FOR fans there could be strength, and for Rangers there could be safety, in numbers.

The potential level of recruits is huge, the money that could be accumulated significant but it is one – the total fan organisations - that is the most important figure for supporters.

By the end of the week, the people will have spoken and there could be a new shape to the Light Blues fan base.

The formation of Club 1872 would bring several groups under a single umbrella, giving supporters a unified voice in matters at Ibrox and further afield.

It would see the resources, both in terms of personnel and finance, between groups such as the Rangers Supporters Trust and Rangers First, pooled and shared.

The blueprint is seen as a chance for fans to increase their Ibrox shareholding, have a role in shaping the future of their club and, if need be, have a chance to protect it once again.

John Brown took the acclaim from Gers supporters as a nine-in-a-row hero and was at the forefront of the boardroom battle as fans stepped up to play their part in forcing regime change 12 months ago.

And the Light Blue legend hopes the Rangers family are now on the brink of coming together for the good of their fellow fans, and their club.

Bomber told SportTimes: “I think it would be massive. Over recent years we have had different groups working for different interests and this would be good for the club.

“It is one voice. It took all the fans to get together to out the previous board and now they can use their voice again. It could be fantastic.

“If you have 50,000 fans buying into it, it is a chance for supporters to have a voice not just with the board and where the club is going but they could go to the SFA, the SPFL to raise any other issues that crop up.

“We have been dragged through the mire in recent years and people have shot us down.

“Now the fans can come together, have representatives that speak on the behalf of a huge number of supporters. That is a powerful tool and you can get things done.

“They could have a powerful voice in the boardroom with regards the direction of the club and working with the directors for the best interests of the club.

“So I hope it gets voted through and we have a strong board that can take things forward and have a voice when it comes to representing the supporters.”

In the information document released ahead of the vote this week, the core principles of Club 1872 are named as independence, shareholding, financial contribution, standing up for supporters and engagement.

A target of 50,000 members has already been set should it get the approval of fans before the polls close on Sunday evening, with cash collected then put towards increasing the supporter controlled shareholder block or investing in projects that benefit the club and the Ibrox crowd.

It is just over a year since Dave King, Paul Murray and John Gilligan swept to power and ended the lengthy boardroom battle that had dominated the Gers agenda for so long.

Progress has been made at all levels in the months since and the fans in the stand have trust and faith in the men in the director’s box once again.

But Brown knows the Light Blue legions can’t, and won’t, take anything for granted as they look to have a key voice on the inside from the outside at Ibrox.

He said: “Dave, Paul and John were voted in through the shareholders, but who is to say that they won’t be voted out in the future?

“It could be a completely different board a few years down the line so it is important the fans make their voice heard and are in a position to have an impact.

“It is just over a year since Dave, Paul and John came in and the fans played their part in that by saying ‘enough is enough, we are not putting up with it anymore’ and we managed to get change.

“There were different groups at that time but they made it difficult for the directors and made their views heard.

“If you have an independent fans group speaking as one then they will have to listen because that is a powerful voice.

“What you can’t have is a fans group that is too close to the board. You can’t have that. You have the football board and you have the fan board.

“They have to look at the overall picture and are not influenced by any directors now or in the future.

“It has got to be totally independent from the present board and any future board. You can’t have allegiances there.

“If there are debates about things, you are leaving yourself wide open if there are any tie-ins. You have to be independent from the club.

“The good thing is that we have board members who are all Rangers men and are looking at the best interests of the club.”

There are few supports who have been through as much as Rangers fans have in recent years, few who have lived through the highs and the lows and had their focused fixed on matters off the park as much as on it.

The move towards a unified supporter structure has been a long time coming but not always been a smooth road to travel.

There are some who have, for a range of reasons, their reservations about the blueprint and are keen for the status quo to remain.

But Brown hopes the potential benefits for Rangers will override any personal points of view as fans continue to cast their votes in the coming days.

Brown said: “Everyone has got to get over any grievances with people from the past and look at the way forward for Rangers.

“We had grievances with team-mates when we were players but when you stepped over the line you came together.

“You sort out your differences later. It was all focused on doing what we needed to do for Rangers.

“If all the groups come together and it is for the benefit of the club going forward then that can only be a good thing. When you look at where we have been in recent years, we are in a far better place at this moment in time.

“The fans can help the board. If they are united then that can only be good for the club.”