J Smith 4
Kinnear 6
Anderson 72
Munro 85
Black 89
Match Information
Attendance: 40,211
Referee: J.M. Martin (Fife)
Matchday: Saturday
Match Trivia
There is no questioning the merit of Hearts victory. In the essentials of skill, speed and stamina they were a far superior team to Rangers, and in the closing stages the game almost developed into a rout. Hearts performance was all the more brilliant, when it is recalled that they were two goals down in the first six minutes, owing to the nervousness of young Dykes at centre-half. If ever a team got a flying start it was Rangers. Hearts fight for recovery and Rangers fierce resistance made it a memorable match, though the heavy state of the ground hampered football and gave the tackling a desperate appearance. Rangers can put forward two partial excuses, but these do not nearly suffice to explain away defeat. In the first half, they had to battle against the wind, which later changed to a crossfield swirl, and was nothing like so exhausting to Hearts defence in the second half. Shortly after the interval Mains old knee injury reasserted itself. Though he was off for only a few minutes, his running power, which had been a feature of the first half was impaired. This had the effect of keeping the ball more in Rangers lines on that flank, and preventing the Ibrox defence from getting relief when it was most needed. By making every allowance for these circumstances, Rangers never impressed. Hearts would not have been ling in arrears had they taken their scoring chances. The Tynecastle forwards were rascals in the shooting area, though it must be said that Rangers defensive marking was very good and gave them little room for manoeuvring. So, Rangers held out until six minutes from half-time, when inspired interplay between Walsh and Walker brought a glorious goal. As Walsh veered to the right with the ball Walker slipped into the centre to invite the pass. Then he gathered the ball and shot past Dawson from 12 yards. From that moment one could sense a Hearts victory. The forwards found a dangerous game and Dykes had fully recovered from his early lapses. Hearts struck devastating form and it was only a question of time until Rangers cracked. The Ibrox defence was beset from every angle, and Walsh was a dashing leader. Eighteen minutes after the restart, Black was going through when he was brought down in a way the referee thought illegal, and a penalty was awarded against Simpson. Excitement reached the zenith, but the coolest head was Tommy Walkers as he stepped forward to the spot and shot the ball neatly past Dawson. Eight minutes later, from a free kick, Anderson scored an amazing goal to give Hearts the lead. From twenty-five yards ranger the ball was behind Dawson before the goalie seemed aware of its coming. Ten minutes from time, Munro netted a cross from Warren, and near the whistle Black went through on his own for a great individualistic goal. Rangers goals were simple and avoidable. In four minutes, Dykes failed to intercept properly a cross from Main, and gave Smith a clear view. Waugh appeared rather slow in getting down to Smiths twenty-five yarded. Two minutes later, Kinnear crossed square, and the ball struck Sykes and was diverted into the net. Hearts will take a lot of beating on this form. They appear to have unearthed a gem of a half-back in Miller. Walker was the genius of the game. For once McPhail did not rise to the big occasion, and he was seldom noticeable. Venters had only one mission watching Walker and he was not very successful. Rangers forward problems are still pressing. They failed to take the pressure off overworked half-backs, and this gave Rangers team balance a laboured look very unlike what is expected from an Ibrox side.
