I beat Celtic in Scottish Cup final after freezing in the night in my pants

You’d have to go back over 20 years to find the last Rangers side to beat Celtic in the Scottish Cup – but what a story it is.

When Rangers lifted the Scottish Cup in 2002, it was not just a dramatic night – but a dramatic morning too for Arthur Numan.

In an all-time epic finale between Glasgow’s biggest rivals at Hampden Park, Peter Lovenkrands scored the winner in a thrilling 3-2 victory for Gers.

The win was made all the more impressive by the fact that just hours before, Rangers full-back Numan stood outside in the freezing cold wearing nothing but his tighty whities alongside his teammates.

That was because in the small hours of the morning, the fire alarm went off in the team hotel – with some thinking a sly Celtic fan might have tried to disrupt their rivals.

However, it only had the reverse effect as the icy start to the day only fired up the Rangers stars.

“Yeah we were in the Crown Plaza,” said a 54-year-old Numan. “It was the middle of the night when the alarm went off. You thought, ‘what’s happening?’

“I think it turned out to be the best preparation for us because it kept us sharp! We were all standing out side the hotel in our underwear freezing.

“I don’t know what caused it. Maybe someone interfered with the smoke detector. But it was so strange.

“One minute you’re getting yourself ready for a cup final, then all of a sudden the alarm goes off at 4am and you’re standing outside.

“But we still won, because it kept us sharp! That cup final was so special. It went 1-1, then 2-2 and then that amazing goal by Peter.”

It was a memorable final, with both sides including some top players such as Chris Sutton, Stiliyan Petrov and Henrik Larsson for Celtic and Barry Ferguson, Ronald de Boer and Tore Andre Flo for Rangers.

John Hartson opened the scoring only for Lovenkrands to net an equaliser two minutes later as Bobo Balde struck after half-time.

Ferguson made it 2-2 before Lovenkrands dealt the killer blow in the last minute, delivering an unforgettable diving header to send the blue half of Glasgow crazy.