GARY Dicker has much to learn about Scottish football but one thing the new Kilmarnock man does already know is what Rangers are all about.
The Irishman faced many of the players currently plying their trade at Ibrox during his time in England, Carlisle United and Brighton being two of his former clubs, and he came up against Brentford when a certain Mark Warburton was in charge.
So his debut at Ibrox last weekend in the Scottish Cup, which ended 0-0, meaning the teams will meet again at Rugby Park on Tuesday night, was far from a culture shock.
“You could see Rangers are a good side,” Dicker said. “It’s a big club and they’ve invested well in their players. I’ve seen a lot of their manager from being down there in England. He did a great job there and he was unlucky he lost it.
“Rangers are obviously building for the future and being in the Premiership, and they have a lot of talented players. The way they play is not a surprise to me. Mark Warburton did a great job getting Brentford to the play-offs and then lost his job – that’s the crazy world of football.
“Rangers play the exact same way as his Brentford team – high-tempo, keeping the ball, and trying to get it back quickly.
“I played against Martyn Waghorn a few times when he was at Leicester and Millwall, and I also know James Tavernier and their centre-halves. I know a lot of the lads there. They’re probably too good for the level they’re at now and they’ll show that next year if they do go up.”
Kilmarnock are up at that other level, although once more they are caught up against a fight against relegation, so ordinarily that would make them favourites to get past the Championship side. Dicker did not see it this way. “I don’t think you’re ever going to be favourites against Rangers or Celtic, as they are massive clubs,” he said. “Rangers are obviously going well, while we’re at the opposite end of our table. But we will go into the game confident. Them being favourites will suit us.
“You fancy yourself at home against anyone even though they’re a massive club and given the money that’s in the club.
“We stopped them scoring at Ibrox last week and somebody told us on the bus afterwards that we’re one of the few teams to have done that this season.
“It’s a good start, obviously because we’ve conceded a lot of goals this season. One or two of us were making our debuts so to get a clean sheet was great.”
Dicker has come up against some of English football’s biggest names in the cups, with mixed results. A win against Rangers would see him facing Dundee or Dumbarton and reaching a quarter-final for the first time.
“Hopefully if we can win on Tuesday that will be the furthest I’ve been in a knock-out competition,” Dicker said.
“It’s a great incentive. If we get past Rangers there aren’t many teams you’ll fear after that. We must get the job done first. But it’s a bonus game. The league is the most important, everyone agrees.
“There’s no real pressure on us on Tuesday. Everyone is going to think Rangers are going to win, they should win. The pressure is on them, the manager has come out and said they’re going to win.”
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