The 23-year-old former Renfrew High School pupil had been on trial with the Ibrox side for the past four weeks before being offered a two-year deal, with the option of a third, from boss Mark Warburton.

Speaking to Gazette Sport, Halliday admits he still can’t believe he has been given a chance at the club he has supported all of his life. Cheering on his heroes from the terraces, Halliday will now walk out in front of the same fans as a hero himself – and he can’t wait to get going.

Halliday said: “I can’t really put it into words. It has been a whirlwind past couple of weeks from getting a phone call telling me there might be an opportunity for me to go into Murray Park and prove myself.

“It was strange. I had a few concrete offers from other clubs that I could have went to but as soon as I knew that there might be an opportunity to win a deal at Rangers, I wasn’t going to turn that chance down.

“I was always willing to give it a go despite the other deals, I always believed I was good enough to win a contract and thankfully everything has worked out.

“It is a dream come true and signing for the team I supported all my life, coming from a Rangers mad background, I don’t think it can get any better than that.” It has been a non-stop year for Halliday on the field and off it. A move from Middlesbrough to Bradford City in January propelled him into the world’s eye as his goal dumped Chelsea out of the FA Cup. That strike alone will go down as part of one of the biggest FA Cup shocks of all-time.

Before that move a short loan spell at Blackpool allowed him to play under his hero Barry Ferguson, with the former Rangers captain then in charge at Bloomfield Road.

He admits it is players like Ferguson that he looked up to as a kid in the youth ranks and he has had to pinch himself that he will now be following in their footsteps.

Halliday added: “I loved a lot of the Rangers team growing up, to be fair though I loved Paul Gascoigne. Everyone knows he was a bit of a character but you have got to remember how good a player he was. He was amazing to watch.

“Then coming through the youth ranks there was Barry Ferguson. Here you had a boy who clearly loves the club, giving his all and progressing to the first team. I think he was captain by the time I was training with Rangers and I was delighted when I got the chance to play for him at Blackpool.” The move means Halliday’s relatively short career has gone full circle having suffered the heartache of being released by Rangers as a youngster. Halliday now admits being let go at a young age was the making of what has been a successful career.

“Coming through at Rangers was a dream but looking back the coaches at the time probably made the right decision letting me go,” Halliday said.

“If I’m being honest it has been the making of me. Being released by Rangers allowed me to sign for Livingston and be exposed to first team football at a very young age.

“That alone allowed me to progress before I went down to Middlesbrough.

“Who knows what would have happened had I not left Rangers, Livingston was probably the best thing that happened at that time and I have been able to work under some very good coaches and managers, both at Rangers and other clubs.” The ambition of a lifetime is now complete — but Halliday isn’t set to rest on his laurels. Sealing the deal is only the first part of his plan, with a spot in Mark Warburton’s starting 11 the first thing in his sights.

With a midfield including the likes of Nicky Law and fellow local kid Andy Murdoch, Halliday knows he has a task on his hands — even if he still hasn’t come to terms with the switch.

He said: “I know exactly what I have to do but it hasn’t really sunk in yet to be fair. My phone has been going off non-stop and I had to switch it off on Saturday night as I was going to the UFC at the Hydro.

“I’m delighted to have signed but that’s not the end of it. Rangers are the only club that I have ever wanted to play for and now that it has happened I can’t wait to pull on the blue top – but now I am going to have to put in the work if I want to make a good go at this.

“I think it will finally sink in when I walk out in front 40,000 people at Ibrox, that will be when I realise what I achieved.”