Davie White (1967 to 1969)
White had been captain of Clyde for six years and was appointed their Manager in 1966, replacing former Rangers player John Prentice who had resigned to take over as Scotland boss. White had first come to Ibrox as Assistant to Scot Symon in June, 1967, his role largely involving coaching the reserves. Bobby Seith coached the first team, and when Seith resigned as a matter of principle following Symon’s sacking, White found himself a lone figure in charge of a Rangers in turmoil.
Whilst the Rangers players were comfortable with their new boss, White was aware that his appointment had not met with universal approval. He had never played for the Club and was not steeped in its traditions like his predecessor. However, he was a younger Manager (34 years of age), representing a change from the old methods, a tracksuit Manager, and moreover, he had confidence in his own ability. He was happy to mix with the players, buy them a beer and seek their affection, although he insisted that standards like off-field dress codes should be maintained.
White was initially reluctant to make too many changes in the side, which after all was sitting top of the League, but was very aware that the lack of goals had been given by the Chairman as a key reason for Symon’s dismissal. To this end, Willie Johnston was switched from the wing to inside forward and would finish the season with 20 goals.
Despite a string of 19 wins, interrupted only by a 2-2 draw with Celtic in the New Year match at Parkhead, by the end of March 1968 Rangers had not shaken off the League challenge from their old rivals. In the run-in, Rangers dropped points in draws at Tannadice and Cappielow, leaving Celtic ahead on goal average with two games remaining. With both sides winning their penultimate games, the League title went to the final day, Rangers hoping for a Celtic slip. In the event, Rangers suffered a last-minute 2-3 defeat to Aberdeen at Ibrox, their first League defeat of the season, but even a victory would not have been enough to overturn a vastly inferior goal average.
In the Scottish Cup, Rangers exited 0-1 in a third round replay with Hearts at Tynecastle. White’s team reached the quarter finals of the Fairs Cup (later renamed the UEFA Cup), before losing out to Leeds United 0-2 at Elland Road after a 0-0 draw at Ibrox, failings in front of goal again proving crucial.
In Davie White’s first season in charge, he had come up agonisingly short in his efforts to wrest back the League title. If he had been hoping for an easy League Cup draw to settle the side into the 1968/69 Season, he was to be disappointed as Rangers again found themselves in the same Section as Celtic who won both the Ibrox and Parkhead ties, meaning an early exit for White’s team.
White gave young players Colin Jackson and Sandy Jardine a run in the team, albeit in different positions from those they would finally make their own, but the season started with no new signings. White appointed Willie Thornton as his Assistant Manager, perhaps to demonstrate a connection with the Struth era and to have Thornton’s vast experience of Ibrox and Rangers.
A 4-2 League victory over Celtic at Parkhead was most welcome, but the fans were largely unimpressed with the start of the League campaign and were calling for the Board to invest further in the squad. On 31 October, White signed Colin Stein from Hibernian for a fee of £100,000, a Scottish record, and he hit the ground running, scoring 8 goals in 11 days in his first three games. Alex MacDonald was signed from St Johnstone for £50,000 on 19 November.
Rangers form was patchy, and by New Year they trailed Celtic by 5 points, in 5th place. A 1-0 victory over their old rivals at Ibrox on 2 January, 1969 (a John Greig penalty) closed the gap to three points, only for them to drop a point in a draw with Kilmarnock 2 days later.
Colin Stein’s short fuse was getting him in trouble with referees, usually for retaliation. On 16 March, with Rangers leading Clyde in the 88th minute at Ibrox by 6-0 (Stein having scored three), he was ordered off along with Eddie Mulheron of Clyde, for fighting. This on top of earlier ordering-off offences and his previous record while with Hibs resulted in Stein receiving an SFA suspension from 27 March to 1 May. Crucially, this meant he would miss the Scottish Cup Final which Rangers had reached, swamping Aberdeen 6-1 in the semi-final.
Final League placings would see Rangers finish 2nd, five points behind Celtic, and Rangers’ eyes were all on the Cup Final at Hampden on 26 April, a chance for a first major honour in three years and to stop Celtic from achieving a domestic Treble.
Alex Ferguson replaced a disconsolate Colin Stein at centre-forward.
A disastrous afternoon saw Rangers a goal down after only 2 minutes (Alex Ferguson was blamed for not tracking McNeill as he headed the opener), and further defensive blunders saw Rangers on the wrong end of a 4-0 scoreline.
It was their first defeat in a Scottish Cup Final in forty years, and their biggest Scottish Cup loss to their old rivals. The rumblings of discontent were becoming louder.
In Europe, Rangers had fought their way through to the Fairs Cup semi-final where their opponents were Newcastle United. After another 0-0 draw at Ibrox in which Andy Penman had a penalty saved, Rangers last bid for glory in the 1968/69 Season ended in further failure, losing 0-2 at St James’s Park on 21 May, their misery compounded by the shameful behaviour of some fans.
White’s spending had not produced silverware and he was becoming increasingly isolated, having lost much of the confidence of the boardroom and with the fans unhappiness becoming all too evident. The Press were having their say too, with Willie Waddell, then a newspaper columnist, referring to White as “the boy David”. White may have thought his luck had changed when Jim Baxter became available for transfer from Nottingham Forest, for a mere £15,000, and he signed on 28 May 1969 - the would-be saviour?
The 1969/70 Season again opened with the League Cup Sections, and again Rangers were drawn in the same Section as Celtic. Rangers won the Ibrox tie 2-1, with Baxter hugely influential, but lost 0-1 at Parkhead and exited the Cup on failing to defeat Raith Rovers at Ibrox. By early November, Rangers were in 6th place in the League, and Celtic have won the Ibrox League clash 1-0, their first League win at Ibrox for 12 years.
In the European Cup Winners Cup, Rangers eliminated Steaua Bucharest and would meet Gornik Zabre in the second round. A 1-3 defeat in the away leg still left Rangers with some hope for the Ibrox return on 26 November 1969, which looked like Davie White’s date with destiny. Baxter gave Rangers a 1-0 lead but three second-half goals by the visitors put Gornik on easy street and Rangers out of the Cup. The crowds which gathered on Edmiston Drive chanted “White must go”.
Davie White was dismissed on 27 November 1969.
by David Plews
Davie White (1967 to 1969)
White had been captain of Clyde for six years and was appointed their Manager in 1966, replacing former Rangers player John Prentice who had resigned to take over as Scotland boss. White had first come to Ibrox as Assistant to Scot Symon in June, 1967, his role largely involving coaching the reserves. Bobby Seith coached the first team, and when Seith resigned as a matter of principle following Symon’s sacking, White found himself a lone figure in charge of a Rangers in turmoil.
Whilst the Rangers players were comfortable with their new boss, White was aware that his appointment had not met with universal approval. He had never played for the Club and was not steeped in its traditions like his predecessor. However, he was a younger Manager (34 years of age), representing a change from the old methods, a tracksuit Manager, and moreover, he had confidence in his own ability. He was happy to mix with the players, buy them a beer and seek their affection, although he insisted that standards like off-field dress codes should be maintained.
White was initially reluctant to make too many changes in the side, which after all was sitting top of the League, but was very aware that the lack of goals had been given by the Chairman as a key reason for Symon’s dismissal. To this end, Willie Johnston was switched from the wing to inside forward and would finish the season with 20 goals.
Despite a string of 19 wins, interrupted only by a 2-2 draw with Celtic in the New Year match at Parkhead, by the end of March 1968 Rangers had not shaken off the League challenge from their old rivals. In the run-in, Rangers dropped points in draws at Tannadice and Cappielow, leaving Celtic ahead on goal average with two games remaining. With both sides winning their penultimate games, the League title went to the final day, Rangers hoping for a Celtic slip. In the event, Rangers suffered a last-minute 2-3 defeat to Aberdeen at Ibrox, their first League defeat of the season, but even a victory would not have been enough to overturn a vastly inferior goal average.
In the Scottish Cup, Rangers exited 0-1 in a third round replay with Hearts at Tynecastle. White’s team reached the quarter finals of the Fairs Cup (later renamed the UEFA Cup), before losing out to Leeds United 0-2 at Elland Road after a 0-0 draw at Ibrox, failings in front of goal again proving crucial.
In Davie White’s first season in charge, he had come up agonisingly short in his efforts to wrest back the League title. If he had been hoping for an easy League Cup draw to settle the side into the 1968/69 Season, he was to be disappointed as Rangers again found themselves in the same Section as Celtic who won both the Ibrox and Parkhead ties, meaning an early exit for White’s team.
White gave young players Colin Jackson and Sandy Jardine a run in the team, albeit in different positions from those they would finally make their own, but the season started with no new signings. White appointed Willie Thornton as his Assistant Manager, perhaps to demonstrate a connection with the Struth era and to have Thornton’s vast experience of Ibrox and Rangers.
A 4-2 League victory over Celtic at Parkhead was most welcome, but the fans were largely unimpressed with the start of the League campaign and were calling for the Board to invest further in the squad. On 31 October, White signed Colin Stein from Hibernian for a fee of £100,000, a Scottish record, and he hit the ground running, scoring 8 goals in 11 days in his first three games. Alex MacDonald was signed from St Johnstone for £50,000 on 19 November.
Rangers form was patchy, and by New Year they trailed Celtic by 5 points, in 5th place. A 1-0 victory over their old rivals at Ibrox on 2 January, 1969 (a John Greig penalty) closed the gap to three points, only for them to drop a point in a draw with Kilmarnock 2 days later.
Colin Stein’s short fuse was getting him in trouble with referees, usually for retaliation. On 16 March, with Rangers leading Clyde in the 88th minute at Ibrox by 6-0 (Stein having scored three), he was ordered off along with Eddie Mulheron of Clyde, for fighting. This on top of earlier ordering-off offences and his previous record while with Hibs resulted in Stein receiving an SFA suspension from 27 March to 1 May. Crucially, this meant he would miss the Scottish Cup Final which Rangers had reached, swamping Aberdeen 6-1 in the semi-final.
Final League placings would see Rangers finish 2nd, five points behind Celtic, and Rangers’ eyes were all on the Cup Final at Hampden on 26 April, a chance for a first major honour in three years and to stop Celtic from achieving a domestic Treble.
Alex Ferguson replaced a disconsolate Colin Stein at centre-forward.
A disastrous afternoon saw Rangers a goal down after only 2 minutes (Alex Ferguson was blamed for not tracking McNeill as he headed the opener), and further defensive blunders saw Rangers on the wrong end of a 4-0 scoreline.
It was their first defeat in a Scottish Cup Final in forty years, and their biggest Scottish Cup loss to their old rivals. The rumblings of discontent were becoming louder.
In Europe, Rangers had fought their way through to the Fairs Cup semi-final where their opponents were Newcastle United. After another 0-0 draw at Ibrox in which Andy Penman had a penalty saved, Rangers last bid for glory in the 1968/69 Season ended in further failure, losing 0-2 at St James’s Park on 21 May, their misery compounded by the shameful behaviour of some fans.
White’s spending had not produced silverware and he was becoming increasingly isolated, having lost much of the confidence of the boardroom and with the fans unhappiness becoming all too evident. The Press were having their say too, with Willie Waddell, then a newspaper columnist, referring to White as “the boy David”. White may have thought his luck had changed when Jim Baxter became available for transfer from Nottingham Forest, for a mere £15,000, and he signed on 28 May 1969 - the would-be saviour?
The 1969/70 Season again opened with the League Cup Sections, and again Rangers were drawn in the same Section as Celtic. Rangers won the Ibrox tie 2-1, with Baxter hugely influential, but lost 0-1 at Parkhead and exited the Cup on failing to defeat Raith Rovers at Ibrox. By early November, Rangers were in 6th place in the League, and Celtic have won the Ibrox League clash 1-0, their first League win at Ibrox for 12 years.
In the European Cup Winners Cup, Rangers eliminated Steaua Bucharest and would meet Gornik Zabre in the second round. A 1-3 defeat in the away leg still left Rangers with some hope for the Ibrox return on 26 November 1969, which looked like Davie White’s date with destiny. Baxter gave Rangers a 1-0 lead but three second-half goals by the visitors put Gornik on easy street and Rangers out of the Cup. The crowds which gathered on Edmiston Drive chanted “White must go”.
Davie White was dismissed on 27 November 1969.
by David Plews
