Derek Johnstone: Lisbon Lions are rightly lauded, but don't forget Rangers' own heroes of '67

What an achievement. The coverage, particularly in the Evening Times I might add, has been first rate.

It has brought back memories of a golden era not only for Celtic, but for Scottish football as a whole and in particular, for Glasgow.

But while that Celtic team are rightly lauded and fondly remembered for their unsurpassed achievement in Scottish football terms, the Rangers team of that same year who reached the final of the European-Cup Winners’ Cup should not be forgotten either.

Can you imagine if both of the Glasgow giants were to get to a major European final in the same year now? It is absolutely unthinkable, more’s the pity.

That Rangers side who got to the final in Nuremburg only to lose so narrowly in extra time to a great Bayern Munich team featuring the legendary Franz Beckenbauer and Gerd Muller was one of the best Scottish outfits ever in my opinion.

Just look at the names on the teamsheet, with the likes of Sandy Jardine, John Greig and Willie Henderson on there to name but a few. Legends to a man, and all Scottish boys throughout the team too, with the exception of Kai Johansen.

People may point to the fact that nowadays, you have to play a lot more games to get to the final than you had to back then, but don’t forget that Rangers put out the holders Borussia Dortmund along the way before running those other famous German giants so close. Can you imagine the current Rangers team competing with those sorts of names?

As a young man growing up in a Dundee United supporting family, their achievement passed me by a little I suppose until the build up to the 1972 semi-final against the same opposition.

Hearing the stories of how Rangers got all the way to the final certainly spurred us on to get revenge, and as I was just a teenager myself, it was particularly inspirational for me to hear tales of these great players.

Of course, I was now playing alongside a fair few of them, as a good number of those heroes of ’67 were still around the club at the time and still playing magnificent football.

They reminded the rest of us in no uncertain terms just how painful it was to lose in a final of such magnitude.

They also told us how they never wanted to experience that kind of punch in the gut ever again, when they had worked so hard all season to achieve something, only for it to be snatched from their grasp in such cruel circumstances.

But without that experience, who knows if the Barcelona Bears would ever have achieved what they did? It certainly gave us impetus going into the final too when we were reading all the references to the 1967 final in the papers, and how satisfying it was to be able to finally lift that trophy for the club.

In those days, competing in the latter stages of European competitions wasn’t only expected of you, it was simply the norm for the top Scottish sides.

Don’t forget, in the same year that Celtic were triumphing in Lisbon and Rangers fell just short in Nuremburg, Kilmarnock played in the semi-finals of the Inter-Cities Fairs Cup, what is now known as the Europa League, where they went out to an outstanding Leeds United team.

Earlier in the season, Dundee United also knocked Barcelona out of the same competition.

And of course, we can’t let any mention of 1967 pass us by without mentioning Scotland’s famous win over England as the Wembley Wizards became the unofficial world champions.

So, let us not forget the achievements of all of the fantastic Scottish sides of the time, in what was truly the greatest year that Scottish football has had, and is ever likely to.

From a strictly Glaswegian perspective, yes, let us revel in the triumph of Jock Stein’s wonderful side, but let’s also honour the tremendous Rangers team put together by Scot Symon.

What would we give for two teams of that quality in Glasgow today? Sadly, some of those great players are no longer with us, but hopefully we can ensure that their memory lives on forever.