I SPOKE to several Rangers supporters yesterday about their memories of the late Colin Jackson and it was as if they had plucked their adjectives from a book of words beginning with R.

He was "reliable", "robust", "rugged" and "redoubtable" and nobody who ever watched this Ibrox stalwart perform for his beloved club could disagree with any of these descriptions, considering the manner in which Jackson, who succumbed to leukaemia at the age of 68 on Saturday evening, went about his job. He was the antithesis of flash, a man who was always more comfortable with actions than words, and who probably thought prima donna was the name of an Inter Milan striker, but nothing should detract from the qualities which he brought to his role.

Nowadays, the notion of a one-club player is drifting out of fashion. And technically, Jackson didn't spend his entire career at Rangers, if one includes his year farmed out to Sunnybank Athletic in Aberdeen or his stints for various organisations once he finally departed Ibrox. Yet, to all intents and purposes, he devoted the best 20 years of his footballing life to a single organisation, which he regarded as home, and that explains why Jackson is one of only eight Rangers players to have made over 500 appearances since the war. It's no wonder John Greig paid such a rich tribute to his former colleague over the weekend, because he knew the importance of the quietly spoken luminary. Whether tackling as if his life depended on it, flinging himself into the fray at both ends of the pitch, or making mincemeat of opponents who thought they could waltz past him and ended up with stars around their forehead, Jackson was as uncomplicated as he was unprepossessing and grateful for the opportunity to shine in his natural environment.

Perhaps he suffered by comparison to Greig or Sandy Jardine or one or two other Old Firm legends. He only gained eight Scotland caps and agonisingly missed out on an appearance in Rangers' triumphant European Cup Winners' Cup final team in 1972, after helping the Scots progress to the showpiece occasion while they eliminated Rennes, Sporting Lisbon, Torino and Bayern Munich - a list which only highlights how far the Class of 2015 have fallen - but, despite his absence at that Nou Camp spectacle, there were plenty other honours for him to savour.

There were a brace of trebles under the stentorian Jock Wallace, and Jackson was an important part of the side which prevented Celtic from winning 10 Scottish titles in a row when Rangers clinched the championship at Easter Road in 1975. Prior to that achievement, some people had questioned whether he might have fared better by moving elsewhere, with a number of English clubs, including Tottenham Hotspur and Wolves, interested in his services, but Jackson wasn't one of the game's peripatetic souls. I can recall execrable Edinburgh evenings and grim Glasgow afternoons in the mid-1970s when players of his calibre were asked to strut their stuff in mudbaths and amidst howling gales or lashing rain, but one of his greatest attributes was the sheer joy which he derived from football in the raw. In these days, professionals were paid a pittance, and the sport has travelled almost as far as Barcelona in their latest TV advert, but Colin and his comrades knew the alternative might lie in working down a pit or labouring on a building site.

His prime came between 1975 and 1979 and, with hindsight, represents the sort of halcyon period most people can only dream about. He played more than 50 matches for Rangers during both of their treble-winning campaigns, he was part of the Scotland line-up which defeated England 2-1 at Hampden Park in 1976 to lift the Home International Championship and he headed the winning goal in injury time in the 1978-79 League Cup final against Aberdeen to collect yet another medal. By that point he was over 30, but the fans had grown to recognise his essential qualities and marvelled at his consistency and clamour for the fray. There were never any half measures with this fellow and whatever pace he lost as the 1980s ushered in a new spell of domination by Aberdeen and Dundee United, Jackson remained 100 per cent committed to the cause even as Rangers gradually wilted.

His swansong was hardly one to remember, as Aberdeen swept to Scottish Cup glory with an extra-time demolition of an ageing Rangers defence in 1982, eventually marching to a 4-1 success. But Jackson subsequently carved out a flourishing business career and maintained his love affair with Rangers in the role of running the Former Players Benevolent Fund. As his one-time Ibrox confrere Ronnie McKinnon said yesterday: "He was a great friend as well as a great Rangers player. Colin was one of the nicest individuals you will ever meet and helped so many ex-players in so many different ways and never looked for any credit."

It wasn't so long ago that Scottish football was mourning the demise of Sandy Jardine. Now, another of that generation has gone without many fanfares or trumpets. Colin Jackson wouldn't have complained about that as somebody who steered clear of the limelight. But that doesn't mean he doesn't deserve every plaudit going.