Sir David Murray's Rangers mea culpa is 14 years too late but his other £10 gesture still makes me laugh today
I had a complex relationship with the former Ibrox chairman but something he did back in the day still makes me laugh
The Murray mea culpa is 14 years too late.
It's unable to undo the damage suffered by Rangers due to his decision to sell the club to a man of dubious character. But it's a terrific hook on which to hang on a new book, I'll give him that much.
I had a complex relationship with Sir David Murray.
In the good times, I was the one who got the quote from him about Celtic putting down a fiver and him putting down a tenner.
It was a line I splashed all over this newspaper three decades ago.
There were some awkward times with him too. One day, I picked up the sports desk telephone and, when he heard my voice, David said: 'Ah, my former friend.' End of conversation.
The best part of his Ibrox legacy might be that he had complete faith in Walter Smith and let him take charge of the team when Graeme Souness left for Liverpool.
It was the best thing Murray ever did for Rangers. The saddest part came on the day they took down the sign saying Murray Park at Rangers' training complex and started to call the place Auchenhowie instead.
It was a move that symbolised a name being removed from a club's history. But I still laugh at the day when I was sitting in his office in Edinburgh and he called on his secretary to bring me in a bottle of wine to take home as a present.
And he told her to make it a good one.
Of course, I Googled the name on the bottle later on to see just how expensive it was. Then I could decide whether I could drink it or put it up on eBay.
It cost ten pounds. Once again, Sir David had put down a tenner.
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