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In the latest in our Where Are They Now? series, we speak to former Rangers striker Darryl Duffy who made senior appearances under Alex McLeish and went on to enjoy a fine and well-travelled career in the game.
The Light Blues Academy graduate, who is 42 today, made his debut in a 6-0 League Cup win over Forfar at Ibrox in October 2003 and followed that up with a league debut against Dundee Utd then a Champions League bow against Panathinaikos in December that year.
It was a whirlwind few months for Darryl who joined the club’s youth programme as a teenager and although he didn’t feature again for Rangers, he remains immensely proud of the fact he pulled on the famous blue jersey in competitive games.
A prolific marksman at youth level, Duffy moved to Falkirk in 2004 and bagged 27 goals in his first campaign as he helped The Bairns clinch promotion to the top-flight.
He struck 9 times the following season before joining Hull in January 2006 and his career path included spells with Swansea, Bristol Rovers, Carlisle, Hibs, Cheltenham, Salgaocar, Goa and Mohun Bagan in India before returning to Scotland with St Mirren, Airdrie, Stirling Albion and Stranraer.
Darryl played more than 570 games and scored 215 goals and the grounding he received at Rangers helped shape him as a player and a person.
He learned from the likes of John Brown, Bobby Russell and John McGregor at the Academy and is eternally grateful for their guidance.
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 – Duffy reflected on his football journey so far.
He said: “I was 13 when I signed for Rangers. I started playing with Bobby Russell’s team and I absolutely loved it.
“I thought he was an absolutely brilliant coach. He brought the best out of me and I loved working with him.
“Bomber was the Under-18’s manager and John McGregor was the under 21’s manager at the time and they all heavily influenced my career.
“When I was 16, I was playing every week for the 18’s and at the end of my first pro season, I actually made my Under-21’s debut.
“I loved my time at the Academy and learning from guys like Bomber.
“He was very different from Bobby Russell who was softly spoken. His approach was to put an arm round your shoulder but Bomber was old school.
“He was more vocal and more blood, guts and thunder than Bobby was.
“I think having a combination of both of them at a young age was really beneficial. John McGregor was probably somewhere in between Bomber and Bobby and it was a great education.
“I learned so much about movement, coming short, spinning defenders and using my agility to improve my game.
“You developed as a person and a player and also had an education away from football.
“That’s massive now because not everyone is going to go on to have a career in football, never mind a career at Rangers.
“Breaking into the side and establishing yourself as a first-team player is extremely difficult. It’s also difficult to leave that environment and forge a career for yourself.
“I was quite fortunate to play in a generation of youth teams that had a lot of players who went on to have decent careers at first-team level.
“It’s tough because only 11 players can start every week and only another few can come on from the bench.
“So, if you are training all the time and you’re not playing, you need a certain type of steely determination and a strong willpower to get you through that.
“I think that’s where a lot of players probably fall away. There were definitely players with better natural ability than I had, but I had a stronger mentality and a bit more determination and that sends you a long way.
“Maurice Ross says the same thing. There were better players than him when he was at Rangers but he had the right attitude and work ethic to succeed.
“I actually made my first-team debut coming on for Mo and having pros like that around with such a good attitude rubbed off on the younger players.
“I can still remember coming into training when we had players like Giovanni van Bronckhorst, Michael Mols and Mikel Arteta in the squad.
“I used to help Jimmy Bell with the kit, balls and training bibs and it was great to be around that dressing room as an Academy player.
“I learned so much by just being around them. I remember I was injured at the same time as Michael and I spent a lot of time in the gym with him.
“During our rehab I would be cycling on a bike next to him and I would ask him all the time about his trademark turn.
“He would drop his shoulder turn and shoot and I ended up scoring goals like that too.
“I loved picking his brain and he showed me how he moved his body in those situations.
“You can’t buy that insight, knowledge and information. It was incredible to learn from him.
“It’s funny because the very first time I did that move during a game was when I’d left Rangers and went to Falkirk.
“We were playing against Dunfermline and Allan McGregor was on loan there. I did that Mols turn and scored against Greegsy.
“Making my Rangers debut against Forfar at Ibrox was amazing and it’s something that’ll always stick with me.
“It was great to play but I wanted to do everything I could to make more appearances. I saw it as just the first step.
“I played a league game against Dundee Utd and in the Champions League against Panathinaikos a few weeks later and I was fortunate to just experience that buzz.
“Walking out the tunnel at Ibrox and sitting on the bench for a European game and hearing the music was surreal.
“I used to sit in the stand or watch games on TV and it was a bit surreal to be involved in the team and experience that.
“I came on late in the game and it’s something I’m extremely proud of.
“I’ve still got my strip from that night hanging up in the wardrobe.
“Whenever I look at it, it still makes the hairs on the back of my neck stand up and transports me back to that time.
“These are moments you should be proud of and cherish, regardless if you play one minute or play 300 games for Rangers. It’s still an achievement.
“I had the high of playing games for the first-team and had hoped to kick on to the next stage but it just never really happened for me after that.
“I never really got another opportunity and that kind of brought me right back down again. It was a low point and disappointing.
“I was offered a one-year contract extension but I was 20 by that point and had to go to get first team football somewhere else.
“I went to Falkirk and it couldn’t have gone any better for me to be honest. You dream about playing and scoring goals every week and it became a reality.
“I had spoken to Partick Thistle and St Johnstone but there was just something about Falkirk and John Hughes. It was their first season in the new stadium and it was a really enticing offer.
“It literally couldn’t have gone any better and I scored 27 goals that season.
“I was top goal scorer in the league, Young Player of the Year and in the Championship Team of the Year.
“We won the league and the Challenge Cup and I scored in the semi-final and final. It was the stuff of dreams.
“We had a good blend of young players and older pros like Russell Latapy, Neil Scally, John O’Neil and Andy Thompson.
“I picked up a lot of good knowledge and information from these guys and just loved that debut season. It’s one of my fondest memories in football.
“I started the next season well and scored goals in the top-flight and there was a lot of interest in me.
“I scored 9 in 19 games up until January and then made the tough decision to leave for Hull.
“I played a lot of games in England after that, at every level and every cup competition apart from the Premier League. That was the only level I never played at in 8 years there.
“I had loans in League Two and I had permanent clubs in League One and the Championship and I scored goals at every level I played at.
“I also scored goals in the FA Cup and the League Cup and I was top goalscorer every time I moved to a new club in England.
“I’m really proud of that as well.
“I made just under 600 in my career and also played in India, which was a phenomenal experience.
“It was actually Alan Gow, who I played with at Falkirk, who helped get me there.
“I spoke to him about his experiences playing there and decided to go for it. It was a big decision as my wife and I had two young kids at the time.
“When I first went over I had about six to eight weeks by myself and that was tough. When they joined me it was so much better.
“The culture is different, the weather’s different, the food’s different and the lifestyle’s different but I absolutely loved it.
“I would train really early in the morning because it was so hot then be finished by noon and home.
“We would spend the day down at the beach or at a swimming pool.
“You would spend 10 or 11 months of the year in shorts and t-shirts – very different from Scotland or England!
“It was just amazing and we had a great quality of life. The time I got to actually spend with my kids while they were young was invaluable and irreplaceable.
“It was an unbelievable move for family life and for my football career as I had to learn how to play a different game because of the heat.
“Hydration was so important as I would lose 4-6 kilos again in sweat.
“I had to learn a lot more tactically because you couldn’t run about the same way. It just wasn’t possible because of the weather.
“When I came back from India I started doing my coaching badges.
“It was great to experience British football, where everything is done at 100 miles an hour, and to play abroad where you need to be fit as a fiddle and it’s a lot slower and a lot more tactical.
“It was great to get that insight before I started on my coaching journey.
“When you start doing coaching courses, get on the training pitch and manage people, it’s only really then that you find out whether it’s for you or not.
“I’ve really got the coaching bug now. I love being on the grass. If you can’t play anymore this is the next best thing.
“I’ve got my B Licence and A Licence now and I’ll do the Pro Licence one day.
“I also had experience of being Assistant Manager at Stranraer and it was a lot harder than I thought. I just tried to learn as much as I could and I’ve done that throughout my career.
“I’m proud of what I achieved in the game and the longevity that I had.
“I went full-time at 16 and retired when I was 39 so I had a lot of great experiences at Rangers, Falkirk, in England and India and even at junior level with Largs.
“I now coach a local team, the W Academy in Glasgow, and I enjoy that.
“I work with young players up to the 2010s group and I really love it. I also do some one-on-one coaching in Largs and I can focus on small details with the kids.
“I like the balance of being able to do that. I’ve gained a lot of knowledge and I’d love to pass that on to more young players in the future – it might be grassroots football, pro youth academy football or a first-team at some point.
“I’ll never forget that it all started for me at Rangers and I don’t think I could have had a better grounding or a better place to start my career.”
Darryl’s 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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