All the style and passion which has been so conspicuous by its absence throughout this troubled season was there in abundance at the weekend. Having lately detected a distinct arrogance about Hibs where games against Rangers have been concerned, it was good to see this lot from Leith firmly put in their place with a top rate performance, the likes of which Ibrox hasn't seen since the Jambos were swept aside in August. Why oh why haven't we seen football of this calibre more often?
With Dado getting the opener after 15 minutes, the early signs were good and it was pleasing to see our team retain the initiative. Having been troubled by injury, Libor Sionko again looked like the player he promised to be back in the early days of the season and his determination to get into position for Charlie Adam's low cross was rewarded with the second goal but, in a perverse sort of way, I then waited on our guys taking their foot of the gas and letting Hibs off the hook.
Charlie's inch-perfect chip picked out Barry's penetrating run and the skipper's delightful header put an end to my ‘bah humbug' line and I wondered if Hibs were going to be the team to get the right bleaching I maintain somebody is due to suffer from Rangers. But possibly with one eye on Thursday night, and the other on next Sunday, the second half was a bit more leisurely and our visitors got off with a semi-respectable doing, thanks mainly to Filip Sebo's determination to blast every goalscoring opportunity down the goalkeeper's throat.
I have to wonder what hallucinogenic substances Ivan Sproule was on. As a guy who is supposed to be one of us, what was he doing picking a fight with Baz after our first goal and, equally significantly, why did Captain Fantastic get involved in a debate which allowed the ref to show two yellow cards when one would have sufficed? Of course, Sproule didn't heed the warning and got himself an early walk up the tunnel with a silly show of petulance in the second half.
That sort of behaviour won't get him the move to Ibrox I'm told he yearns for, nor did Scott Brown's performance do anything to have me urging PLG to move in for him in January. Mind you, he sure knows how to throw a water bottle about so he might fit in on a bad night at the Grapes, the District or Annie Miller's. And if Kevin Thomson is more inclined to move to the dark side of town than to our place, his contribution did enough to convince me they are welcome to him.
It was heart-warming to go about at the weekend pleased with the team's performance. For so long, the after-match routine has been one of regrets and recriminations so Saturday's soiree continued into Sunday morning. Indeed, after doing in a massive cairry-oot at my place, it was a rollover feelgood factor which took me back to one of Kilwinning's finer wine bars after a bit of a long lie-in.
"How did Ra Sellick get on?" I asked and I certainly got a classic reply.
"The Lurgan Bigot knocked oot O'Dea and beat the Plastic Paddy on points." Brilliant!
I can't remember the last time I looked forward to Scotsport so much, only for me to kick myself for not knowing better. They skipped over the Gers game which, with the camera work being lousy, was to be expected but I couldn't believe it when they waxed lyrical about the runaway league leaders narrow win over the team anchored at the foot of the table. Then just to rub it in the decided the great achievement merited a special interview with the Ra Sellik skipper.
Then again, when you look at the line-up in the studio nobody should be surprised with the programme's green tinge. A Hibby and two ex-Septic players are permanent fixtures on the show and, when they decide to give their anti-Rangers journos the night off, they are able to turn to the likes of Owen Coyle to maintain the show's ethos. Christ, I just about choked when I heard him making a case for the real giants of European football shaking in their shows at the possibility of a trip to Breezeblock Boulevard on Champions League business.
For reasons best known to themselves, UEFA split the final round of Champions League and UEFA Cup games into different weeks, allowing FC Semtex to enjoy a free week in the countdown to Sunday's game at Ibrox while the Gers have to face Partizan Belgrade. With our place in the next round secure, I just hope Rangers ain't inclined to take it easy on Thursday.
It is imperative that we finish on top of our group and, as Partizan are stuck at the bottom and we have the benefit of a passionate big crowd, it should not be too much to ask. Winning the group means we will face one of the third place finishers in the next round and, while I know there are still a few good sides lurking around there, this has to be more desirable than being pitched in against one of the Champions League drop-outs. Building on Saturday's excellent show against Hibs would lift every member of the Rangers family and set us up for the big one on Sunday.
Friday's draws will take some of the heat out of the build-up to the Old Firm game but, once Sunday dawns, it will be business as usual, although each and every Ranger must hope for a dramatic change in our team's fortunes. It is shocking that we have now gone five games without a goal against Them and I'm inclined to think it will all hinge on who scores first at the weekend. Only once this season (at Love Street in September) have Rangers overcome the loss of the opening goal to go on to win. Confidence will have been lifted by the win over Hibs and, hopefully, the Partizan game will see us build on this but our self-belief is so fragile that, if things were to go against us in the early stages, I can see the players fearing that it has all gone wrong again.
This is where top men like Baz and Dado have to take the initiative, give their team-mates a shake and get the message across that those in the green and grey hoops are nothing special. Their massive lead at the top of the table is down to our shortcomings as much as it is to their strengths. I'm not burying my head in the sand here. The loss of some sloppy goals, a couple of rotten breaks and a bit more ruthlessness up front would transform the league table and we have to show enough over the second half of the season to generate a feelgood factor which will enable us to look at the big picture more positively.
We seem to have been looking for turning points since September, just as we did throughout last season, and now would be a great time to change the outlook. The SPL title may be beyond us but we must keep plugging away. If we can't overhaul FC Semtex's lead, we must eat into it as much as possible to give ourselves something to build on and send out a message that, on the field at least, this past 18 months has been no more than a bit of a blip.
I'm not altogether convinced that this is the way it is. PLG has been denied the necessary resources to give our team a much-needed injection of style and substance and, unless there is a dramatic rethink at the head of the house, we will struggle to regain the initiative. But I still think we are perfectly capable of making this a week to remember and maybe even convincing the Minted One that better days can lie ahead if he would only act like the welfare of Rangers really matters to him, instead of our club being just one of his vast and varied business interests.
I live more in hope than genuine expectation.
LITTLE BOY BLUE