In a word. Mental.

You had to be there to see it. Words cant describe what that was like.

I will never go to another game like that again unless we play up there again or they come down to SB.

It was so friendly it was untrue. Rangers singing chelsea songs, chelsea singing rangers songs.

The pubs before and after the game were amazing. Ibrox was everything i hoped it would be.

What a ground. A proper British stadium. And f**k me was it loud.

On the plane back this morning the Rangers fan i was next to said it only gets as loud as that like that when they play Celtic.

To think it was just a friendly was amazing. Ive just been on a Rangers board i frequent and their reaction to the day is magnificent.

They only have wonderful things to say about the Chelsea fans

The scenes at half time in the concourse were basically amazing. Ive never seen anything like that. There was a barrier separating the two but both sets

of fans were together singing and swapping shirts etc. Ive got some footbage on my phone and if i can work out how to use you tube i will put it up there.

There aint half some dodgy looking bars in in Glasgow, it has to be said!. We went into the Glaswegian Bar upon recommendation and

it was, well certainly an experience. To say it was a loyal Gers pub was somewhat an understatement. We'd been in there ten minutes when the landlord

shut the doors and the band with drums and flutes came out. Now this isnt really my scene and certainly its not my place to comment on it so i wont ,

but it was clear just how much it all means to everyone up there. It is, to coin a phrase a very different ball game.

We hit another few boozers on the Paisley Road West and you could not be talking places any more different than the Peli, Jollys etc.

All in all a great day. Come 9om i could hardly keep my eyes open, and that was just because of the beer (first one 6am!)

Oh and the game ? Well it was sh*t wasnt it ? Still it wasnt about the football for me yesterday.

Though it was great see Frank get cheers and clapped by the Gers fans when going to take the corners.

Anyway, KatzNutz, Scott nice to meet you ands thanks for meeting me at the airport,

and Tim and Nat thanks for your company throughout the day. Mick - i hope your ok mate.

Some pics below

my first post guys

just want to say a big thanks to all the chelsea fans that were up at ibrox for the game it was some day out we all had

i hope we can make this a yearly game it was that good the chelsea players were geting treated like one of our own to see lampard and terry applaud the fans says it all

to all chelsea fans what rangers players caught your eye who impressed you

again a big thanks for making the day special

blues brothers for life

Alrite people! Rangers fan here - just joined to say you lot were f**kin fantastic yesterday.

Great atmosphere before, during and after the game! Loved it. Its not often teams come to Glasgow and mingle with us, and I for one hope it becomes an annual pre-season fixture. One year at Ibrox the next at the Bridge.

I was also in the Glaswegian after the game mate - spoke to a fair few of the Chelsea fans in, possibly yourself included. It was indeed bouncing - until the police put the band off! And we were in the Sir John Moore (Wetherspoons) before the game.

Hopefully see you all in London next summer!

The game wasn't the greatest, personally happy we got the win (naturally).

As for the singing at half time in the enclousre - here is a small clip of it. This is the in the Rangers end - Chelsea fans are on the other side:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EVEMHbd8bC4

Not the best clip of it - but the bouncy was done by the majority of the stadium when the second goal went in:

Great sight, imo!

Banner in the Rangers end!

Who the f**k are Man Utd? (As sung by 51,000 Rangers and Chelsea fans)

Ian, just seen your post on the rangers - chelsea thread , sorry to steal your thunder!

Here are the vids from half time. Crap quality im afraid. Basically its chelsea fans and rangers fans separated by a small barrier. Sadly the footage doesnt really capture the moment.

I see Glasgow is getting a reputation for being a bit of a sh*t kicker city!! That's why we had Taggart up here!

I have to say I would only ever consider going drinking along Paisley Road West on a match day - other than that it is definitely to be avoided! A lot of away fans get the impression that Glasgow is rough as hell when they go to see either Rangers or Celtic as both stadiums are in pretty bad areas however I don't see Glasgow as being any worse than any major UK city. I always think Glasgow seems rougher because a broad Glaswegian accent does make you feel you could be 20 seconds from being headbutted at any point in time!

Glad you boys all had a good trip and I am totally bloody gutted I missed it.

Cheers

Loz

Loz, i will make the pics smaller tommorow!

Going to bed now, im cream crackered.

Sounds a great day out.

I hope RedRoBKnob calls in and posts some of it up on the Liverplod Dignity websites. Perhaps it will further cement the Blue Boy/Scouser relationship.

Well only got in late had a flight delayed by 2.5hrs, but what great 3 days to see my two teams playing. Glad i did take my ticket in the Copland end as was seated right at the front row A behind the goals.

Bumped into one mate from back home on the flight out who member of the Gers and Chelsea clubs back in Perth who made the flight all the way up. Something I think I would've done to had I been still in Perth.

well guess back to normalities of work shame, well hope gers keep some form coming into the CL tie and chelsea show bit more form come charity sheild. I'll see what's on my phone to if any good battery died start game so can't really remember what did film

Although hard to read due to it's size, this thread has given me goosebumps!!

I will never eat a Pacer again!

(oldies will remember the advert)

that looks mental....as loz said, I wish I was there too!1

Little quote from the Guardian

"Matches tend to lack a bit of bite when both sets of supporters sing the same songs - on this occasion largely restricted to pro-monarchist verse and rude ditties about Celtic. The level of celebration which greeted Rangers' late goals, then, was somewhat out of place; the vast majority of a full Ibrox roared with delight as Nacho Novo fizzed home an angled, 22-yard drive five minutes from time."

heres some of the local boozers as mentioned. windows optional.

just to cure my curiosity, where does the relationship between rangers and chelsea stem from? Is it a long standing tradition or is it relatively new? I instanlty imagine it is due to the pro-brittish stance of the rangers fans and would guess it is also related to the hooligan factions of years past, but these are both guesses and may well be a long way off, but i would be interested to hear the answer.

cheers.

Here you go Rob

Blues Brothers - a potted history

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I note with interest some of the earlier posts over the connection between Chelsea and Rangers. Having lived through the development of the relationship (yes I really am that old!) I hope that my perspective helps to throw some light on it.

1. In the sixties it became fashionable at english games to chant Rangers or Celtic, particularly in the half time intervals. At Chelsea this was heavily steered towards Rangers even then. I think it was to do with the disproportionate amount of serving and ex servicemen (and their patriotic leanings) who frequented Chelsea. Remembering also that the old nickname was the 'Pensioners' referring to the proximity of the Old servicemans home near the ground. They still receive a number of complimentary tickets even today and they can be seen in attendance resplendent in their red regalia. There is however no doubt that the 'bias' towards anything 'Unionist' was also to do with right wing links which became more evident and visible in the 70's with the growth of the NF, with Chelsea being a known recruiting ground. Nothing to be proud of, but a fact and factor nonetheless.

2. The seventies saw a dramatic shift towards the Rangers allegiance. This was definitely due to the IRA bombing campaign in London and north Surrey, from where Chelsea drew its support. The Guildford bombing and its fatalities in particular signalled an outcry against the IRA and anything associated with it. Celtic were seen as sympathetic the the republican cause. Overnight any Celtic chants disappeared.

3. The seventies (and early eighties) were described as the dark days of Chelsea FC when the hooligan element dominated the headlines. At least 2 of the Chelsea 'firms' at the time had their 'leadership' drawn from ex-servicemen, most of whom had served in Ulster. This strengthened the anti IRA, anti Celtic feelings even further. Many had formed personal relationships with Ulster orangemen and also with Rangers supporters serving in various parts of the world at the time. Some of these Chelsea veterans also formed links with protestent paramilitary groups in Ulster as well after leaving the forces.

Meanwhile these 'friendships' between Chelsea and Rangers ex-servicemen developed into them (and ever expanding groups of mates) attending Chelsea and Rangers games together, sometimes for 'positive' reasons (have a beer, a sing song and a laugh) and sometimes for 'less positive' reasons (i.e. 'assists' such as a trip to visit the Aberdeen Casuals). Again, nothing to be proud of here, but a fact nonetheless and a factor in the 'bonding' that was taking place between many Chelsea fans and the their Rangers counterparts

4. With the ban on English clubs playing in Europe in the 80's, many more Chelsea fans started travelling with Rangers in Europe, some admittedly for the wrong reasons but the majority for the camaraderie that was now growing between the fan groups. The fanbase at the Jolly Malster pub, just off the Fulham Road would arrange trips to Europe and sometimes to Rangers home games. The pub became a meeting place for Chelsea and Rangers fans. It still does. There were 50 or 60 Rangers fans there last year when Chelsea played Celtic in its pre-season "friendly". (Thats another story by the way!)

5. A couple of milestones stick out in my memory. Firstly the Chelsea away game in Liverpool in late 70's (78 or 79 I think) when an estimated 2000 Rangers fans travelled to Anfield for a Saturday morning kick off. After the local police worked it out, they shared the visitors terracing with Chelsea for a memorable morning of singing and chanting together. Having kept us all back in the ground for an hour afterwards, the roads were cleared and some of us shared a few beers together in the pubs on the route back to the Rangers buses.

Secondly the 2 friendlies in the mid 80's. The first at Stamford Bridge in aid of the Bradford disaster, when it was party time in the Fulham Road before and after and when the Shed end cheered every Rangers goal and the Rangers fans the Chelsea goals!. The second at Ibrox in what I think was the following year, when it ws impossible to buy a drink due to the generosity of the Rangers fans.

6. Since those days there has been a growth of joint Chelsea/Rangers items on sale outside Stamford Bridge and in the local pubs - scarfs, T-shirts and in particular metal badges. These were also in abundance in Barcelona 2 seasons ago when loads of Chelsea and Rangers fans met up in Barcelona on the day before the respective Euro matches in Spain. The massive 'Blues Brothers' flag with Union Jack, Chelsea, Rangers and Linfield badges was hoisted in the centre of the main road in Barcelona! A great time was had by all before heading off to our respective matches (and defeats!)

7. I think the point is that there is something quite special in this relationship despite its rather shady origins in some respects. It certainly feels stronger from our point of view than the Liverpool connection. We have seen loads of Liverpool/Celtic scarfs in evidence when we play Liverpool and the Irish tricolour. Liverpool fans tried to attack the Chelsea/Rangers stand outside Stamford Bridge 2 years ago. And as a previous posting has said they seem to welcome Celtic when they play them, which is a far cry to what happened at Stamford Bridge at the start of last season.

So in summary (and this was meant to be a short note!) I think that the less savoury aspects of the early relationship is behind us leaving a feeling of great friendship and camaraderie. I think those that have not experienced a Rangers/Chelsea game before then you will find that it will be one to be enjoyed as the special relationship between many of the older supporters has a chance to 'live it for real' again.

Here's looking forward to a quite special weekend, many beers with you and many hours of singalongs!

FRANK LAMPARD today hailed the Rangers fans as amazing' - and backed the Ibrox club to join Chelsea in this season's Champions League.

The England man revealed that Jose Mourinho's stars were gob-smacked by the reception they received from the home fans in Saturday's 2-0 friendly defeat from Walter Smith's side.

Lampard, and skipper John Terry, saluted the Ibrox crowd at time-up, and the midfielder claimed it was the best friendly he'd ever played in.

"The Rangers fans were awesome, all the lads were talking about it," said Lampard.

"The reception I got when I went to take corners during the game, and after when we were going off, was really nice.

"They certainly love their own team, but it was very special to get that welcome. It was amazing really, and a very good game to play in for us, certainly the best friendly we've had.

"With that kind of backing from their crowd, they will be hard to beat. And I expect to see Rangers in the Champions League."

Chelsea No.2 Steve Clarke admitted the Ibrox match was perfect for their preparations for the season ahead.

He said: "Obviously, we don't like losing. I think a bit of fatigue set in towards the end for us, and you could see Rangers were a couple of weeks ahead of us in terms of pre-season.

"But we don't take easy games. We could take matches and win 3-0, 4-0 or 5-0. But we played Feyenoord away last week, then Rangers at Ibrox which is a difficult venue, for a reason. We can take a lot from it. Rangers looked strong, they played well and look in good shape for their big game tomorrow night."

Here you go Rob

Blues Brothers - a potted history

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thanks, an interesting read and much along the lines of what i thought, although much more detailed.

heres some of the local boozers as mentioned. windows optional.

I must pop in to those places Bjd, for a Paddy with a Guinness chaser, the next time I'm in Glasgow. If I get drunk enough I might do my party piece.

heres some of the local boozers as mentioned. windows optional.

I must pop in to those places Bjd, for a Paddy with a Guinness chaser, the next time I'm in Glasgow. If I get drunk enough I might do my party piece.

In the Glaswegian Guinness is one of the four draught beers on offer so you'd get your beer

Remember one of those choices isn't beer it's cider

Lads, Reading some of your post from Saturday. That was a cracking day. Thanks for coming hope to see use again.

was dying yesterday

Just seen your pup pictured BJD - I have been in every one of them....once!

My mate Andy lives less than 5 minnutes walk from Ibrox stadium and we went on an impromptu pub crawl in the area once. Most probably a never to be repeated experience!

Just seen your pup pictured BJD - I have been in every one of them....once!

Well if there ever was a memorable to add..