Even 3500 miles away, the news of Walter Smith ’s death had a devastating effect.
When Dale Gordon logged on to talkSPORT in his Dubai apartment last Tuesday, the news didn’t immediately sink in.
He thought his old Rangers pal Ally McCoist was merely waxing lyrical about their former gaffer before the reality hit.
Gordon quickly realised that the emotional tribute was a eulogy following Smith’s untimely passing that day.
When you think of Rangers’ legendary nine-in-a-row side, Gordon's isn’t the first name that rolls off the tongue.
He wasn’t as prominent as McCoist, Richard Gough, Ian Ferguson, Mark Hateley or Ian Durrant.
But when Smith signed Gordon from Norwich City in 1991 for £1.2million, it changed his life.
He won two titles, picked up League and Scottish Cup medals – and was part of their iconic 92/93 treble-winning season when they got agonisingly close to a Champions League Final.
When asked about the best manager he ever played for, Gordon never has a shred of doubt. To this day, his biggest regret is leaving Ibrox too soon.
From the moment he first met Smith in London, 30 years ago this week, he was convinced they would click.
For the last decade, Gordon has lived in the Middle East but his connection to Rangers is still strong. Last year, he brought kids from his coaching academy, DG Pro, for a tour of Glasgow when they got to play on the Ibrox pitch.
And on Tuesday night, along with another ex-Gers team-mate, Trevor Steven, he toasted Smith with a heavy heart.
Speaking from Dubai, Gordon told MailSport : “I remember going to London to meet Walter for the first time.
"Rangers and Norwich hadn’t struck the deal yet and by that time Graeme Souness had obviously left Rangers for Liverpool.
“I was with my agent and the Norwich chairman. They were in and out of a room and eventually agreed on a deal. But I didn’t know Walter at all and Spurs were also interested in me at that time.
“Walter walked into the restaurant and introduced himself. I thought: ‘Right Dale, just play it cool here’.
“But he started talking about his plans and vision for Rangers, then he said: ‘Should we get a drink’?
“I said: ‘Yeah, I’ll take a Diet Coke please’. But Walter said: ‘No, no – let’s get the vino out’.
“I thought: ‘OK, this is my type of manager!’
“I knew then I was going to get on well with Walter. That was how he was.
“He could be softly spoken at times. But, of course, if you were on the end of a rollicking from him, you knew about it.
“I remember we lost a game 4-3 to Dundee at Dens Park and he went absolutely berserk.
“But he was an incredible human being.
“As a man-manager and someone you felt you could go to as a player if you had any problems or issues in your personal life, Walter was the one.
“Not only would he listen, he’d give you that fatherly advice. That was the man he was.
“Without a doubt, he was the best manager I ever played under. It will always be Walter.”
Being so far away, Gordon was unaware of the health problems Smith had encountered in the last few years.
He was shocked to see a picture of his old boss last month at a charity golf day in Loch Lomond.
And when news broke of his passing on Tuesday, the former Rangers winger was left stunned.
He said: “I didn’t know Walter had been unwell until I saw that picture of him at Loch Lomond recently. When I saw it, I had to do a double take.
“My girlfriend Kim said I looked as if I’d been hit by a bus. She asked me what was wrong.
“I said: ‘Oh my God, that’s the gaffer’. I then went on to Google and discovered that he’d been poorly for some time and had been in for an operation.
“But I’m 3,500 miles away and it’s difficult to get news channels over here. I thought everything would be OK with him. So when I heard on Tuesday, it was just awful. Kim asked me what Walter was like. I just said: ‘This is the
gentleman who signed me for Glasgow Rangers’.
“I was in shock. I was in my apartment in Dubai and had gone for a nap. When I woke up, I put TalkSPORT on and heard Ally speaking about Walter.
“Even as he was talking, it didn’t sink in. I didn’t realise Walter had passed away and then, boom, it hit me. Coisty’s tribute was incredible.
“I explained to Kim what Walter meant to me.
“We went out that night and I spoke to Trevor, who has also been over here for a while.
“We agreed to raise a glass for Walter that night and that’s exactly what we did.”
One of Gordon’s biggest games for Rangers was the Battle of Britain second-leg against Leeds United at Elland Road in 1992, when they qualified for the Champions League group stage with a memorable 2-1 win.
To this day, he rates it as a tactical masterclass from Smith, who would lead his side to within touching distance of the final. He said: “Everyone remembers Coisty’s header to put us 2-0 up against Leeds and I was the first to celebrate with him.
“How I didn’t snap his cruciate ligaments, I still don’t know!
“But that game typified Walter. I’ve heard people say that, even when Souness was in charge, it was Walter who would give out the tactical advice, which held him in good stead when he stepped up as manager.
“He showed that against Leeds over those two legs. It was a masterclass.”
Rangers are a long way from those heights right now but Gordon is adamant they have the right man at the helm, because Steven Gerrard has similar traits to his legendary gaffer.
He said: “Rangers players are now under a manager who has an aura which, dare I say it, is Walter Smith-esque. Steven has that about him.”
