McCandless 12
Match Information
Attendance: 10,000
Referee: M Quinn (Bellshill)
Matchday: Saturday
Match Trivia
The w1nd and keen tackling to a large extent discounted good football at Ibrox, yet the game can be set down as one of the most thrilling ever played on the ground. In the manner of the getting of their goal Rangers may be said to be fortunate to have won. The Honest Men had a lot of hard luck, but that doesn’t win points. On the other hand, Rangers played the last twenty minutes without Muirhead. They showed no sighs of ‘getting the wind up’, although only one goal up. I thought their tactics of chiefly relying on defence were wrong, but they were successful. That should be good enough for anybody. Ayr died gamely. Had they been stronger at outside left they might have saved a point. Otherwise, they were a grand fighting team. Rangers started off with a strong wind in their favour and a chance came the way of the Ibrox team when Morton forced a corner off Stewart. Alan placed a beauty and Archibald put narrowly past a post. In 12 minutes, Rangers opened the scoring. Cairns was fouled by smith close to the penalty line. Five Ayr men lined up ten yards from the ball. McCandless shot a raker. Nisbet, partly blinded, got his palms to the ball, but its pace beat him. The wind fell a bit after a shower and Ayr came more into the picture, but not before Nisbet had effected a glorious save from a header by Meiklejohn with Cairns and Henderson on him. Robb saved smartly from Harry Cunningham and Stewart caused the keeper more trouble with a fine effort at Kilpatrick’s corner kick. Next minute Henderson at the other end shot over. So, the game went throughout the whole of the half, the nearest thing to a count being when McLeod sent a great ball to Kilpatrick. The winger cut in and Robb found himself saved from trouble when a free kick was given for a foul tackle on him. Play was a bit hefty the first half, but it was more so in the second. There were numerous casualties. McLeod and H Cunningham were off for a bot, and Muirhead went off with a damaged knee and Rangers lost his services. Ayr went all out for the equaliser this half, but they had no luck. McLeod put one narrowly over, and we got thrills in plenty when Miller turned in an innocent enough looking ball. There was a general mix-up on the goal-line. It looked a cert for Ayr, but someone was fouled for tackle on Robb, who went down and a glorious chance for the Honest Men came to nothing. Then again McLeod shot a great ball, which Robb stopped with his body and then cleared. And the centre-half had Willie well beaten with a header off a free kick. The ball went past the wrong side of the post. Rangers seemed content to hold what they had, and during the period of Muirhead’s absence only Henderson and Archibald played as forwards. Even so, Nisbet was kept fairly busy, and did well to stop a great shot from Sandy, and fortunate not to lose a goal when Henderson put one narrowly past. Of Nisbet it can be said he was unfortunate to lose the goal he did. He was completely unsigned. Throughout he kept a grand goal. Robb too was grand, but the Rangers’ backs weren’t the equal of Smith and McCloy, the latter being the best back on the field. Muirhead was great until he was injured, but he had a superior in McLeod, who just failed to win a point for his side. Kelly too was good, and Stewart not far behind. Meiklejohn has done better. It was a game in which individualism played a great part, and therefore, I pick Archibald as the best forward for Rangers and Kilpatrick for Ayr. Both the Cunninghams were good, but the Rangers’ big fellow, because of the wind, often found those swinging passes of his going astray. Latterly he was cute enough not to attempt them. Tolland led his line well in the open, but at close quarters was completely blanketed by Dixon.
