Former Leeds United and Aston Villa man was ‘ghosted’ by Rangers ahead of medical
Rangers’ academy graduate could have returned later in his career
Ross McCormack has revealed he was poised to re-join Rangers back in 2018 but they ghosted him in the end. He was set to link up with the Ibrox club on loan from Aston Villa but he claimed the Gers stopped answering the phone to his agent.
The Glasgow-born subsequently ended up moving to Australia on a temporary basis. He first joined Melbourne City before switching to Central Coaster Mariners.
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McCormack, who is 38-years-old, rose up through the academy at Rangers and was a regular for the Scottish Premiership outfit at various different youth levels. He went on to make 14 appearances for the first-team as a youngster and scored four goals, as well as having a loan spell away at Doncaster Rovers to get some experience under his belt.
He has said he nearly went back to the Gers seven years ago but it fell through. When asked why he moved Down Under to escape, he said on the Open Goal podcast: “A bit of both. The only other move at that period of time was I was going to go to Rangers on a season-long loan with Steven Gerrard. And then the day I was meant to go and do the medical and sign, they just stopped answering the phone to my agent.
“I don’t know (why). I’ve got an idea but I’ll probably keep it to myself. I was literally going into Aston Villa to train with the under-16s or whatever it was and then up to Glasgow to do a medical, but then they didn’t answer the phone.”
He has also said he was a Celtic season ticket holder as a child: “Are we still rolling? Aye I was mate, I was. I had a season ticket.
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“My last game we had the season ticket was St Johnstone at home when Celtic stopped Rangers getting 10-in-a-row. (Henrik) Larsson and (Harald) Brattbakk scored. So that was my last game as a season ticket (holder) as I went full-time the next year.
“I was on the pitch after that game stealing the grass and putting it in my pocket, during the pitch invasion at Parkhead. I was then 15 when I went full-time (with Rangers). When I was eight, I went for a trial (with Celtic) up at St Roch’s and they told me I was too small.”
McCormack left Rangers in 2006 to join Motherwell before moving down the border when Cardiff City came calling. He was prolific during his time in Wales and fired 30 goals in 88 games to earn a transfer to Leeds United.
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The ex-Scotland international carried on his form with the Whites and found the net on 58 occasions in 158 outings for the Yorkshire club. Spells at Fulham and then Aston Villa came around for him after that before his career hit a bit of a crossroads.
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He ended up going to Australia for a change of scene and returned to Scotland near the end of his playing days with Motherwell. McCormack has more recently put his boots back on in non-league with Doncaster City along with Charlie Mulgrew.
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