Novelty factor of facing foreigners helped McMillan reach prime on big stage

Published on Sunday 11 May 2008 22:33

RANGERS' appearance in a first European final owed much to a little inside-forward known to all and sundry as the Wee Prime Minister.

Ian McMillan, who shared his surname with Harold, the head of the Tory government of the time, fulfilled a boyhood dream when he pulled on the distinctive jersey of Airdrie, his hometown team, but it was during his time with Rangers that his ambitions broadened.

The inside-forward's two spells as a player with Airdrie bookended his six-year stay at Rangers, where he savoured the chance to take on the finest players in Europe. McMillan was reckoned to save his best for the European arena, and season 1960-61, when he helped the Ibrox side reach the final of the Cup Winners' Cup against Fiorentina, proved no different.

Now 77, he admits there was something special about the novelty of taking on continental opposition. But he does regret a certain naivety which saw Rangers remain always committed to attack, and also laments the penalty miss in the first leg of the final by Eric Caldow which might otherwise have changed the course of events. Rangers lost 2-0 at Ibrox and saving the tie proved an impossible task in Italy, where the Scots lost 2-1.

"I think we were a bit unlucky in that we dominated the play for most of the first game and they relied on breakaways," McMillan recalled yesterday. "It was the reverse of the present time, with Rangers now successfully using this tactic. Fiorentina relied on their typically strong Italian defence to hold out, especially when they were away from home."

McMillan had won the fateful penalty himself, having been taken down by Alberto Orzan. Caldow's composure was not helped by the furious protest that followed from the outraged Italians. One Italian member of the backroom staff even went onto the pitch to complain, although Rangers soon had reason to claim they, too, were the victims of injustice.

"In those days the 'keeper was not allowed to move, but he was practically out on the penalty spot by the time Eric hit the ball," said McMillan. "We felt a wee bit aggrieved. And as we pushed forward we were obviously leaving some space at the back, and they took advantage and scored twice. It made life very difficult."

Rangers were further disadvantaged by having to play the second-leg in Italy in late May. Even though the match kicked off in the evening the conditions, according to McMillan, were problematic. "If you can imagine Florence, it is in a bowl with hills all around and it was like an oven we were playing in," he recalled. "If we had played the first leg away and the second at home I think it might have made a difference. We were always up against it."

Fiorentina were a fine side, and had already reached the final of the European Cup in 1957, where they were beaten by Real Madrid. After defeating Rangers in 1961 they again progressed to the final of the Cup Winners' Cup the following season, but lost out to Atletico Madrid. There was no disgrace in Rangers being second-best to them.

"I don't think we realised we had done so well," reflected McMillan. "Even the newspapers didn't hype it up like they do now. There wasn't much razzmatazz. It's only afterwards, when you have retired and have time to go through your scrapbooks, that you can see these things, and you realise as a club it had been quite an achievement getting there. It's just a pity there are four of the side away now."

Indeed, of the 12 players who featured in the two legs against Fiorentina, Jim Baxter, Bobby Shearer, Bobby Hume and Alex Scott have all since passed away. The surviving members of the team were invited back to Ibrox last month, when Rangers welcomed back Fiorentina in the first leg of their Uefa Cup semi-final. It offered McMillan the chance to reminisce with his old friends about the time they began putting Rangers on the map in Europe.

"It was a novelty for me to play against top teams in Europe and I found it most enjoyable," he said. "The quality of player you played against was very high... The travelling was great also. The furthest I got with Airdrie was touring up north, so to get away to all these cities was a tremendous blessing. I certainly remember Florence, its narrow streets and museums. It was all most enjoyable."