Scottish Cup Final: Rangers v Queen of the South

[LAF]

Queen of the South v Rangers


SCOTTISH CUP FINAL

Venue: Hampden Park Date: Saturday, 24 May Kick-off: 1500 BST
Coverage: BBC One Scotland, BBC Sport website, BBC Radio Scotland & BBC Radio 5 Live

Scottish Cup

Queen of the South manager Gordon Chisholm has no injury or suspension worries to contend with ahead of the Scottish Cup final against Rangers.

He is likely to select the same team and substitutes he picked for the semi-final win over Aberdeen.

Rangers forward Nacho Novo is banned, having been sent off during Thursday's league defeat at Pittodrie.

Defender Sasa Papac and midfielder Lee McCulloch are expected to shake off injuries in time to be considered.

Goalkeeper Allan McGregor remains sidelined with an ankle problem along with long-term absentees Steven Naismith and Chris Burke.

Queen of the South (from): MacDonald, McCann, Thomson, Aitken, Harris, Burns, MacFarlane, Tosh, McQuilken, Dobbie, O'Connor, Stewart, Grindlay, O'Neill, Paton, Gilmour, Robertson, Lauchlan.

Rangers (from): Alexander, Broadfoot, Dailly, Weir, Papac, Whittaker, Davis, Thomson, Ferguson, McCulloch, Beasley, Adam, Boyd, Darcheville, Cousin, G Smith, Cuellar, Buffel.

BBC SPORT | Football | Scottish Cups | Queen of the South v Rangers

[LAF]

Queen of the South aim to cause a major upset in Saturday's Scottish Cup final as they entertain Rangers at Hampden.

The First Division side from Dumfries are competing in their first-ever major final, while Rangers have lifted the trophy on 31 occasions.

In 122 previous finals, only one team outside the Scottish top flight has ever prevailed - East Fife in 1938.

The Ibrox club won the CIS Cup in March but have since lost out in the Uefa Cup final and in the Premier League.

Thursday's league finale saw Walter Smith's Glasgow outfit slip up at Aberdeen while Celtic beat Dundee United to win the championship by three points.

A few weeks ago, Rangers had high hopes of an historic quadruple, but an exhausting campaign, which will see them play their 68th game of the season against Queens, has taken its toll.

Having once enjoyed a commanding lead in the title race, Rangers picked up just 12 points from their last nine league outings.

"We would like to finish the season on a brighter note than we have done over the last week or so," said Smith after the defeat at Pittodrie.

By contrast, Queen of the South will be well rested ahead of their big day at Hampden.

The First Division campaign ended four weeks ago, with Gordon Chisholm's side finishing in fourth place - way off the promotion pace.

Since then, the Doonhamers have enjoyed a sunshine break in Spain and kept ticking over with bounce games against SPL reserve sides.

Preparation has been far from ideal for both sides, but Rangers will be determined to end a season that promised so much with more silverware.

And the chance to make history should lift any Queens players lacking match sharpness.


MY SPORT: DEBATE
Can Queens upset Rangers at Hampden?

Chisholm's team certainly displayed boundless energy when dispatching Aberdeen 4-3 in a thrilling semi-final.

Queen of the South chairman David Rae, a retired farmer, made the decision to turn the club full-time last summer.

"At the moment, Queen of the South is the greatest brand name in the south west of Scotland," he said.

"I've brought in what I'd like to think was a steady growth in the club."

A run to Hampden, which has already guaranteed a Uefa Cup place next season, should lighten the financial burden on Rae.

And he will be hoping some more of the 15,500 fans travelling up to Glasgow turn up at Palmerston Park on a regular basis.

Victory at Hampden would go a long way to swelling future crowds for the Doonhamers.

BBC SPORT | Football | Scottish Cups | Queens eye Scottish Cup surprise

[LAF]

Rangers manager Walter Smith has urged his players to regroup after a dramatic few weeks by winning the Scottish Cup final against Queen of the South.

The Ibrox club lost the Uefa Cup final and their misery was compounded by losing the SPL title to Celtic.

Smith, who has watched his side play nine games since Queens were last in action, is aiming for a Hampden win.

"This gives us the chance to finish on a high note after the disappointment of the past 10 days," he said.

The Rangers manager said he was proud of his players after an energy-sapping season that sees them prepare for their 68th game.


There'll have to be something left there we're going to do well in the final

Rangers manager
Walter Smith

"It's the Scottish Cup final, it's a big game. There'll have to be something left there if we're going to do well in it," said Smith.

Rangers are looking to add the Scottish Cup to the CIS Cup and Smith said he had no regrets about the club challenging for domestic and European silverware.

"If we had said that we were going to be competing in the final day of all the tournaments we play in, you accept that," Smith said.

"That's more than anything we would have expected towards the end of the season."

Smith said Queen of the South manager Gordon Chisholm would believe they could shock Rangers at Hampden.

"They've had no games over almost a month since they finished, so they could have played a few of ours maybe and alleviated a bit of the problem," he said.

DaMarcus Beasley
Beasley said Rangers would bounce back from their title misery

"I think Gordon will be sitting there thinking that Rangers have played a lot of matches.

"If you're going to get to a cup final, you couldn't wish for better circumstances, playing a team who played less than 48 hours beforehand."

Spanish striker Nacho Novo will miss the final through suspension after his red card in the 2-0 defeat by Aberdeen.

"He has lost out on two finals with two bad tackles and he can have no complaints about that," said Smith.

"On the night, Nacho is a boy that gets carried away a bit."

US international DaMarcus Beasley said the Rangers players were licking their wounds ahead of the final.


MY SPORT: DEBATE
I would just like to thank the club for putting us back on the map

Greigsdestiny

"It's tough and I'm grieving with the team even though I have not been in the team the last few months," said the midfielder.

"Everybody is disappointed, but we'll be upbeat for tomorrow and we'll still be excited about the season we've had if we win it.

"We're not going to throw it away because we did not win the Uefa Cup and league. We'll be ready. The legs might be tired, but we're mentally tough."

Beasley hopes to feature at Hampden after recovering from a knee injury.

BBC SPORT | Football | Scottish Cups | Smith urges Rangers' final effort

[DavidMc]

Well, After a couple of disappointing days, when we look back, it hasnt been a bad season.

Cant criticise Walter Smith. Got to end the season on a high and Im sure we will.

[LAF]

That's the thing. I was trying to tell my devasted mate that Rangers have over achieved this season by a long way.

With the promised cash next season Rangers should have a better chance.

On the game, you would think Rangers would have too much but given the way the past week and a half have went you wonder the mentality.

Walter better not fuck up again and play Cousins. Boyd is more than deserving.

[DavidMc]

Originally Posted by LAF

That's the thing. I was trying to tell my devasted mate that Rangers have over achieved this season by a long way.

With the promised cash next season Rangers should have a better chance.

On the game, you would think Rangers would have too much but given the way the past week and a half have went you wonder the mentality.

Walter better not fuck up again and play Cousins. Boyd is more than deserving.

I will be very surprised to see Cousin get the nod ahead of Boyd. I think Smith will start with Darcheville and Boyd.

We all know that Cousin will be on his way this summer, England the most likely destination.

He has done us a turn but I do think it is time he moved on.