Dundee United’s John Rankin looking to put one over former team-mate Ben Williams

JOHN Rankin has shared many a laugh with his former Manchester United youth team-mate Ben Williams but in the wind-up stakes the Dundee United man hopes he will be the one with a smile on his face when the final whistle sounds this afternoon.

A positive recommendation from the Tannadice midfielder helped his former club Hibs lure their new goalkeeper Williams in the summer but while the pair are looking forward to renewing acquaintances, Rankin would still love to spoil his pal’s competitive debut.

“I played with Ben in the youth team. That’s a long time ago now, mind you. About 14 years ago,” he recalled. “He’s great company. I’ve a lot of good memories. We’ve had a good laugh together. We went to Marbella together but I’m teetotal, though, so it was a good laugh waking up in the morning with me being able to tell him: ‘Ben, do you know you did this last night?’ It was enjoyable and I’m looking forward to seeing him. I’ve kind of calmed down since I came here but I’ll definitely be winding Ben up a bit ahead of the game.”