Managing the Old Firm
Only 17 men still alive know what it is like to be an Old Firm manager and Chick Young set about interviewing them all as part of a unique documentary series for Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ Radio Scotland.
RUNNING ORDER
00:00 The oldest surviving Old Firm boss Davie White talks about how he unexpectedly landed the Rangers job in 1969 and his difficult relationship with sports writer and eventual successor Willie Waddell. John Greig and Billy McNeill are the only respective captains of Rangers and Celtic to have lifted European trophies and, in 1978, both found themselves thrust into the manager's role at the clubs where they had spent their entire playing career. Both talk candidly about the challenges they faced on and off the pitch. For Greig, being Rangers manager was a stressful time for him and his family, while McNeill was frustrated by a lack of money to strengthen his squad. David Hay discusses the extremes of his time as Celtic manager, including a remarkable league title win in 1986, and the bitter disappointment of losing his job the following year.
01:00 Graeme Souness talks about revolutionising Rangers in the 1980's and the sensational signing of former Celtic striker Maurice Johnston. When Souness left Ibrox, his former assistant Walter Smith carried on Rangers' success in the 1990s. Smith discusses the club's record-equalling run of nine successive league championship wins and the players who contributed to that success. Billy McNeill chats about his second spell as Celtic manager, including the club's famous centenary year league triumph in 1988. Liam Brady and Lou Macari faced challenges off the park as well as on it during their relative stints as Celtic boss and both give an insight to the boardroom drama at the club in the early 1990s.
01:50 Lou Macari discusses his short reign as manager of Celtic, during which time the club was famously taken over by businessman Fergus McCann. Walter Smith talks about Rangers' record-equalling run of nine successive championship wins and calling time on his first spell as Ibrox boss. Celtic ended Rangers' hopes of making it 10-in-a-row in 1998 under the stewardship of Wim Jansen, who gives his thoughts on his eventful year in charge of the Parkhead club, which included the signing of Henrik Larsson. Jansen's Dutch compatriot Dick Advocaat shares his experience of becoming Rangers' first foreign manager during a period of big-spending at Ibrox and Dr Jozef Venglos speaks fondly of his solitary season in charge of Celtic.
02:48 John Barnes talks about his brief tenure as Celtic boss, which ended in the wake of a shock Scottish Cup exit at the hands of Inverness Caledonian Thistle. Martin O'Neill discusses restoring Celtic's fortunes by securing the domestic treble in his first season in charge. The success of O'Neill's side put pressure on Rangers counterpart Dick Advocaat, who chats about breaking the Scottish transfer record with the capture of Tore Andre Flo before vacating the Ibrox hotseat. Advocaat's successor Alex McLeish shares his experience of managing his boyhood heroes and winning trophies in his first few months in charge.
03:44 Martin O'Neill discusses Celtic's journey to Seville for the Uefa Cup final in 2003, where they suffered the heartache of an extra-time defeat to Jose Mourinho's Porto. O'Neill and former Rangers boss Alex McLeish share their thoughts on two dramatic final-day Scottish Premier League title race conclusions. And Gordon Strachan, now manager at Championship side Middlesbrough, talks about becoming Celtic boss and taking on his former Aberdeen team-mate, McLeish.
04:36 In the final instalment, Chick tracks the rise and fall of Paul Le Guen at Rangers, the return to Ibrox of Walter Smith, and he speaks to Gordon Strachan about his time at Celtic Park. Le Guen arrived in Glasgow with a glittering CV from his time at Lyon but struggled to adapt to life with Rangers in the Scottish Premier League and left after 31 matches in charge.
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Broadcasts
- Thu 15 Jul 2010 00:30Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ Radio Scotland Extra
- Thu 22 Jul 2010 00:30Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ Radio Scotland Extra