Stewart Robertson, the Rangers managing director, spoke to the media for the first time since the William Hill Scottish Cup final at the launch of unified fans group, Club 1872 yesterday.

Chief football writer Matthew Lindsay listened to Robertson as he answered questions about the riot that erupted after the match with Hibs at Hampden and other issues which concern the Glasgow club.

How disappointed were Rangers by the comments of Hibernian chairman Rod Petrie at the weekend?

“From what I saw, it was very clear what happened. Whether he [Petrie] was aware of that or not I don’t know. But I was surprised at the comments that were made on Saturday evening. It seemed very clear to us what had happened. In our dressing room we saw how shaken up the boys were by the trauma that had been caused by the events. There was no doubt in our mind what had happened.”

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Mark Warburton, the Rangers manager, hasn’t made any public statement since the final. Why not?

“Everybody was shaken up. We took the decision just to get out of the stadium, not because we couldn’t guarantee the players’ safety, but because nobody could guarantee the players’ safety. We got handed the medals. It was a pretty shaken up group of guys who were in that dressing room on Saturday.

I hadn’t seen anything like that

in my life and Mark certainly hadn’t seen anything like it.”

What did you think of the policing of the crowd at Hampden at full-time?

“To be honest, I wasn’t really concentrating on what was going on behind the goal.

I was hoping for a last-minute equaliser. It’s hard for me to say.

I don’t know the weight of numbers who came over, but it just shouldn’t happen.”

The Herald:

Will the Rangers players be interviewed by the police as part of their investigations?

“I’m sure they will.

If they’re going to bring criminal charges they need to get the evidence for that. I’m not a lawyer, but I assume they’ll

have to take statements.”

Must Hibernian and Rangers now act diplomatically to defuse the tension between the clubs and avoid further trouble in future?

A “There’s a responsibility on the authorities. There’s a responsibility on football clubs. There’s a responsibility on everybody who goes to a football match to behave in an appropriate way.

“Hopefully, the investigation will identify what went wrong. We need to get the investigation out of the way. We asked the

SFA and Police Scotland for investigations and they have been set up very quickly. We need to wait and see what comes out of that, what has gone wrong and then we can progress discussions.”

Read more: Stewart Robertson - Rangers will punish any fans found guilty of Scottish Cup Final disorder

Many Rangers fans feel they have been unfairly treated in the last five years. Do you agree?

“I can see why Rangers fans feel they have been given a hard time over the last four or five years. Part of the rationale behind Club 1872 is to give the Rangers fans a voice and stand up for the Rangers fans. Some Rangers fans have felt vilified over the last four or five years.”

Do you think the unrest has any negative impact on Scottish football going forward?

“It’ll send out a negative message about Scottish football at a time when the SFA and SPFL are trying to attract sponsors and grow the business again. We’ve just got ourselves out of a time where Scottish football was in turmoil. It’s beginning to go the right way, but there’s still a long, long way to go. It can’t help.”

The Herald:

What about Rangers?

“In terms of the club, I don’t think it will have an impact. We have a very clear plan on where we want to take the club and how to grow the club and we’re on the right path. Winning the cup would have been ahead of schedule for us. Getting into Europe would have been ahead of schedule for us. The key objective was to get into the Premiership and we did that.”

Do the football authorities engage with Rangers enough?

“We would like to have more influence. The SPFL elections are in July and I will stand for those. We have got a very strong board at Rangers and have a lot to add to Scottish football. We need to keep working away at having our voice heard.”

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What are your expectations for next season?

“We are dealing with Rangers here, and we are in the Premiership, so we have to go and compete hard. The objective is to win the league. We have made some good signings so far. Joey Barton is a fantastic signing for us, and Jordan Rossiter, Matt Crooks and Josh Windass as well. We have high hopes for them as well.

“There are more to come in, there are several more players to come in. I am really excited about next year and I know Mark and the guys are. It is a good challenge but we will put our best foot forward and try and win the league.”

How important is the formation of the Club 1872 unified supporters group?

“The unification of the various groups is a massive step forward for them and for the club as a whole. It is the first time the fans have had one voice and credit to the various groups for pulling it together, because it’s not easy when people are set in their ways.

“One of their key principles is to get to 25 per cent plus one in terms of shareholding. You need 75 per cent to get a special resolution passed. So that would give them an element of control and blocking rights. I think the current stake is around 5.6 per cent.”

The Herald:

Will Club 1872 ultimately have a representative on the Rangers board?

“As a group, because they are independent, they have said they don’t want a director on the club board.

That may change, but their very clear intention right now is not to have a representative on the board.”