Halliday 15
G Henderson 30, 62, 71
Match Information
Attendance: 22,000
Referee: Joe P. Rowe (Glasgow)
Matchday: Saturday
Match Trivia
A Good full back, I suppose, must sometimes get pretty fed up with a bunch of forwards who cannot shoot, or who don’t! I mean his own forwards, of course. I am inclined to think Napper Thomson was in that mood when, twenty minutes from time, he dashed forward, and smashed a strong, troublesome shot at Robb. It was a lesson to the front-rank men, but it came too late. It was a lesson in particular to Davis McLean. Passes from his inside men, or from behind, had repeatedly been scorned by this once-brilliant centre. He seemed to refuse to accept responsibility. When a dash through might have paid, he lashed the ball to a wing man, and not often was it a very accurate slash either! He is but a shade – in a football sense – of the McLean we once admired. Perhaps the Dundee officials learned their lesson when Hailliday scored the first goal of the game. Dave was at outside left, but he had worked in towards the centre before he drove a screaming left foot shot past the bewildered Robb. Halliday is Dundee’s obvious centre. Perhaps, too, McLean learned a lesson later on – the lesson that so-called cute tactics – tactics that deceive a referee but leave your opponents’ ribs or backs sore – have a boomerang effect. They produce retaliation. Manderson and Dixon saw to it that McLean got tit-for-tat – indeed, several tit-for-tats before the game was finished. Henderson’s ideas of a centre forward’s duties were much more impressive. And much more profitable, too. George, once of Dundee, had the hat trick. He took Fotheringham completely by surprise half an hour from the start. His drive from twenty yards out got the inside angle of the upright, and Fotheringham fingered at the some time. The force of the shot did the rest. Half an hour later – in the second half – Cairns did a brainy thing. He swept a fine, unexpected pass to Alan Morton. Alan beat his man and lobbed the sphere over Fotheringham’s upstretched hands. Henderson headed home and got the hat trick by shoving in another with his cranium from a Morton corner kick ten minutes later. Archibald’s wonderful solo effort close on time was not needed but emphasised the Rangers superiority. The amazingly accurate, supremely confident combination of the Light Blues after the third goal did all that was required in that direction. Dundee’s recognition of utter, irretrievable defeat was reflected in their attitude of despair. Henderson was the hero od the game. Three seasons ago this Forfar lad played outside right for Dundee against Rangers. James Gordon was at left half for the Ibrox team, and Henderson led him a merry dance. Within a month he was at Ibrox. Astute Rangers! Assuming that the Light Blues’ Directors act on the some principle, I am prepared to suggest that they were attracted by the display of one or two of the Dundee team. Alan Morton is an outside left of brilliance. But what did he do previous to that sparkling last quarter of an hour? He was bottled up by two of the best men in Dundee’s team. Ross shoved him in, and Brown hammered in the cork. These lads are hot stuff. Brown has speed, judgment, and pluck. Ross was almost as good. The same thing happened on the other wing. Coyle was great in defence. Thomson had Archibald taped off most of the time. Not a Ranger failed. But half a dozen of the Dundee men were hopelessly out-classed. I liked Sam Irving. His quick sense of danger took him to the right spot every time. And more, he played constructively. Knox occasionally got across a dangerous centre, and Halliday, while he retained his confidence, which was not for long, did useful work. But undoubtedly his position is centre forward. See to it Dundee!
