000 fans, Rangers celebrated reaching a second European final in five years.
Rangers were the better side in the final and established a three-goal lead thanks to Stein and Johnston, who scored twice. Dynamo responded with goals from Eschtrekov and Makovikov. In a nervous finish, Rangers held out; when the final whistle blew, many of their supporters poured onto the pitch to celebrate. What should have been a high point in Rangers' folklore plumbed the depths after the confrontation with the Spanish police turned ugly. John Greig, who played through the pain of injury, and Waddell were presented with the trophy in a dingy corridor of the stadium rather than under the glare of the Nou Camp's floodlights.
In the press box, Scottish reporters were forced to duck when a seat was ripped from the stand and thrown over their heads. Amid the mayhem, a touch of black humour enlivened the post-match scene when a travelling sports editor passed an infamous note to his football writer. It read: "Why no lap of honour?"
The full article contains 921 words and appears in The Scotsman newspaper.
