I am full of admiration for what the Englishman has achieved this season. To score 15 goals when you are playing at full-back is a great achievement.
That has been a significant contribution to the Ibrox club’s Championship win, their Petrofac Cup success and the Scottish Cup run, which will culminate in next month’s Final against Hibs.
His 15th goal took him past the club records for the position which he had jointly shared by John Greig (1967-68) and Sandy Jardine (1974-75).
And afterwards he was quick to celebrate the landmark, talking of it being a dream to take something from Greig, a man who has been voted the Greatest-Ever Rangers Player.
It is here I take issue with Tavernier.
John and Sandy’s efforts were achieved in Scotland’s leading division. James has got his haul in a year when the club are playing in the second tier.
You can admire them all but you can’t fairly compare what James has done against his predecessor’s run.
To do so is akin to comparing apples with pears.
It is not the first time since Rangers’ exile in 2012 that we have encountered these kind of stories.
When they won League Two, then the Third Division, in 2012-13, the talk was of breaking the highest number of consecutive wins, a record held since 1928-29.
I couldn’t have it. With all respect to the likes of Berwick, Peterhead and Montrose, you can’t put wins over these clubs on a par with victories over the likes of Celtic, Hearts and Aberdeen.
It is, of course, entirely possible Tavernier will go on to match, or even better, this year’s goals tally when Rangers step up to the Premiership next season.
If he does, then fair play to him. He will then be able to legitimately talk about himself in the same bracket as the likes of John and Sandy, guys I shared a dressing-room with at Ibrox.
Personally, I think it will be fascinating to see how he gets on at the higher level.
After his flying start to the season, people were quick to suggest Rangers wouldn’t be able to hold onto him, that he would be off at the end of the season to the English Premier League in a £5-million-plus move.
Since then, of course, his form has dipped a bit and the speculation has dried up.
To be fair, I don’t think that is the player’s fault. Rather, I would say, opposition teams have figured out how to combat his threat.
That lesson won’t have been missed by the clubs in the top flight – or their managers.
Blessed with full-time squads containing plenty of young fit players, they will be only too keen to try and likewise show they can shut him down.
So, while he has a lot to celebrate after his efforts this season, James Tavernier is also a young man with a challenge in front of him.
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