W Reid 30
Chalmers 76
Match Information
Attendance: 35,000
Referee: J.B. Stark (Airdrie)
Matchday: Saturday
Match Trivia
George Chapman came out in his true colours in the strenuous cup encounter at Shawfield Park. Since his return to Scotland from Blackburn, the Rangers captain had not touched his Lancashire form up till Saturday. He could not have struck his form at a more opportune time. A big issue was at stake. The Clyde players had performed brilliantly in the earlier matches, and the Rangers had been so inconsistent that it was more in hope than confidence the Ibrox players appeared on a ground that had bitter cup memories for them. The enclosure never looked better, but the expected record attendance did not materialise, although there were not much short of 35,000 people present. The Shawfield record was established last season when the Celts and Clyde met in the Scottish Cup ties. All through it was a typical cup struggle and neither set of forwards got time to settle, so keen was the tackling. A feature of the season so far had been the outstanding brilliance of the Clyde forwards, but they were rushed off their legs by the eager Rangers and compelled to resort mainly to wing attacks, which were almost as effectually checkmated as their attempts to settle to combined action. None of the five revealed the semblance of their ordinary form, but the Rangers had something to say about that. Kyle was clean off-colour against his old clubmates, but it appears his subsequent play was affected by a hot tackle with Galt in the first five minutes. Chalmers, willing and clever as ever, was badly supported, while he was beaten time and again by the speed and vigilance of Chapman, whose headwork and anticipatory movements accounted in large measure for the Shawfield forwards being compelled to play second fiddle. A cross wind came out of the west and helped the Rangers in the early stages. The improvement in their play was manifest from the first, as George Law for the first time this season settled to a steady game at back, and Richmond assisted him as cleverly in defeating the individual raiding of the Clyde forwards. By contrast the Clyde backs were not so reliable more especially Watson, who like his clubmate Walker, was surprised by the energy and dash of Alex Smith, who was one of the most successful forwards afield. Bennett, like Gordon on the other side of Reid, played with conspicuous dash and keenness. Bennett’s inside work was invaluable to Smith. Hogg and Gilligan served up a few titbits to the liking of the crowd, but the astute Clyde back was more often downed than he is accustomed to. Reid scored cleverly with a surprise shot for the Rangers when the game was half an hour gone and they held their lead until fourteen minutes from time, when the perseverance of Chalmers was rewarded when he followed up a cross from Stirling and out witted Lock by his coolness. A draw was a fitting reflex to a spirited game. To the Clyde crowd the opportunity of a replay was most welcome, as the side rarely revealed their ordinary game. Both goalkeepers saved what critical shots they got in a masterful style. McTurk, Gilligan, Walker and Morrison played a bit below their average game, but the others much under it. Watson seemed thoroughly done up at the finish. The forwards were early beaten by the fierce tackling of Galt, Chapman, and in a lesser degree of Hendry, and they did not recover from the shock until after they had equalised, when a bit of luck might have found the better playing team in the cold. Mr JB Stark is again the referee on Wednesday
