Murray (2)
Allan (2)
Match Information
Attendance: 22000
Referee:
Matchday: Wednesday
Match Trivia
British Cup - Challenge Match - Newcastle United last night extracted a full and ample revenge for their defeat a week ago. The boot was on the other foot with a vengeance in the return game at St James Park. It was a complete reversal of the first match, with the exception that Rangers did not take advantage of their opening superiority to score as did the United at Ibrox. With only a few minutes gone Sam English crashed into goalkeeper McInroy. The ball ran out to McPhail, who with the whole stretch of the net to shoot at sent the ball birling wide of the target. A goal here might have made a world of difference. Rangers had still another chance to step off with a goal. That was the time, shortly afterwards, when Morton centred a fine ball and English headed it into McInroy. Had it been a League match or a cup-tie, McPhail would doubtless have charged the goalkeeper over the line. Mac refrained, however, evidently in the determination to keep the atmosphere as friendly as possible. The game ran on level terms for 27 minutes, when Murray, who was occupying Richardsons place at inside right, capped a swift movement on the left with a snapshot goal ar close range. Meiklejohn made a claim for offside, but the referee, and almost everybody else, had no doubt about the legitimacy of the goal. From this point, the game took a definite slant in Newcastles favour, and we then saw what it meant to Newcastle to score first goal. Their play took on a new note of confidence, and Rangers, right to the end, were struggling against the collar. Five minutes after the first goal, came the second. This time Allen, the centre was the scorer. I must protest, however, against the palpable push he gave Simpson prior to shooting. He knocked the Rangers centre-half off his balance, and before the Scot had recovered, Allen had regained possession and scored with a magnificent shot across the goal. The rest of the story concerns Newcastles triumph. Before leaving the first half, however, reference should be made to two fine tries by Morton, which McInroy turned over the bar, and also to an Archibald shot which carried a foot over the timber, with the tall goalkeeper properly beaten for perhaps the only time in the game. When the second half started with the Rangers having the breeze at their backs, the three hundred ardent Glasgow followers, with the blue favours, doubtless expected their team to settle to their game, and show the 22,000 spectators how football is played north of the Tweed. Alas and alack! Rangers were knocked right on the head, first Allen then McMenemy scoring smart goals. Allens goal was a peculiar affair. Murray did the leading-up work, Rangers defence got into a tangle, and after Allen had seemingly missed his chance, the ball came back to him, and he finished an exciting melee by slamming it home at close range. The McMenemy goal was the most spectacular of the lot. The player smacked the ball from 22 yards range. It hit the under side of the bar, came down and struck Hamilton on the back and so into the net. This goal, by the way, followed a poor clearance by McDonald. Newcastle were right on their toes now and carried through many delightful movements. Weaver had one startling run, when he veered over to the right, and developed a movement with Boyd which penetrated into Rangers vitals. No goal came from this wonderful incursion, but in twenty minutes Murray headed a beauty, following a crisp centre from Lang. Rangers played good football in the open, but disclosed a sad lack of punch at goal. They managed to force three corners, and later they netted through English. It was just like their luck, however, that Sam should be adjudged a yard offside. Ultimately, it looked as if Rangers might play for a week and never beat McInroy, who seemed a veritable Dumbarton Rock. Even close-up ground shots by McPhail and Morton failed to get the better of McInroy, who surely cannot have played a better game in his whole career. Rangers played most disappointingly. They were unrecognisable from last week. Time after time a nice movement would be started up in midfield, only to break down with a most puerile pass. They could finish nothing they started. Admittedly, the breaks did not go with them, and the ball seemed to run more kindly for Newcastle. This is all that cane be said, however, in alleviation of their somewhat dismal failure. Marshall was most unfortunate in his passing. English was blotted out by the tall Newcastle pivot, Betton. McPhail, Archibald and Morton were bright and bad in turns. The left winger found he lacked the speed to diddle Nelson. Yet Allan manged to be the only dangerous shot in the Rangers attack. That was one marked difference in the teams. Newcastle carried five forwards who could all shoot with sting. Rangers were positively flabby by comparison. Meiklejohn and Brown failed to grip the English inside forwards as they did last week. Indeed, Brown took a long time to settle to anything like a decent game, and even at its best it was not the real Brown. Gray and Hamilton played well, but McDonalds covering-up at close quarters was inadequate at time. Newcastle deserve great praise for the manner in which they turned the tables on Rangers. Their fast ground passing had the effect of stretching the Glasgow defence, and the entire front line displayed form that on the Ibrox showing seemed beyond them. Murray played a splendid game against his old colleagues, while McMenemy did things to justify the high regard in which he is held on Tyneside. Weaver was back to his Wembley form at left half, while Nelson and Fairhurst played with fine understanding, and were seldom in difficulties. The man of the match, however, was McInroy. Needless to say, the Newcastle officials were overjoyed with their victory
