THE Greenock man at the forefront of the Rangers revival has told the Tele how he will warm up for tonight’s big match – by having tea at his mum’s.

Stewart Robertson took charge of the Ibrox club in July last year when he was appointed as managing director – but it’s only recently emerged that the Glasgow-based chartered accountant actually grew up in Inverclyde.

He stayed with his family next to Ravenscraig Hospital where his dad worked and they also lived in Grieve Road for a spell.

The former Greenock High pupil then moved away to study at the University of Glasgow and has lived and worked in and around the city ever since.

But the Rangers MD, 49, is still a frequent visitor to his hometown to see family and friends, including his mother who still stays locally.

After a busy six months in charge at Ibrox, Stewart is delighted to be heading back to Cappielow to see his boyhood heroes in action against his hometown club - and so he can stop off at his mum’s for tea. In an exclusive interview with the Tele, Stewart said: “I grew up in Greenock. I stayed in the wee group of houses between Pennyfern and Ravenscraig Hospital – my dad ran Ravenscraig.

“I stayed there for a while then moved up just off Grieve Road.

“I went to Glasgow Uni and when I graduated I started working in Glasgow, so that’s the best part of 30 years ago.

“But a lot of the boys I hung about with are still in Inverclyde – Greenock, Gourock and surrounding areas – but when you have a family and a busy job you go down less than you used to and not as often as you should do.

“My mother is still down in Greenock. In fact, I’ll probably go to my mother’s for my tea before I go to the game and do my duties.”

Stewart grew up a Light Blues fan, but like many local folk he also attended matches at Cappielow before heading to Ibrox with supporters clubs in Greenock and Gourock.

The Rangers chief was gutted to have missed the first league meeting between Morton and Rangers in Greenock for almost 25 years in September, due to other commitments.

But he can’t wait to make amends later tonight and is expects another entertaining match between the two sides.

Stewart said: “Morton at Cappielow will be a big game and I’ll definitely be down.

“I’m looking forward to it. It’s funny because when this job came about, and with Rangers not going up, I thought I’d have a chance to go to Cappielow but I missed the game in September.

“My brother and a few of my pals are Morton fans and, growing up in Greenock, I was at Cappielow when I was younger. As you got older, you went to the games with guys from school, heading up the road to Ibrox.

“Initially I went with the Greenock Rangers, then when I was old enough, I went up on the train and travelled to away games too. I used to go to a lot of the away matches with the Gourock supporters’ club. I had a couple of pals who were members in there and in those days the bus left from Cleats.

“It’s a nice wee twist to the job for Rangers to be playing Morton.

“Morton are doing great, they’ve played well this season.

“They played well at Ibrox and were 2-1 up with a few minutes to go. We’ve also been excellent this season.

“The team did well in the recent Hibs game and since then we’ve played really well and you just hope it keeps going.”