Iain Ferguson (1984 to 1986)
With the transfer fee being set by ‘tribunal’, Rangers paid £200,000 to secure the services of exciting young striker Iain Ferguson in May 1984. Along with team-mate Cammy Fraser, the pair arrived from Dundee and their combined fee of over £350,000 represented a significant outlay for Jock Wallace as he prepared for the first full season of his second spell in charge of the Club.
It was, perhaps, not surprising that the pair had caught the eye of the Rangers hierarchy. In recent times, Dundee had proved to be somewhat of a ‘bogey’ side. During the previous two seasons, Rangers managed to record just two victories from eight meetings whilst Wallace had also suffered Scottish Cup disappointment at the hands of the Dens Park side triumph just months earlier. Both Ferguson and Fraser had featured heavily and scored goals in those encounters.
The two players could not have been more different. Ferguson, at 21, was an in-form striker, capped at Under-21 level by Scotland, and a frequent scorer of spectacular goals. The eye-catching poster boy, so to speak. Fraser, at 27, was an experienced and steady midfielder who had already amassed over 250 league appearances with Heart of Midlothian and Dundee during the previous decade.
A Lanarkshire boy, Ferguson’s career began to develop closer to home where he played for Fir Park Boys Club. However, even at that stage he had established an association with the Dens Park side and would sign ‘S’ Forms with Dundee at the age of 13 before earning a move in 1978. At the age of just 16, Ferguson would score his first senior for the Dark Blues.
With his Dundee contract having expired, Ferguson was summoned to Ibrox by assistant manager Alex Totten where he duly met with Jock Wallace and was offered a four-year deal. It was a whirlwind start for Iain as he almost immediately embarked on an end of season tour of Australia with his new teammates. His competitive debut came on 11th August 1984 when St. Mirren visited Ibrox on the opening day of the season. A lot was expected of Ferguson, but he drew a blank as the match ended goalless. Ironically, he broke his duck for Rangers on his return to Dens as Gers ran out 2-0 winners. It was another former Dundee player, Ian Reford, who scored the second after Ferguson had broken the deadlock.
The goals were not exactly flowing for Ferguson as Rangers prepared to face Dundee United in the League Cup Final of October 1984. Wallace had secured the trophy just 7 months earlier but a change in format meant that the 1984/85 Final would be contested far earlier in the season. It was not a particularly memorable match, possibly hampered by difficult weather conditions. The only real moment of quality came on the stroke of half time when Ferguson finished off a great move to beat Hamish McAlpine low to the keepers left in front of the West Terracing. It was Iain’s first major honour as Rangers won the Scottish League Cup for the 13th time.
When Italian giants Inter Milan came to Ibrox less than two weeks later protecting a 3-0 lead from the first leg, few would have predicted a shock. An early David Mitchell goal provided some hope but when Altobelli equalised (thus securing a potentially vital away goal) the tie was all but over. Rangers rallied and Ferguson would score twice to give the Italians a fright before exiting the UEFA Cup 3-4 on aggregate. Ferguson had proved he could be the man for the big occasion but, sadly, those two weeks would be the pinnacle of Iain’s time as a Rangers player. Half a dozen league goals in his first season was not the return Rangers would have anticipated and by the following season it was Ally McCoist who had grasped the opportunity to become the established centre forward.
Iain started just two matches during the dismal 1985/86 season and it was clear that he had no future at Ibrox under Jock Wallace. If there was hope that the arrival of Graeme Souness might bring about a change in fortunes in time for season 1986/87, it did not materialise.
A short-term loan to Dundee followed before Ferguson was told by assistant Manager Walter Smith that Rangers were happy for him to move on and had accepted a fee for him to return to Tayside permanently. The stumbling block being that it was a move across the road to neighbours Dundee United! Somewhat reluctantly, Iain agreed to join United for a fee of £140,000 despite being very much a ‘Dark Blue’ (the Dens Park side had been unwilling to pay the required fee).
By the end of season 1986/87, Rangers had secured both the Leage Cup and League Championship. St. Mirren would win the Scottish Cup as Feguson’s Dundee United would succumb after extra time, the only goal being scored by Ian Ferguson who would later join Rangers and star during the NIAR era. There was more heartache for Iain as United also lost out in the final of the UEFA Cup to IFK Goteborg (over two legs). He would feature in the home leg which ended in a 1-1 draw. There had, however, been some truly memorable moments during that euro run, Ferguson scoring a late winner versus Barcelona in Camp Nou whilst also opening the scoring in Monchengladbach as Borussia were defeated (Borussia having eliminated Rangers in the third round in an ill tempered clash).
A move to Hearts followed his departure from Tannadice in 1988. Always the man for the big European nights, Ferguson would score a stunning goal in the UEFA Cup Quarter Final victory over Bayern Munich at Tynecastle with Hearts losing 1-2 on aggregate.
In 1991, and at the third attempt, Ferguson enjoyed success in a Scottish Cup Final when his hometown team Motherwell defeated ex side Dundee United 4-3 in a classic Hampden encounter. It was Ferguson who opened the scoring for a Motherwell side inspired by Davie Cooper and manged by Tommy McLean and Tom Forsyth. Ally Maxwell and Craig Paterson also featured for the Fir Park side with Bobby Russell missing out through injury. The United team included Duncan Ferguson, no relation to Iain.
Iain would turn out for several other sides during the latter stages of his career including Airdrieonians and a final stint at Dundee.
After a lengthy spell with little or no involvement in football, Iain can now be found working for Rangers at Ibrox on matchday where he remains popular within the hospitality suites and fan zones. Iain, to his credit, was also an outspoken supporter of regime change following the financial collapse of 2012.
by Rick Plews
