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Former Rangers winger Chris Burke joined Brentford’s B Team coaching staff in January and he is passionate about developing players for a career in professional football.
Burkey, now 42, is extremely proud of his own journey in the game and has fond memories of breaking into the Light Blues first-team after learning his trade for many years at the Academy.
Alex McLeish handed Chris his debut in 2002 against Kilmarnock – the club he would later spend five years with as a player then successful youth coach – and he scored shortly after making a late appearance at Ibrox.
It was the stuff of dreams for any youth prospect and is a memory he will always cherish.
He went on to play more than 130 games for Rangers and won the League in 2004/05 under Big Eck and a League Cup in 2007/08 when Walter Smith returned for a second spell in the dugout.
Burke would have won more had he not been unfortunate with injuries and illness during his 8-year spell with the first-team but he has no regrets and says the lessons he learned here as a young player stay with him today.
One of football’s good guys, the former Scotland international – who won the Kirin Cup and scored a double on his debut against Bulgaria when Smith was in charge – went on to forge a hugely success career for himself in England with Cardiff, Birmingham then Nottingham Forest.
He returned to Scotland with Ross County before bringing the curtain down on a fine playing career with a five-year stint at Killie.
When he retired, with more than 500 games under his belt and a wealth of knowledge to pass on, he was involved with the youth teams at Rugby Park and guided the Ayrshire outfit to SFA Youth Cup glory at Hampden.
Chris also holds a UEFA Pro Licence and is delighted to be making his way in the coaching world with English Premiership side Brentford.
Speaking as he showed his support for The Rangers Youth Development Company – who have provided more than £12.5 million to the Rangers Academy since 2002 and confirmed another £300,000 donation recently – Burke reflected on his football journey so far.
He said: “I had an unbelievable upbringing at Rangers. They taught me so many values and behaviours, my family did as well of course, but it’s not easy going into an environment like Rangers.
“Every single day was fantastic for me. I appreciated it greatly and learned so much from youth coaches like John Brown and Billy Duncanson.
“They developed me as a player and a person first and foremost. I enjoyed my time at the Rangers Academy and then fortunately I got to play and learn from top players, coaches and managers at the club.
“Every kid is talented but you need a bit of luck along the way and I tried to take it all in and learn as much as I could.
“Jimmy Bell had a really huge influence on me as well because I always did the kit for the first-team.
“I remember walking to get the subway then going to Ibrox to help him with the kit before and after games and I was accountable. I was learning good lessons all the time.
“Bomber was my main youth coach and he was a terrific person who helped me develop.
“He knew I was talented but gave me the license and freedom to be myself and also made sure I didn’t step out of line.
“He was terrific in that aspect, as was Billy Duncanson.
“Rangers made me feel valued. The club was welcoming and you had that sense of family. I had the chance to sign for Arsenal or Rangers and I chose Rangers.
“Dick Advocaat was also great with me and I got to train with the first-team a lot when he was manager. That gave me a great insight and I learned a lot when I was really young.
“Training with top players was always going to make me better and they were fantastic characters as well.
“It was on me if I didn’t make it. I had the best of everything and I was given the chance to flourish and I did.
“Fans always like seeing youth players coming through and I managed to get a goal 90 seconds into my debut against Kille.
“The Blue Heaven documentary was being made at that time and Big Eck called me into the squad late as there had been an injury.
“He trusted me and the players knew me as I had been training with them and to have a debut like that is what dreams are made of.
“Scoring was just an unbelievable moment and I remember I was back playing with the 18s two days later for an important game.
“I was getting the subway and the train to the training ground after making my debut and you had to stay humble enough and keep working.
“That grounded me and the work I did with Jimmy was excellent for me.
“The players could see I was willing to do the dirty work and that I had personality and character, which I think is important.
“Rangers had an attacking team and I used to stand out on the wing and try and get good crosses into the box.
“As a young player, sometimes your end product is not what it should be but we had strikers like Michael Mols who could make bad crosses look good.
“As time went on, I came into my own and Alex McLeish knew when to put me in and rest me or put me in with the 21s.
“His timing was really good and I remember being really proud when I moved into the first-team changing room full time.
“That was a big thing. You are leaving your friends who have the same dreams at the Academy but you also have to realise that you still haven’t made it. You have to stay grounded and humble.
“I played a part in the Helicopter Sunday title-winning season and that was special.
“There was a real will to win and a desire just to grind out results. We had experienced British and European players with young players sprinkled in and there was a really good mix.
“We had a fantastic, tight-knit group and to be part of that actually helped me in the long-term.
“I still try and keep those values to this day. A changing room is really important and we had good characters in that group.
“That attitude probably earned us five or six extra points that got us over the line.
“The following season we qualified for the last 16 of the Champions League but we fell short in the league and Paul le Guen came in.
“Players like Charlie Adam, Steven Smith and I got the chance to play and I thought his ideas were good. They were probably ahead of his time and he maybe tried to push them too early and we didn’t get the results or performances we should have.
“Scotland is a different culture but it was great to see Charlie and Steven playing and getting that exposure in games.
“It was excellent for them and then obviously the great Walter Smith came in after that and the rest is history.
“I was buzzing when Walter came back to Rangers. I had heard all the stories of his achievements before and it was a great bit of business by the club to get him in.
“He knew what sort of personalities he needed on his coaching staff and he picked it perfectly with Ally McCoist, Ian Durrant and Kenny McDowall.
“It was a fantastic formula and worked really well. His first game was a 5-0 win over Dundee Utd and I scored.
“I really kicked on from there and was enjoying my football. We had a fantastic balance of British and European players who came in with great personality and ability and they took to the Scottish culture straight away.
“It was like a switch when Walter came in and the club was lifted right away.
“He was the perfect person to be the manager at that time and we hit the ground running. He had the ability to lead and knew what he had to do to win at Rangers and the next season we made it to the UEFA Cup Final.
“In the moment you don’t realise how big that is but it was a great run. I remember sprinting on to the pitch after the penalties against Fiorentina – with the long hair I couldn’t get cut because Coisty was so superstitious!
“I was out with an ankle injury and if you watch back I was actually limping about and my ankle was killing me.
“It was an unbelievable achievement and getting to the final was a great occasion. We were just disappointed we didn’t win.
“It was a hard decision to leave Rangers but I didn’t want to be a bit-part player and just be comfortable.
“Rangers were going forward, they were doing excellent and it was really difficult for me to get in the team.
“I could have stayed but I wanted to try something different and get outside my comfort zone. I didn’t want to play just 20 games a season.
“I wanted to push and play 40/50 games a season and it was excellent to see Rangers kicking on and winning trophy after trophy under Walter.
“I have no regrets at all. I had unbelievable memories at Rangers and I wouldn’t have changed it for the world. Not many people can say they pulled on that strip and played, scored and assisted in games.
“I’m delighted I made well over 100 appearances for Rangers and came through the academy. People don’t realise how tough it is to do that so that’s something to be proud of.
“I went down to England and played for Cardiff, Birmingham and Nottingham Forest. I played a lot of games, mostly starts, with the first two clubs and I was scoring goals and assisting.
“I came back to Scotland with Ross County then had five years at Kilmarnock and they revitalised my career when I was 31/32.
“Lee McCulloch took the gamble on me and signed me and I can’t thank him enough. I got myself fit and played a lot of games and proved my worth to Steve Clarke.
“The young winger I was at Rangers to the older one at Kilmarnock was a totally different player. The game had changed and I had to adapt my style but Kilmarnock gave me the opportunity to extend my career.
“I remember coming back to Ibrox and the emotion of scoring with the last kick of the ball to earn a 1-1 draw for Killie. I’m thinking, ‘Do I celebrate or do I not?’ but you have to be respectful to the team and fans you are playing for even though I had such good times at Rangers.
“I remember scoring against Rangers again in an unbelievable game at Rugby Park. It was a 2-1 win and I scored the first goal and Killie finished the season third.
“I started doing my coaching badges in my early 30s. I’ve come on leaps and bounds and now I’m part of the coaching staff for Brentford’s B Team.
“I love the game and I love talking about the game. It comes back to the values at Rangers and how do you get the best out of players and help them be a good person?
“The managers I’ve had were good leaders. It’s not about tactics, systems and formations, that becomes secondary. Because if you can’t get a group of people to buy into that vision, then nothing else will work and I learned that from the managers we spoke about.
“It’s culture over tactics for me and I always say that. The culture comes from you as a leader and I’ve been fortunate enough to be in environments where there’s high-performance leaders.
“I’ve had a lot of good memories in football. Winning the SFA Youth Cup when I was a young coach at Kilmarnock is also a good one.
“It meant so much to the players and their families and I know what it meant to me winning trophies when I was a youth player at Rangers.
“I’m really happy with the journey I have taken in football and probably the most pleasing thing for me is I got to play as long as I could.
“It was over 500 games and I looked after myself to give me the best opportunity to play as long as possible
“I retired when I was 38/39 and to have a 20-year career was unbelievable. I stayed humble and was happy with what I achieved.
“When I look back I pinch myself because some players who make it in the game get much less.
“Now I try and pass on that knowledge to the next generation. That’s what I’m big on. I want to see young players making it.
“I’m not doing my job properly if I don’t try and help nourish and nurture players and help give them a career.
“So that’s what I’m looking forward to doing in the future and I’ll never forget that it all started for me at Rangers.”
Chris’ career development was assisted by annual RYDC donations to the Rangers Academy and more than £12.5 million has already been provided.
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