Alan Davidson: Walter needs vintage spirit to leave Dons down and out

The contest - although not quite so acute - managed to travel to the early '90s and tomorrow at Ibrox there might even be a sense of deja vu when Aberdeen turn up looking to grasp the victory and stretch the contest for second place in the SPL. Much more than prestige is riding on this one and especially for Rangers and their manager Walter Smith.

Collectively, he and his players require to end this campaign in second place behind Celtic and so guarantee a shot at qualification for the group stages of the Champions League.

Their present four-point advantage would increase to seven in the event and more or less end Aberdeen's aspirations.

Smith has been down this route before and in more compelling circumstances.

He refuses to regard the title-winning success of 1991 as his work, pointing to the fact Graeme Souness had been in control for the bulk of the season. And yet there can be no doubt the initial trophy of his first spell in charge was the catalyst for Rangers' domination of the domestic business through the decade.

Two goals by Mark Hateley on the final afternoon of the campaign allowed Rangers the championship. Aberdeen, then managed by the shrewd Alex Smith, were regarded as odds-on favourites because they required only a draw to take the title.

This time round the stakes aren't stacked so high, but they are nonetheless significant and, assuredly, Smith's desire will be equal to that he embraced some 16 years back.

"It remains a memorable day," he says. "Graeme had left the club about a month before the match and I had been asked to take over, so it was vital to progress the work.

"That was an excellent Aberdeen side with a very clever manager in Alex Smith and a bundle of experience running through the side. They knew how to win matches and prizes, but on the day we had enough about us to get the victory and with it the title.

"I guess every manager or coach recalls his first trophy, so that afternoon retains special memories."

Of course, the passage of time and the flux of the football economy in this land have contrived to lessen standards here.

Back then Rangers enjoyed a formidable strike partnership in Hateley and Mo Johnston - with a certain Ally McCoist also available - and Aberdeen could rely on the international defensive pairing of Alex McLeish and Willie Miller.

Around them footballers of true quality were scattered. There won't be many of such a standard on view tomorrow, but the sense of urgency that characterised that 1991 meeting will remain intact.

The expectations of the Rangers support have grown - perhaps alarmingly - since Smith took over from Paul Le Guen in the early weeks of January. Their sense of disappointment was visible on Wednesday when the Uefa Cup campaign ended against Osasuna in Pamplona - a failure to recognise the limitations of the squad Smith inherited.

Although that 1-0 defeat constituted a slash at the new management regime it did not alter the perspective of Smith and his backroom staff, McCoist and Kenny McDowall. Their priority is to ensure second place and with it the opportunity to operate in the Champions League.

Presently, Rangers are work in progress and the liklihood is Smith's team choices next season will bear scant resemblance to the side that started against the Spaniards. He will not have the volume of cash available to the coaches of the major clubs in England, Spain, Italy, and Germany, but he will be seriously backed financially by the owner, Sir David Murray.

Given that professional football is a gamble, Rangers simply have to bet on their ability to end this season in second place.

Then, they will have to fancy their chances of qualification to the group stages of the Champions League, where the major monies are to be discovered.

The target remains distant but Smith does have the nous to reach out for it. First, though, he must restore Rangers as a viable domestic power. To forward the mission Aberdeen must be dismissed.