A lot is made of youth football’s negatives in Scotland. With many criticising the pathway, particularly at Rangers, for not preparing players properly for the demands of men’s first team football.
However, under the guidance of Stevie Smith, that looks to be changing within the Rangers Training Centre, as emphasised by the side’s 4-1 league win over ex-Ger Chris Burke’s Kilmarnock last night.
Many onlookers have criticised the development setup for failing to instil a winning mentality, and a need to be victorious in every match, a must need requirement to make it as a Rangers player but under 19’s coach Smith, a graduate of the Ibrox academy himself, says that mindset is key, as is developing the lads as players.
Speaking to the Rangers Journal post-match he said: “It always has to be a balance. You have to win in the right way, and we did that tonight because we showed character and mentality and sometimes that's what it takes.
A lot of the time when you get to first team level, that's what it's about. It's about that mentality and that character. We need to develop them as footballers as well and they need to take the ball under pressure and handle different situations.”
Defender Oliver Hynd starred in the victory from the centre of defence, alongside summer signing James Reid, and he added to his coaches comments saying: “That is what we're getting told every day [the need to win].
“And to be honest, the boys' mentality has been top every game we're at. It's the same preparation, same standards we need to meet and I think we have.
“There's obviously been games where you don't meet them, but you've got to just grind it out.”
Hynd underlined that, despite being youth football, the U19s aim to win every match and competition, reflecting the winning culture at Rangers: “Every game we play is competitive, we always want to win, we always want to be the best team.
“We’ve got the league, but we’ve also got the KDM Evolution Trophy and the Youth Cup, so there's so many trophies yet to be won.
“Our main goal is to win everything. We want to come here, win games and put teams away.”
Positive and promising words from a young man who clearly understands the standards, expectation and the pressure that comes from being a Rangers player, possessing a mindset that looks to be missing from the current first team picture.