Green’s Dictionary of Slang

rag order n.

In phrases

in rag order (also in rags) [SE ragged]

(Irish/Aus.) in dire straits, in a mess.

1949		R. Park Poor Man’s Orange 113: The doctors down at the hospital say I’m all in rags inside and operations wouldn’t do a bit of good.
1990		R. Doyle Snapper 116: There mustn’t be another mot so, said Paddy. – If he’s in rag order like tha’.
1996		P. Howard The Joy (2015) [ebook] Me guts are in rag order. It’s the hooch that does it to you, corrodes away your innards.
2018		J.-P. Jordan Joys of War 48: One minute I was sweating, the next shivering. I kept going. Then I vomited. I was in rag order.