J Smith 42
Match Information
Attendance: unknown - to be confirmed
Referee: W Bell (Motherwell)
Matchday: Saturday
Match Trivia
A compote of fog, fun and football at Ibrox Park! Never so dense was the atmosphere to obscure the field of play. Scorers of weirdly-attired students provided the comedy at the interval. Their pipe band paraded round the track, the while the others merrily chased the round ball, without regard to rules, fouls or appurtenances. All this happened while the real players enjoyed a few minutes respite in the centre of the playing pitch to gargle a lemon. I had not seen the Rangers for ever so long. Represented by the identical team that conquered the Celts at the New Year, the Light Blues gave a delightful exposition of accurate footwork in the first half hour that inclined one to look for their ultimate triumph. Every man could sense the position of his mate, and none rarely kept the ball long enough to invite the tackle. Sharper back play and the use of the low pass were other feature that distinguished their movement from as plucky a Paisley team as ever appeared at Ibrox. In that half hour of bewildering Rangers movements, the man who defied them from scoring was McCloy. The Paisley goalie gave away nothing. He took all manner of shots from Gillick, Smith and McPhail with the confidence of a man who knew he could prevail. On the ground he smothered the ball with his body when clearance otherwise was impossible. The solitary goal of the game was unsaveable. Off a misjudged header by Feeney, four minutes four minutes from half-time, Nicholson sped down the wing, crossed the ball with precision to Smith, who was unmarked. A step or two and a hard shot from close range and the centre had the ball in the net. A better game from the Saints in the second-half! Their best efforts accrued in the last twenty minutes, following a period when the Rangers were still the more dangerous aggressors, but had been played on to in a way that often upset their scheming and combination. Co-operative movements the Light Blues could not then strike so easily, for Gebbie, Feeney and Miller had found a checkmating game, and Baird and Ancell had struck steadier form. As backs they could not compare with Gray and McDonald, who cleared more reliably and with a snap their rivals could not produce. The Rangers pair advanced with their attack. Occasionally Gray was over midfield to snatch a pass that was meant for Knox or Marshall. The latter, like McKenzie and McGregor, were stout-hearted workers. I liked McKenzie. He lay well up on Simpson, ever ready, and often dangerous. Ten minutes from time, he seemed to have the goal at his mercy. A clean run on. As Dawson came out, he stumbled as he was about to shoot, and the chance was lost. Mac is the best in centres the Saints have produced for a long time. Dowall worked harder than Knox with the like non-success. At half-back, there was more repose and more effective stylish action from the Rangers trio. Simpson was rarely beaten, and Brown had no equal for nippy and neat close action. The Rangers can go forward with confidence. What a treasure they have in Gillick
