Rangers mourn club legend Ronnie MacKinnon – the defensive rock who shackled Pele and helped Scotland to their famous 1967 win over world champions England – after his death aged 83

Rangers are mourning the loss of one of the club’s greats following the death of Ronnie MacKinnon at the age of 83.

A defender of composure and exceptional pace, MacKinnon made almost 500 appearances for Ibrox, winning two league titles, four Scottish Cups and three League Cups.

He was a mainstay of Scot Symon’s Treble-winning team in 1963-64 – one of the club’s most respected line-ups – but suffered a brutal broken leg during Rangers’ quest for European glory Cup Winners Cup in 1972.

MacKinnon’s international career was also capped 28 times by Scotland and contained some golden memories.

After a joust with Pele in 1966, he was part of the team that carved out a special place in Scottish sporting folklore by inflicting a brutal defeat on World Cup holders England at Wembley a year later.

MacKinnon, who has died aged 83, played almost 500 times for Rangers in the 1960s and 1970s

After leaving Rangers, MacKinnon moved to a new life in South Africa and spent 30 years there before returning to Scotland to live on the Isle of Lewis.

The Lewis and Harris Rangers Supporters Club recently held a MacKinnon tribute evening in Stornoway, which was attended by former team-mates Peter McCloy and Alex MacDonald, alongside Rangers chairman John Bennett and CEO James Bisgrove.

A statement from the club confirmed his death: ‘Everyone involved with Rangers Football Club is saddened to learn that former player Ronnie MacKinnon has passed away at the age of 83.

‘A Hall of Fame member, MacKinnon won two league titles, four Scottish Cups and three League Cups, while also being capped 28 times by Scotland.

“The club extends our condolences to Elizabeth, his widow and his entire family.

‘The family requests that their privacy be respected at this sad time. The club will pay further tribute to Mr MacKinnon in due course.”

Initially a winger, MacKinnon attended Govan High School alongside Sir Alex Ferguson and, like the future management icon, took some of his first steps in football with junior team Benburb. However, his burning ambition was to find a house down the road at Ibrox.

“I loved Rangers and always wanted to play for them,” MacKinnon recalled in an interview last year on the occasion of his 82nd birthday. ‘I dreamed it would happen, but never thought it would happen.

‘I was lucky enough to play for a junior team one day and I played a good game. It was at Renfrew Juniors Stadium.

McKinnon (second from left) helps to crowd Geoff Hurst during Scotland’s famous victory over world champions England in 1967 at Wembley

He was part of the Rangers team that was beaten by Bayern Munich in the 1967 European Cup Winners’ Cup final and is seen here trying on a hat in Nuremberg

‘I went home and the phone rang, my mum answered and she was all nervous. She told me on the phone it was Scot Symon and I couldn’t believe it. He told me he wanted me to come to Ibrox the next morning at 9.30am.

‘It was like winning the lottery. I walked into training and there were all my heroes. I thought I was dreaming. There was Willie Woodburn, George Young and all the greats. They made me feel at home and shook my hand.

‘On my first day of training I was the last. But gradually I became stronger and my leg muscles became stronger, until finally they could no longer catch me. I was gone.’

In his early days he once filled in for Jim Baxter at left half, but driving the genius out of Fife was never going to be possible. Then came a suggestion about central defense.

From that moment on there was no turning back.

“I was quite interested in the centre-half,” said MacKinnon. ‘My twin brother Donnie was a centre-back and we could practice together.

‘I’d played seven or eight games for Rangers and then I started in the Scottish Cup final against St Mirren in 1962.

‘I could not believe it. I played with Baxter and (Eric) Caldow and guys like that, but they made it easy for me and winning a medal was unbelievable. Scot Symon was so happy with me, he kept playing against me and we won the Treble in 1963/64.’

MacKinnon is mobbed by cheering fans after Rangers beat Slavia Sofia to reach the 1967 final

Firmly established at Rangers, a Scotland debut followed in 1965. It wasn’t a bad start as MacKinnon contributed to a 1-0 win over Italy at Hampden, with clubmate John Greig scoring the winner.

A year later, MacKinnon clashed with Pele in a 1-1 friendly draw against Brazil at Hampden. However, the famous image of them in a heated argument really involved someone else.

“Pele was not happy,” MacKinnon admitted. ‘Billy Bremner was just a little guy, but he was tough as nails and he tried to do ‘keepy-uppy’ with Pele.

‘He asked me to talk to Bremner about his tackles. I said, ‘Every other player but him!’

In April 1967 he enjoyed keepy-uppy of a different kind as Baxter led England’s humiliation on home turf with a 3-2 victory in the Home Internationals. It was the first defeat the world champion suffered in twenty matches.

‘Has there ever been a better performance from a team from Scotland?’ MacKinnon mused in 2021. “I don’t think so.”

However, a month later his emotions took a different direction when Rangers painfully lost the European Cup Winners’ Cup final to Bayern Munich after extra time in Nuremberg.

Unlike some others on that team, MacKinnon would not receive the restorative reward of glory five years later.

MacKinnon (back row, second from right) joins the Rangers team in 1967

A struggle for a corner in the second round against Sporting Lisbon left MacKinnon lying on the pitch in agony. His leg was broken.

He received a medal after Willie Waddell’s team went all the way to a final victory over Dynamo Moscow in Barcelona, ​​but in his 30s a year out of the game ended his time at Rangers.

“It was horrible,” he recalled. ‘With any broken leg, it all depends on where it is. It was a tough job trying to get back into the team. It took me back to square one.

“It showed that you are in the hands of the gods.

‘But I got a good offer to play for Durban United and I loved it.’

From the sunny coast of South Africa to his later years in the Outer Hebrides, MacKinnon’s achievements continued to be recognized with justifiable reverence.

His place in the Rangers pantheon is undisputed.