JOHN GREIG has not joined the board of the Rangers Youth Development Company to enjoy the benefits of a title.

He is not there just as a figurehead, adding to the feelgood factor that is clearly building around Ibrox in the wake of a promising start to the season.

If John Greig is playing darts or bowls or his beloved golf, he plays to win. He wants to do his best at everything and there is no way on this earth that he has taken this position lightly. He does not need this kind of title to feel part of the heart of Rangers.

This is something that he wants to do and he will do it to the best of his ability. He has always had an interest in the youth set-up at Murray Park and he has been brought back into the fold because he is the right man for that job.

His appointment is another hugely positive development in the wake of him returning to matches this season after spending a couple of years away, unhappy at what was unfolding within his club. And I use the phrase “his club” advisedly.

He has been there longer than anyone else associated with it. It is sometimes easy to think that he was probably the first man in the door when it all kicked off at Rangers in 1872.

Whenever there is a match on at Ibrox these days, he is the first person that the visiting directors go over to see.

He is such a great ambassador for the club and such a well-kent face within the footballing fraternity that he never stands alone in The Blue Room on match day, I can tell you. There is always a queue of people waiting to talk to him.

I think he definitely found it lonely on a Saturday or a Sunday, whenever Rangers were playing, when he was in his self-imposed exile from Ibrox.

I talk to him at every home game and it is fantastic to see him back at the matches. It is just hard getting near him at times. He does so much talking to people that he must be going home with laryngitis.

He still has his sense of fun, sense of humour and the gift of the gab. It is just wonderful to see him with a smile on his face again, rather like a large number of Rangers supporters.

What happened at the club hit him hard. He suffered more than most. He had been in the club about half-a-century and just felt so unhappy with everything he had witnessed under the Craig Whyte regime that he had no option other than to resign from his role as a director.

He could see what was developing behind the scenes and just didn’t want to be part of that. He was only a small part of the board, though, and really could not do anything about what was unfolding.

His departure, though, should have been a warning sign for every Rangers sympathiser. When John Greig walks away from Rangers, you know that something is badly wrong.

Seeing him back at the games tells you they are back on the right path and that they have the right people in charge.

He would not have agreed to return had he felt any doubts about the true intentions of those who are now in the boardroom and planning the future direction of the business.

Staff and supporters are thrilled to see him around Ibrox and I don’t think there is any doubt that a real sense of positivity exists throughout the club again.

You have witnessed that through some of the recent “Sell-Out Sunday” matches. Rangers fans are happy with the team and that filters throughout the entire club and staff.

John’s return adds to that and his determination to succeed in his new role will be as strong as ever.

He knows the club inside out from his various spells as a player, manager and director and wants to use that experience to help out. This is a real chance for him to put his stamp on the youth set-up of the club and I think he knows everyone on the board of the Rangers Youth Development Company.

They will benefit greatly from everything he will bring to the table. Anything that John Greig does, he wants to be the very best at. Rangers supporters should be delighted to see him back within the embrace of his footballing family.

Glasgow Times:

Zelalem could run the show for Rangers

GEDION ZELALEM made a hugely impressive debut in the 5-0 League Cup win over Airdrie and, for me, there are real shades of Graeme Souness about him.

He is only 18 years of age. If he makes the kind of progress that I expect, he has every chance of being as good a player as the former Rangers and Scotland midfielder.

When Zelalem initially agreed his season-long loan deal from Arsenal, I was directed to some footage of him on YouTube and the range of passing he possesses is just magnificent. The boy is lightning fast as well and can play 20-yard and 40-yard defence-splitting passes.

His ball to Martyn Waghorn for Rangers’ third goal at the Excelsior Stadium was proof of that.

Zelalem looks like he has the potential to run a game the way Souness did. Souness was a master at dictating the pace of a match.

If you wanted to slow a match down, take the sting out of it, all you did was give it to him and he would make sure you kept possession in midfield.

He had the ability to dictate play and quicken things when required.

He was a leader on the field and pulled the strings. I think Zelalem can do that as well. He never stands still. When he plays a pass, he is automatically on the move to try to get it back again.

He is not here to sit on the bench, though. He is here to play every week and I am sure that he will develop a certain hardness in his game by performing in Scotland.

Zelalem will take a few kicks and will face some hefty challenges. I am sure Arsenal are keen to see just how he handles that.

I think he can be a big player for the Gunners in a few seasons’ time. For now, I think he could be a dream acquisition for Rangers.

Glasgow Times:

Home draw with St Johnstone should suit Rangers boss Warburton

MARK WARBURTON will be happy with a home draw against St Johnstone in the third round of the League Cup.

It was always going to be a Premiership outfit thanks to the seeding system and I think the Perth side are perfect for them. There is no question in my mind that Rangers are good enough to beat them and I would expect them to be favourites on the night.

Let’s not forget Rangers played them in the same tournament last season and absolutely battered them at Ibrox, winning 1-0 thanks to a late goal from Lewis Macleod. Nicky Clark stated during the week that he feels the team has made progress since then and I would go along with that.

They are not at Celtic’s door quite yet. To be truthful, they are still quite some way away from that.

They would give Celtic a better game than they did in the semi-finals of the League Cup last season and would certainly create chances, but it has to be said that Ronny Deila’s side never got out of second gear in winning 2-0 at Hampden Park.

With the team Rangers have at the moment, I do not think there is any doubt that they would cope should they be thrown into the Ladbrokes Premiership. I am not saying they would challenge for the title, but they would be more than a match for most teams.

St Johnstone provide a perfect opportunity for Warburton to measure where his squad really stands at this moment in time.

Your question for Derek Johnstone

JOHN MARSHALL from Wishaw asked: “Were you shocked to see Mark Warburton get rid of Darren McGregor?”

DJ replies: “I really was surprised because I think Darren was magnificent last season.

“One thing you got from him was 100 per cent effort every week. He played right-back, centre-back and didn’t moan about a thing. Warburton, though, wants a certain type in that position and someone prepared to take the ball from the keeper and pass it well.

“Darren has joined a good club in Hibernian, his first love, and I am sure he will do a very good job for them.”