CALUM Gallagher grew up a Celtic supporter but playing for Rangers gave him the biggest high he’s ever experienced in football.
The 27-year-old, now plying his trade with Airdrie, spent five years at Ibrox and played a small part in the club’s journey from the Third Division to 55.
He may have only pulled on the light blue jersey a handful of times but it’s a handful of times more than many could ever dream of and Gallagher says he was fortunate to have been afforded the opportunity to turn out for the champions.
He said: “I only have praise for the club for giving me a real strong apprenticeship.
“I’ve always earned money playing football so it’s certainly a great position they put me in and I’ve got a lot of time for everyone I worked with and I don’t have any negative words to say about anyone.”
Despite coming from a Celtic-supporting family and supporting the club himself, Gallagher had no hesitation in signing for the team from the blue half of the city.
He said: “I joined Rangers when I was 16. I got picked up from a Scottish Cup game with my school and I did my first year part-time before getting full-time offers.
“I was told by Jim Sinclair who was in charge of the youth at the time that I wasn’t going to get a deal at the end of the season and because of that, I had feelers out everywhere. I think I actually went and trained with Celtic and they were interested in me. This was just before the Glasgow Cup final we were due to play.
“I started as a sub in the cup final, came on and did really well. Then at the end of the game Jim Sinclair said to me, ‘Listen, I’ve made a mistake, we’d like to offer you a deal.’
“Because I felt so comfortable and I got on with everybody, it was an easy decision to pick Rangers and to stay.
“It’s a massive club and it’s the best education you can get in the country so I was just delighted as was everyone in my family as well.
“It was always a case of uncles, my brother and my dad getting a teasing every now and again but it was all good-natured and fun but they couldn’t have been happier and neither could I.
“I found myself getting so swept away with it but now being removed from the Old Firm, I’m not exactly neutral but when I watch the games I can actually watch the football and I don’t watch it through tinted glass.
“I’ve still got a real soft spot for Rangers. They gave me my football education so I really look forward to Old Firm games because I can just enjoy the game.
“Whoever is playing best on the day it’s quite easy to say, ‘Well yeah, they deserved it,’ so it’s ended up quite a nice balance that I’ve got.”
Gallagher would feature in numerous Old Firm derbies as he progressed through the youth ranks and he admits he was swept up in the ferocity of the fixture.
He said: “Growing up a Celtic fan, it was interesting seeing the other side, probably most notably for me, it was amazing how quickly you get caught up in the rivalry.
“I remember playing in Old Firm games and absolutely hating the youth teams of Celtic. You just get caught up in them easily.
“The week before you’d be training towards it, there’d be a real buzz about the place, training always seemed to get amped up, it was more heightened, there was more focus.
“There was more direction in terms of how we were looking to play. The energy and the excitement can carry over and on the day you see the Celtic boys arrive and your mind wanders.
“You feel it, you feel the heat. You just impose ideas on these guys in different coloured jerseys, ‘Ah, look at them!’ and they’re probably thinking the exact same thing.
“There’s probably half a dozen in their changing room who are Rangers fans who would probably say the same thing in our direction.
“I went to a Catholic school growing up and I remember one shout from a Celtic boy calling me a 'Proddy Bastard!’ As a man now, it is quite funny to look back at how overwhelming the rivalry can be. It’s really quite gripping and even from someone who grew up a Celtic fan, I surprised myself.
"Even my dad would say the same thing. He would find himself arguing with Celtic fans at the games so it’s funny to look back on it now, but it certainly wasn’t at the time.”
While Gallagher was impressing on the pitch at youth level, the club was struggling off it. The Light Blues' demotion to the Third Division in the summer of 2012 sent shockwaves throughout the world.
For a 17-year-old Gallagher and several other youngsters, it presented an opportunity to play first-team football that would not have been previously possible.
However he would have to wait almost two years before making the breakthrough, something he admits was a frustration.
He said: “I think we all thought we’d get more game time.
“Even now when I’m speaking with any of the boys, I think maybe most football minded people might agree, especially with how well the Rangers youth team are doing in the Lowland League just now, I think if we had an opportunity we would’ve probably won the Third Division.
“We might’ve needed a hand further down the line but the talent at that level was class.
“You had Lewis MacLeod and Barrie McKay who have gone on and played down in England. I think there was an opportunity for three or four more boys to gain the same experience and potentially have the same highs they did.
“Certainly that was the thinking from all of the youth players but I don’t know if it was wishful thinking, realistic or if it was something else.”
When Gallagher eventually made his debut on the 15th March 2014 it was the stuff of dreams. He would not only make his Ibrox bow in a 2-0 win over Dunfermline but he’d cap off his display with a goal.
He recalled: “That was one of, if not the best feeling I’ve had in football.
“It was quite a surprise. I think I’d been on the bench a couple of times and it was kind of coming, I was doing really well at youth level but I didn’t expect it on the day.
“I remember being sent out for the warm-up and normally you go out three at a time but when you individually get asked to go out you know the plan is for you to go on. I remember running down the touchline to go down to warm up at the byline and my legs just shaking, I felt like I was going to fall over, it was terrifying.
“Dunfermline, at the time were second, so in my mind, it was quite a big game. I remember going down, almost not wanting to go on because I was so nervous. Actually getting on and running onto the pitch? I could’ve thrown up.
“My first touch was from a Dunfermline corner on the edge of the box. The ball was up in the air and I’d taken it on the turn. I tried to drive out and ran out to the touchline and the ball ran out of play but I remember my first touch being good and thinking, 'I’ll be fine.'
“Scoring on your debut, especially your first ever professional game for your club is pretty special.
“I’ve watched it on YouTube a few times since, probably most of the views are mine! It was brilliant! When I do watch it back I’ve got Robbie Crawford and Kyle Hutton, who I’m still pretty close with, on the pitch with me. Having them there was really special as well.
“I couldn’t have been more excited, I remember driving home in the car and not having the music on, grinning from ear to ear and screaming in the car because I was so excited about it and at that point your mind races.
“I remember thinking, ‘That’s me a footballer now, next thing I’ll be down in England before I know it.’ You do get carried away, it’s something I’m really proud of and it’s a really good memory that I hold close to my heart.”
From the highs of a goalscoring debut, Gallagher was brought crashing down to earth a few weeks later as Rangers were humbled by Raith Rovers in the Ramsdens Cup final at Easter Road.
Shortly after coming on as a substitute, John Baird netted the winner. Gallagher admits it was a sobering afternoon: “As a learning experience it was huge.
“There’s a lot more lows than highs in football just because of the pressure you put on yourself. There are games you’re expected to win that don’t feel so much of a high as the low of a game you lose that you’re expected to win. That was a bit of a realisation that it’s hard work and doesn’t always go the way it should go.
“If I’m being critical, I remember Raith Rovers being very competitive on the day, we had a lot of the ball but I don’t think we had any real clear cut chances, we couldn’t even particularly begrudge them the win.
“Going on in that sort of pressured environment was tough. I remember I was one of the ones chasing back into the box when John Baird scored and just being heartbroken.
“The expectation, the fans, the fact it was still League One and most weeks you had 40-50,000 fans just shows you the weight of expectation and passion for the club so it was painful to let anyone down.”
The disappointment that spring afternoon in Leith was to pale into insignificance compared to what was about to follow.
Season 2014-15 was a disaster in every sense of the word. Ally McCoist’s tenure as Rangers boss would be brought to an end and Gallagher says it hit him hard.
He said: “I was disappointed to see him go, definitely. He was shielding a lot of the blame from us. Obviously, he lost his job from what was going on equally on the park as well as off the park so I think we were all bitterly disappointed because he was a guy you really didn’t want to let down.
“I think you could see towards the end, it was certainly taking a toll on him and it was difficult because of how well-liked he was. Ally was brilliant with me, I couldn’t speak highly enough of him as a person and as a manager.
“I’ve seen a lot of him doing commentary of late and I know how well received he is online and that’s no surprise to anyone that’s worked with him. He really isn’t different, his enthusiasm, his sense of humour and his knowledge of the game is some of the best that I’ve ever seen and he was a joy to work with on a daily basis.
“Football can be a real cutthroat industry and we were all disappointed but some sort of action had to be taken at the time.”
It’s a season also remembered for the infamous punch up at the end of the Playoff final with Motherwell at Fir Park with Bilel Mohsni playing a starring role in the fracas.
Despite the Tunisian losing his head, Gallagher says he was a much-loved figure in the dressing room.
He said: “Billy was genuinely the nicest guy ever but it can’t be denied, Billy was mental!
“He was a really sweet guy, his fuse wasn’t that short but once it went, it went.
“He was ultra, ultra-competitive but he was really good with the young ones. I had a really good relationship with him. He was always happy to talk and happy to stay out and kick a ball with you, just a really nice guy.
“Obviously I think his time is somewhat marred by the Motherwell Playoff Final but as a guy and a person, I hold him in high regard.”
Gallagher’s involvement at Ibrox that season was non-existent, he would enjoy a fruitful spell on loan at Cowdenbeath before an injury wrecked his chances of an Ibrox recall.
He recalls: “I was hoping the season I made my debut to have made more of an impact.
“I started the next couple of games in the Scottish Cup and then away to Brechin before I reverted back to the bench and made a handful of sub appearances.
“I was kind of stuck between the first team and the youth team and I wasn’t entirely sure where I fit.
“So I had to go an establish myself as a first-team player. When I went to Cowdenbeath, they were in the Championship at the time, I scored five in 10 and had a really good loan there. I really enjoyed it.
“I was working under Jimmy Nicholl who Ally has a really good relationship with. He was really easy to work under and another person I think really highly of. It’s probably where I played some of the best football of my career.
“I was under the impression from what I heard from the staff at Rangers and my agent that I was being recalled because I think at the time things weren’t going great and there were injuries. David Templeton had been injured, Lewis MacLeod might’ve been as well so I think they were needing bodies in and I was flying at the time at Cowdenbeath.
“So I was getting recalled and in my last game for them and I got a high ankle sprain which took me 10 to 12 weeks to recover from so it was just really bad timing. I had missed my opportunity to come in and grab a place.
“I think if I came back and I hadn’t been injured I probably would’ve been at Rangers longer. That’s a regret for me but it’s one of those things, it’s the nature of the beast for football, unfortunately.”
When Gallagher did return, Rangers had new owners and a new manager at the helm in Mark Warburton. Unfortunately for the forward, it would spell the end of his time in Govan but he harbours no hard feelings.
He said: “When Warburton came in I had another 12 months left on my contract and I did pre-season with him.
“I worked with other managers throughout my career who haven’t taken to me or I would not be as positive about but I have a lot of time with how Mark had handled that situation.
“All you can really ask for is for people to be upfront and honest and we had a chat and he basically said I wasn’t in his plans that season. It was up to me if I wanted to stick about and fight for it but there was a big squad, he was planning on bringing players in and he said, ‘I think it would be best if you found a loan or a move’ so that’s how the move to St Mirren came about.
“I was quite upset at the time. Certainly for me, you don’t know anything different, I had always been a Rangers player. A lot of my self-esteem was wrapped up in being a Rangers player so it was certainly a bit of a hit and a bit of an adjustment but at the same time I think all the staff and Mark at the time had got it right.
“I had to leave, I look back and see the success that the likes of Ryan Hardie have had. Sometimes I think if I hung about, would I have gotten a bit more of an opportunity but I don’t know is the answer. You see how well Ryan’s doing down in Plymouth now so it’s tough to argue against. I might’ve simply played second fiddle to him but I don’t really look back with any regrets.”
Just three days after leaving, Gallagher was back at Ibrox as an opposition player in the Championship opener.
Despite being on the receiving end of a 3-1 defeat, it’s a game he looks back at fondly.
He said: “It was strange going to the different dressing room.
“The thing that stands out to me most about that game was coming on and the Rangers fans giving me a wee clap as well and that meant an awful lot to me.
“In my mind, I was approaching the game to go and prove a point but it didn’t come from a place of I’ll show them, I almost wanted to show the staff, who had given me an opportunity to learn and to grow, that this is what you have done for me and this is the calibre that I’m at.
“I would’ve liked to have grabbed a goal to put my own mind at ease but it came from a good place, it wasn’t a get back at someone type way.”
He may not have scored that summer’s evening, but he would do in the final game of the campaign as the Buddies battled to a 2-2 draw in Paisley.
Despite netting, he admitted he was never going to celebrate against his former club: “I didn’t celebrate, I was right in front of the away fans so I just put my hand up and I got a couple of cuddles from my teammates.
“But that was good for my own mental state at that point, almost to get the monkey off my back. It was a big moment for me to mentally distance myself from feeling like a Rangers player.
“The second time we played Rangers at Ibrox, I think it was February time. That team was absolutely flying. I started the game on the right wing and it was Lee Wallace and Barrie McKay on the left. I remember hitting cramp in my calves and I looked up at the clock and there were 18 minutes gone, I was thinking, ‘Oh my god, this is going to be the longest day of my life!’
“The intensity and the style they were playing with at the time was just fabulous. That year, when they were in the Championship, was probably the best team I played against at that point, it was rock and roll football.”
Gallagher still keeps a close eye on events at Ibrox and has been impressed with the direction the club is going in.
He said: “Last year they were terrific. The style Steven Gerrard had them playing, they were so fit and aggressive, the high press at times was impossible to play out from. He forced teams to try and hit them on the counter but at that point, they were so exhausted they couldn’t get up the pitch so it was a really commanding season for them.
“This season, it’s not been the same heights but they’re still top of the league. The calibre of the squad that they’ve got is terrific and it’s nice to see an academy graduate in Nathan Patterson getting that sort of move and helping the club out. I think it only speaks to the quality of the academy and the staff and coaches they’ve got working in there.”
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