McKenzie 28
John McLean 30
Match Information
Attendance: 16,000
Referee: William Bell (Motherwell)
Matchday: Saturday
Match Trivia
Even the most rabid supporter of the Rangers – and trainloads of them went to Somerset Park – freely admitted that Ayr United were worthy of full honours in knocking out the Ibrox team, the previously much-fancied team for the Scottish Cup. Ayr won by two clear goals in the second half, and it would not have been surprising if their lead had been greater. They achieved an astonishingly fine victory by reason of genuine, wholehearted play. Everyman Jack of them gave of his best. They never showed fear of their more polished (by reputation, as it turned out) opponents. They did not attempt anything in the way of fancy, pattern-weaving work, and perhaps what helped them right from the start was the confident way in which their full backs kicked. Resolution of this kind imbued the rest of the team with confidence. Rangers lost because never at any part of the game did, they get a masterly grip of the situation. They failed to reveal anything in the nature of cohesive working; their wingers were never able to round the full backs with any degree of certainty; the inside forwards were often too busy defending to show penetrative effort; the half-backs were harassed too frequently to feed the front rank consistently, and the full backs were below par. Be it said, however, that neither Manderson or McCandless were feeling fit as they should have liked for such a hard game. That the Rangers anticipated a tremendously hard game was undoubted – that they were not very confident of winning, but extremely sure of a draw, seemed to be most boldly reflected in their methods. In that respect alone, the Light Blues made a blunder. It was a repetition to some degree of the old story of their Cup disappointments during the past few seasons. They played (and gradually deteriorated) as if their reputation was at stake, not as if they were intent upon making history, at least for themselves! True enough, Ayr had the benefit of the breeze in the first half. They did quite well with it in their rears. The same breeze blew in the second half. Rangers found the wind no assistance; Ayr played better still against it. The Syr attack was most vigorous and insistent. In the first half the home team forced no less than five successive corners. These advantages not only reflected the persistence of the home attack, but the yielding tendency of the visitors’ defence, and the failure of the Rangers attack to get into motion. As I have already indicated, Smith and McCloy disported themselves with rock-like confidence, and incidentally they did not boot wildly, but with power and direction with or against the wind. MacKenzie was the star forward. He was often doing just the very thing which the supporters of the Light Blues expected Andy Cunningham would be doing. Andy, however, was very much otherwise engaged. He was dropping back to assist in defensive work, but right from the start I thought he was often lying too far behind to link up the Rangers’ attack. There was indeed a lamentable lack of really enterprising foraging work by the Rangers. The only man in the forward rank who really did matter was Henderson. From start to finish he was there, picking up with celerity any ball which came his way, but lacking – and how painfully obvious it was – the support which he gets when the Blues are on their proper game. Alan Morton was, for the most part of the afternoon, completely overshadowed. ‘Tis said he never does well against Smith, of Ayr. He certainly did not yesterday, and Smith was also well assisted by Hogg. It was also obvious that Alan Morton did not relish the grip which encircled him, and personally I cannot recall an occasion when the Rangers’ left winger has shown such a patent dislike for attention – robust and in good part generally – as he did yesterday. Nesbit had not a great deal to do in the first half – nothing like that which Robb had to perform, and likewise in the second half Robb was the busier man. Certainly, there were one or two anxious moments for Nesbit, but he saved one hot shot from Cairns (the only real bit of fire from the Rangers’ barrel) quite well, though I thought there was at least one occasion when he should not have fumbled the ball. Ayr deserved to lead before the interval. There was, in any case, an instance of hands against the Rangers which passed unnoticed. Ayr looked like scoring very early in the second half. John McLean lacked a little steadiness, and first-time effort, otherwise the score would have came earlier than it did. The home team’s successes came within a few minutes of one another, after about twenty-five minutes’ play following the interval. MacKenzie and John McLean were the marksmen. Both goals were good – neatly taken, not a semblance of fluke about them. Kilpatrick had a share in both. MacKenzie’s success was perhaps more clever – a sort of hook shot. Robb’s chances of saving were nil. The Rangers never looked like equalising. They made one or two rallies, but Ayr tried for a third goal, which was the real policy. Of the Rangers’ half-backs Muirhead was the best. Dixon had far too much in hand against the sprightly work of the opposing attack, and with his backs not up to concert pitch. Gibson played a big part in holding the Rangers’ right wing. In a nutshell, Ayr United revealed the required Cup-tie fervour, enterprise, and enthusiasm. Rangers failed to reproduce their League form, which, after all, would have told its inevitable tale, or at least forced a replay. In short, Rangers do not appear to be permeated with cup-tie vigour and resource. After all, however, Ayr’s sterling performance gives the game generally a new zest. If the luck of the draw favours them again, whoever goes to Somerset Park will find one of the stiffest Cup hurdles
