John Brown (1988 to 1996)

John signed for his boyhood heroes in January 1988 when manager Graeme Souness paid Dundee £350,000 to secure the services of the versatile 25 year old.

It was money well spent but few would have predicted the contribution he would go on to make at Ibrox over almost two decades, initially as a player and later as a coach.

‘Bomber’ made his debut in a 1-1 draw at Tynecastle on 16th January 1988 but could just as easily have been lining up in maroon had the ‘Jam Tarts’ not pulled the plug on a proposed transfer at the 11th hour due to concerns over an ongoing knee problem. If there were any lingering doubts over John’s fitness, his incredible mental strength and determination were always likely to overcome any such difficulties.

Durability was certainly not a problem during his Rangers career, he would appear in all but the last of the sequence of nine successive League Championship successes having frustratingly suffered a barren debut partial season.

In addition to those successful League title campaigns, John would feature in 3 League Cup and 3 Scottish Cup winning sides.

A fiery red head, John was certainly not one to take prisoners but his ‘hard man’ image possibly meant that he did not receive the plaudits he deserved in terms of his playing ability. Brown could comfortably play in any position on the left-hand side or centrally. His distribution was very good, he could beat a player and his deliveries when operating as a full-back were not found wanting. Throughout his career, John had proved he could score goals from anywhere (as Rangers often found out to their cost in the early 1980's).

The treble winning season of 1992/93 was John’s greatest season at Ibrox when he formed an excellent central defensive partnership with Richard Gough. Whether up against Cantona, Boksic or Voller during that extended European run, a fully focussed Brown appeared to take it all in his stride.

The 1990/91 League title decider with Aberdeen best portrays John and what the Club undoubtedly means to him. With the squad decimated by injury, John started the game knowing full well that he had no chance of completing 90 minutes due to an ongoing problem. John's Achilles eventually snapped and he was stretched from the pitch in agony. By that stage, Rangers were well on the way to winning the match and securing ‘3 in a row’. It was a classic example of John going the ‘extra mile’ for Rangers, even if it was to his own detriment as he left Ibrox on crutches.

John would call time on his playing career at the end of season 1995/96, going out on a high following an emphatic Scottish Cup Final win over Heart of Midlothian at Hampden Park.

For the next decade, Brown would continue to coach (and occasionally) play for the Reserves whilst the Youth team players would receive a tough grounding under his watchful eye.

John was rewarded with a much deserved Testimonial once his playing career was over, a magnificent servant furthered in various scouting and ambassadorial roles. Always putting Rangers first, John was extremely vocal regarding concerns over regime change and the direction in which the Club was being taken under the new ownership. Whilst it resulted in unwanted personal attention, John's determination in seeing the Club return to 'safe hands' should never be underestimated.

In all, John made 278 appearances for Rangers scoring 18 goals, his favourite coming at Parkhead when he rifled home in front of the Rangers support during the New Year fixture of 1992.

by Rick Plews