FOOTAGE has emerged of how the ongoing building works at Ibrox are progressing. Delays to steel shipments just weeks before the start of the new season caused developments to the Copland Road Stand to run on longer than planned. 5 Building works to the Copland Stand have made Ibrox off-limits to start the season Credit: DRONE AUDITS SCOTLAND 5 The upgrades were supposed to have been completed in the close season Credit: DRONE AUDITS SCOTLAND The Gers board were left scrambling for a place to host their home games on a temporary basis, with Murrayfield in Edinburgh and stadiums in ENGLAND considered as emergency measures.
But Ibrox chiefs reached an agreement with the SFA over the use of Hampden last month, and the Light Blues have been playing matches there ever since. Chairman John Bennett had initially laid out a two-month timeline for their temporary switch to the national stadium when he gave an update to supporters four weeks ago. He was targeting the September 28 fixture against Hibernian for the team's return to their home ground and after the final batch of steel was delivered this week , construction has commenced on the last stage of the works.
Read more Rangers stories KENT AGREE Ex-Rangers star Ryan Kent 'REJECTS offer from Champions League club' JOB HUNT Forgotten ex-Rangers flop leaves club just 11 DAYS after signing new contract Footage taken by Drone Audits Scotland has shown exactly what the state of play is inside Ibrox. It revealed workers carrying out tasks to the exterior of the stadium at the corner of the Broomloan Stand. At least six construction workers were spotted in the Copland Stand itself, with the crane also still in place.
The upper tier of the stand has been completely stripped out, with the majority of the seats placed in front of the Sandy Jardine Stand. Most read in Football FRENCH CONNECTION Celtic 'make offer for Lyon star' who came through PSG academy JOB HUNT Forgotten ex-Rangers flop leaves club just 11 DAYS after signing new contract KAIKED OUT Gers 'have transfer bid rejected' for Brazilian star dubbed the 'new Marquinhos' ALL KICKING OFF Moment ex-Gers star left in agony as off-field clash sparks dugout drama Further imagery showed the pitch being tended to by ground staff - suggesting it could be ready for play soon. In his latest message to fans, Bennett said: "I think it is important to look at the chain of events .
Todd Cantwell's Rangers future "People like to say, quite rightly, nature abhors a vacuum. I'm fully aware of the vacuum that seemed to be created. Nobody was straining more than myself for clarity.
"And for certainty, I have wanted to deliver a certainty that we couldn't deliver. I'm going to come back to that. And I apologise again on behalf of this club for the uncertainty it's caused our fans.
I can assure the fans that the people in this club are working tirelessly to get this done. "So if we just stand back a minute and look at the context of what we are dealing with. "What we're dealing with here is a materials delay.
We have a delay mid-shipment of our materials. And we're not alone because it's happening globally. And it's happening to so many entities, if you like.
"Our situation is we have three consignments on three vessels making their way to Glasgow. Pinch points are the ports. Singapore, probably the biggest.
"Vessel number one has arrived. It is in Glasgow . Those materials are in Glasgow.
And we await vessels two and three. I talked about materials consignment number one in Glasgow. "Let's talk about two and three.
This is where I've been straining to get certainty. And I think you can probably see that I even mentioned it in the statement that we put out. The one thing we crave is certainty.
"And I can't give it. By God, it's an understatement for me to say that's frustrating. It's more than that.
5 The upper tier of the stand has now had its seating totally removed Credit: DRONE AUDITS SCOTLAND 5 A close-up of a section of the Copland Stand at Ibrox Credit: DRONE AUDITS SCOTLAND "So as things stand, delivery number two, and it's on delivery number two that we will begin. "When that gets to Glasgow, you're going to see what I would call the beginning of the final installation. We need those three consignments to hit Glasgow.
Only one has arrived. "That'll take time. It's not final a few days.
As things stand, subject to further slippage, and it frustrates me that I have to keep caveating it that way. "That is scheduled to arrive in Glasgow in the second week of August. "Vessel three, shipment three, is scheduled, as things stand, to arrive in Glasgow in the third week of August.
Then we can begin to think about timelines. "When I think about timelines, it's an aspiration at this stage. "I'm caveating it.
There is still uncertainty. "When I think about timelines, it's about the timeline of us returning to our home, which we all desperately want. Read more on the Scottish Sun MORAY MANIA Cops called amid huge queues as fizzy drink re-launch causes chaos MURRAY MAKEOVER Andy Murray hit with fresh warning over renovations at luxury Cromlix hotel "Clearly, it will be after the September international break.
The question is how long after? "We can aspire for that to be the end of September but it's an aspiration, and I am sorry that I have to caveat this." 5 The stripped-out seats are lying adjacent to the stands at the moment Our New YouTube Channel Subscribe to our new Scottish Sun Sport YouTube channel for all the latest football news, views and amazing moments. We've got every major development covered from Celtic, Rangers, Hearts, Hibs, Aberdeen and the rest of the Scottish Premiership.
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