WINNING wasn’t just a habit for Ian Ferguson, it was a state of mind and a way of life. He has the silverware to prove it as well.

Only a select band of players in Rangers’ illustrious history have ever completed the domestic clean sweep. Ferguson almost did it twice in two seasons.

The 1992/93 campaign will go down in Ibrox folklore but Rangers were just 90 minutes away from matching those extraordinary achievements the following term.

The League Cup was clinched with a 2-1 win over Aberdeen before Walter Smith’s side dug deep to hold off the Dons and make it six successive Premier Division crowns.

On the final day, only Dundee United stood in the Gers’ way. There would be no back-to-back Trebles, though, as a Craig Brewster goal denied them Scottish Cup glory.

There was undoubted disappointment amongst the Light Blues squad, but the main aim had been achieved as Rangers moved a step closer to nine-in-a-row.

“It was on the cards after doing the Treble the previous season and then winning the League Cup,” Ferguson told SportTimes.

“That season just rolled on, we had a really strong squad and there was a belief there right from the word go that we could complete the Treble again.

“It was a massive, massive ask and unfortunately we just fell at the last hurdle but we gave it a good go.

“Each player wanted to win and that was bred into us by Graeme Souness and Walter Smith.

“When I first joined, I knew what it was about. Rangers couldn’t lose two or three games-in-a-row, because if you did then you were in a crisis. The manager maybe even felt his job would be at risk as well.

“It was not through luck what we did. Graeme and Walter had the best players but they built a really strong squad with the right mentality.

“It would have been great to make history but unfortunately it wasn’t to be.”

There are few seasons throughout the legendary run that culminated in 1997 that were as hard fought as that 1993/94 campaign.

Smith’s squad was ravaged by injury – no fewer than 11 players required surgery – and the Gers boss was rarely ever able to field his strongest line-up. In the end, it was still good enough.

It was also the season that saw Duncan Ferguson earn a move from Ibrox to Barlinnie after his infamous confrontation with John McStay of Raith Rovers.

The Old Firm win at Parkhead on New Year’s Day was a significant moment and a run of 17 games without defeat ensured Rangers hauled themselves over the winning line. For Ferguson, it was never in doubt.

“Any game against Celtic, particularly when I was there, was always a special occasion and hugely important,” he said.

“If you beat your closest rivals it breeds confidence within the team and the club, which is crucial. There was a strong culture there of belief and togetherness.

“The atmosphere was great and every player could handle the pressure. I was there a long time and the guys that came in knew what was expected of them in no uncertain terms as soon as they came into the dressing room.

“No matter who played or what player came in, I always felt there was a strong team on the park. It was like for like and everyone played their part.

“I never feared at any point that we wouldn’t get the title because we were really strong and we all did what needed to be done.”

Despite winning just half of their 44 Premier Division games, Rangers were able to hold off the challenge of Aberdeen to continue their streak of title wins. So, too, did Ferguson as he collected the sixth league medal of his Ibrox career. He would move into double figures, but there was no 10-in-a-row for the midfielder or his boyhood heroes. Every moment and every medal was cherished, though.

Ferguson said. “I was a very fortunate boy who lived the dream and got the opportunity to be a Rangers player. I took every day as my last, and I mean that. I never took it for granted.

“I went in every day hoping that I could be there the next day and it worked out that I was there for a very long time.

“I was a boy from the East End of Glasgow that won trophies and appeared in cup finals at one of the best periods in Rangers’ history.

“It was amazing to be involved in and it meant everything to me. I was a fan on the terraces and then I got the opportunity to play. It is every fan’s dream to play for the club and I am very proud of it.”

For all the glory days that Rangers enjoyed during their run to nine-in-a-row, success on the continent somehow evaded them.

Just months after coming within touching distance of a place in the Champions League final, Smith’s side fell at the first hurdle against Levski Sofia.

For a group of players with as much quality, there is no doubt Rangers underachieved in European action but their efforts on home soil will forever be remembered.

Ferguson said: “Some of the European campaigns were disappointing and with the squad that we had we could have done a lot better. For whatever reason, it didn’t happen.

“The Sofia one was the night the boy hit a screamer into the top corner. We were all shouting ‘hit it, hit it’ and he did!

“Some of the campaigns were great but some, like that one, were obviously disappointing.Everyone there will tell you that we wanted to do well in Europe but it never materialised.

“The previous season was the best one we had and we were a goal away from a European final. That was as good as it got unfortunately.”