ROB KIERNAN reckons the set-up at Rangers is superior to much of what is on offer in the Barclays Premier League and has described the club as being on "another level" from anything he experienced in England.
The 24-year-old centre back has signed a two-year deal at Ibrox after arriving in a £200,000 transfer from Wigan Athletic and admits he has been blown away by the size and potential of the SPFL Championship side.
"I've been in the Championship and been at big clubs," said Kiernan, who was also on the books at Watford and was on loan at Birmingham City last season. "It's no disrespect to anyone. It's just that this is another level.
"It's second to none. It's something you don't even see in some Premiership clubs.
"The stadium is incredible and I can only imagine when they fill it what the atmosphere is like. The facilities here, it's unbelievable.
"Obviously, I've been in English clubs, but when I got that call, there was something in my head that just said: 'This is right'.
"This is a massive club, probably bigger than anywhere I've played before. It might not be where it needs to be at the moment, or where it wants to be, but that's the objective and I want to be part of that.
"I think I'm going to do well and I think I can be part of something that goes forward.
"I didn't really understand how big this place was but I'm going to thrive on it. I think it's going to be good."
Kiernan has spent time out on loan at nine different clubs over the course of his career and had a spell at Kilmarnock in 2010 when employed by Watford.
He admits that being bashed around in training by the former Rangers striker Kevin Kyle certainly toughened him up during his teenage years.
"The lads laugh because I've been on loan a few times, but I did it because I wanted to progress earlier than everyone else," he said in an interview with Rangers TV.
"I could have sat at these clubs and played Under-21 football, but I didn't want to do that. I genuinely thought that if I go and learn my trade that will stand me in good stead.
"I turned up at Kilmarnock as a kid really and I got battered every day in training by Kevin Kyle, but, looking back on it now, I think it's the best thing I've done.
"I had a head start over everyone else. I've played in lower leagues, I've played in the Championship, I've been up and down the leagues, but I think I've learned something everywhere I've been and I wouldn't change it. I would still do those things."
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