By 
Brian Gilmour was an Academy player when Rangers legends John Brown and Ian Durrant were youth coaches at the club and he will always be grateful for the grounding he received from the 9-in-a-Row pair, and many others at the club, during his formative years as a footballer.
The former Light Blues midfielder was thrilled to learn from players who had experienced so much during their own careers and it set him on a journey that included spells in Scotland, England, Iceland and Finland.
He featured for Clyde, Queen of the South, FC Haka, Lincoln, Stenhousemuir and KA before enjoying five-and-a-half years with Ayr United – where he was able to play and hone his coaching skills.
Brian returned to Rangers in 2017 as an Academy coach and worked with players from a number of age groups before a permanent move to the B Team followed in 2020.
Good fortune and being ready to make the most of opportunities earned is crucial in football and when first-team coaching duty called last October, Gilmour stepped up to help the squad during Steven Davis’ interim spell as manager.
He is now an important member of Philippe Clement’s backroom team and his focus is on helping Academy players transition to life in the top team – a specialist role he is proud and privileged to perform.
In a wide-ranging interview as he showed his support for The Rangers Youth Development Company – who have donated more than £11 million to the Rangers Academy to date – Brian said: “I am enjoying the role very much.
“When it started it was a wee bit of a whirlwind, then the manager came in and it transpired we looked at a role where I would be on the first-team staff.
“It’s a role I really enjoy and I look after the younger players who transition to the first-team.
“That’s been enjoyable and the previous 7 years I was always with the Academy.
“To have that side of it along with the first-team stuff now has been brilliant.
“It has all been really enjoyable. When I started coaching it was with younger players and I really enjoyed that side of it.
“It was always my intention to coach and I just wanted to experience working with the 14s, 16s, 18s and the B Team.
“That was always the plan but the one thing you can’t guarantee in football is where you will end up. This secondary role with the young players in the first-team came along at the right time and I think it is important.
“I am passionate about helping the younger players and we have a strong link between the Academy and the first-team.
“The players have a face they know really well and someone who has been around the building for a long time, I think that side of it has been really beneficial.
“The B Team helps fulfil the first-team needs, they have their own programme but players bounce about between the two squads.
“Continuity can help and at the end of the day, you want to make the players feel as comfortable as you can when they make that transition.
“Young players going into any first-team dressing room can be difficult but you have to remember this is the Rangers dressing room and there are levels to it.
“To get on that training pitch on a daily basis is a privilege never mind anything else and the players are well aware of that. But they are also human beings at the end of the day and are young lads experiencing it.
“That’s where the manager has been great. He has always given young players the opportunity, from the first day he walked in.
“That comes in different forms – it could be training with the group, experiencing matches, being part of the wider group or being part of the first-team group so that side of it has been really pleasing to see.
“It always gives us pride to see Academy players progressing to the first-team.
“It comes down to two things. For that lad you have known for a long time and the work he and his family have put in over a long number of years.
“The romantic side of the game is you see a player make their first-team debut and they travel – like Ross McCausland did last year.
“That was a huge turn in his life.
“But you also look at the staff and all the hard work they have put in through the years to help players – and from a very young age too.
“We are here to be part of their journey, they need to drive it, but there is always pride when a young player develops.
“We all grew up as fans seeing certain individuals progressing. When I was a kid it was Barry Ferguson.
“It shows there is hope and the dream is there when you are a kid in your bedroom.
“When you get older it can be a reality and can actually happen.
“We love to see one of our own coming through to play for this prestigious club.
“A long part of my life was spent at the training ground and Ibrox before it was build.
“So I understand this club and I’ve had great experiences through different managers and different eras.
“I went away to play and came back to coach at the club about 7 years ago.
“Times change and football evolves at a serious rate of knots but hopefully I can give the guidance to these young lads at the right time when they need it.
“They still have to figure a lot of it out for themselves but I try to be that sounding block for them and make sure they get support when needed or a push at the right time.
“Every player is different. Ross McCausland, for example, worked with me and the Academy guys for three years but what he experienced in the last 6 months with the first-team is completely different.
“We give him great support when he figured things out for himself.
“It is always your dream to play for Rangers. I spent a lot of time here as a youth player but it got to a point where it was time for me to go and kickstart my career.
“I often speak about that here, it is part of the journey for a lot of players.
“It’s not the one you want but I had a great life and so many positive football experiences when I played.
“I played in Iceland and Finland and I experienced different cultures. I always looked at that when I was a kid, I wanted to go and see a wider picture and see where the road took me.
“When I was playing abroad I had a fascination with coaching. I didn’t sit down and plan but opportunities came at the right time.
“When we decided to move home, a long time ago now, things just fell into place.
“I went to Ayr Utd and ended up staying 5 and a half years. That was a special club to me and a local club to me and the people there gave me the opportunity to play and kickstart a coaching career.
“Opportunities arise in football and I had the chance to come back to Rangers.
“When I look back, I look at principles, standards, behaviours and advice I have taken from so many people.
“I was very fortunate during my upbringing here at the Academy to work with great coaches and I had a great grounding.
“John Brown, Ian Durrant, Billy Kirkwood, Malky Thomson and many others gave us that inner discipline to try and be your best every day.
“I was also fortunate enough to see first-team managers at that time and see their different methods and how they work.
“Players and team-mates also influence you and when I went abroad I could see completely different things as well.
“So I tried to gather as much information as I could and I am here to support the youth players.
“It’s a knowledge sharing and hopefully a two-way conversation that helps these young lads.
“A lot of ex-Rangers players have coached young players at the Academy recently – guys like Steven Smith, Jonatan Johansson, Kevin Thomson and Peter Lovenkrands – and that’s vital.
“I have worked with them all and everybody who has would speak very highly of them. They are all good guys and all good coaches who have passed on information along the way.
“Ultimately there are different journeys for players and I don’t think you can have enough conversations, for me there is nothing better than knowledge sharing.
“These young lads must have an inner drive, that is a constant. The players know how fortunate they are to be here but it is not luck, they deserve to be here and have earned the right to be here and they must have self-belief.
“I believe opportunities come in small windows every single day and if they can keep that self-belief and inner drive they can be successful.
“They need to be patient as some players can make their debuts at 16 or 17 and others could be 20 or 21. There is not one formula, players have different paths.
“They can’t decide when their opportunity comes but they have to be as ready as they possibly can be for it.
“Things can change quickly in football. The small things you can do on a daily basis – games, training or mindset – can help and you might need a bit of luck along the way.
“Some guys get it early, some need to wait or have it a different place but hopefully players can build a good career for themselves here.
“Some of the Academy players went on the pre-season tour to Holland and whatever group they are in they have to use the experience.
“They can learn so much from first-team players – how they act, how they go about their business, how they recover and the standards of who they are as people.
“We are all trying to go in the one direction and it is a sneak peek for these young lads to see what it looks like.
“The door is open for them and they can use these experiences to learn on a daily basis.
“I am delighted to show my support for RYDC. They have given the Academy a phenomenal level of backing down the years.
“It is absolutely incredible, it really is and I am passionate about putting that across.
“The support is so beneficial and a lot of the things we are discussing here at length is made possible because of RYDC.
“I know first-hand how much everybody at the club appreciates it and long may it continue.
“It is a huge benefit to Rangers.”
Profit from RYDC products Rangers Lotto, Stadium Bricks, Scratchcards and The Union Jackpot draw all go to the Academy, while profit from Museum Lotto is donated to the club for the upkeep and maintenance of the museum.
CLICK HERE to play Rangers Lotto
CLICK HERE to play The Union Jackpot
CLICK HERE to buy Rangers Bricks
CLICK HERE to buy Rangers Scratchcards
CLICK HERE to play Museum Lotto
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