In the summer of 1986, Terry Butcher was regarded as being one of the finest central defenders in the British Isles. A standout performer at the heart of the Ipswich Town defence in the 1980s, he was a first pick for England and had been in terrific form during the World Cup Finals in Mexico. He was courted by Manchester United and Tottenham Hotspur on his return from North America, but it was the persuasive powers of Graeme Souness that won him over and he joined Rangers for a club record fee of £725, 000.
In the long run it would prove money well spent, as Butcher became the cornerstone of Rangers' rebuilding programme. His arrival also illustrated that Souness meant business and showed that a Rangers board that had often been regarded as parsimonious were prepared to back their manager as he sought to revive the fortunes of the club.
Immediately installed as club captain, Butcher made his debut in a friendly against Bayern Munich at Ibrox on 5 August, and led the team out for their opening Premier Division match of the 1986/87 season against Hibernian four days later. It was the first of forty-three league appearances that the Englishman made in his debut season, and it was his goal - a towering header against Aberdeen at Pittodrie - that clinched the Light Blues' first title in nine years.
Victory in the title race and success in the Scottish League Cup - Rangers defeated Celtic 2-1 in the Final - had made Butcher's first season in Scotland a memorable one, but his second campaign was blighted by injury and suspension. He was ordered off in a tempestuous Old Firm game at Ibrox in October, and just a month later he broke his leg in a league match against Aberdeen at the same venue. The injury kept him out the side for the remainder of the season, and his prolonged absence undoubtedly cost Rangers a second successive Championship win. The Light Blues finished third, twelve points adrift of champions Celtic.
A tough, no-nonsense centre-back, Butcher also boasted a fine range of passing - his long forward passes with his left foot were a hallmark of Rangers' attacking play in that era - and he was re-introduced to the Rangers team when he returned to the fold in time for the start of the 1988/89 season. During that campaign he forged an excellent partnership with Richard Gough as Rangers won back the Premier Division title and also added the League Cup for a third successive season. Butcher missed only two league matches, and scored a couple of vital goals, notably his looping header against Celtic in a 4-1 win in the league at Ibrox on New Years' Day 1989.
Butcher added another league title to his collection in the 1989/90 season, playing in thirty-four of Rangers' thirty-six league matches, but it would prove to be his last full season as a Rangers player. After returning from the World Cup in Italy nursing a knee injury, he struggled for form in the early matches of the 1990/91 season, and endured a dreadful afternoon at Tannadice in September when Dundee United profited from two of his mistakes to secure a 2-1 win. Those errors were Butcher's last acts in a Rangers jersey. He was dropped for the next match, the semi-final of the League Cup against Aberdeen four days later, and never played for the first team again. He was sold to Coventry City for £400, 000 in November 1990 and became player-manager at Highfield Road.
Named in the Greatest Ever Rangers XI in 1999 and inducted into the club's Hall of Fame in 2000, Butcher made a total of 176 appearances and scored eleven goals for the Light Blues. He played a pivotal role in rousing Rangers from their decade-long slumber, and wore his heart of his sleeve, which means he will forever be regarded as a legend in the eyes of the club's supporters. (Alistair Aird, Author of Ally McCoist - Portrait of a Hero)