Paterson 8
A Bennett 10
W Reid
W Reid
J Bowie
Match Information
Attendance: 20,000
Referee: R.T. Murray (Stenhousemuir)
Matchday: Saturday
Match Trivia
I suppose the right thing after a match like the one at Ibrox is to begin dong up the play of the winners in all the colours of the rainbow. I imagine, however, if we do that in moderation it will be less cruel to the losers. There is no need to take a steam hammer to kill a fly – even if we ‘do it now’. If is enough to say that the rival sides as they showed themselves in the game, were a different class. Rangers exhaled a feeling of invincibility from the moment the ball was set rolling. They were like a team that had already been through all the fires, and had emerged with most of the rough edges smoothes down. Aberdeen played as if they doubted themselves. Now and again in a burst of abandon as it seemed, they took the bit between their teeth, and rattled into the home defence, like men who realised they could do something, and would show us that our first conception was the wrong one. But it all came to nothing. Not one of the forwards could round off even the best of the attacking movements. When the scoring opportunities were most inviting, they made the most glaring misdemeanours. That Aberdeen’s delinquencies in a nutshell – not a shot in the whole locker. True, they got one goal, but that was as good as gifted to Main, the scorer, by a tactical error on the part of Campbell, the Rangers back, who passed back to Hempsey with Main at his shoulder and rushing back in on the goalkeeper. From the instant that Campbell made the pass, the goal was as good as a certainty unless Main had been able to perform a miracle of missing. Campbell will never do the same again surely. I could see not very much wrong with Aberdeen’s play up to the time Rangers opened the scoring nine minutes after the start. They had not anything like the snappy style of the Light Blues, yet they were getting along on the wing in a manner that brought out some pretty clearing, chiefly by Muir. Then came the goal. Paterson forced a corner from his first entrance into the play. Taking his left foot to it, he landed the ball right to the hands of Grieg, who tried to palm it away, but rapping it against the post instead, saw it bounce sharply into the net. Perhaps Grieg should have got the ball clear, but those who have tried to deal with Paterson’s long shots – and this was on a par – will tell you they are worse than they look. Greig, I fancy, was unnerved by it, for within three minutes the Rangers forwards had come swinging through his outfield defence, and Bennett had spun along a shot that the goalkeeper partly held, and then lost – which was goal number two. For all that this appeared to sound the knell of any hopes Aberdeen had ever entertained, they made a plucky response, and when Main snapped at the aforesaid chance offered by Campbell’s back pass, and scored within four minutes of Rangers’ second goal, pith and speed came into the Aberdeen game. It never developed sufficiently to do any harm, whereas Ranger, by sweeping skill of their forwards play, were continually threatening a further score. This arrived in due course. Reid who had gone through for a series of raking shots, some of which made Greig hop, at length picked up a straight-ahead pass from Paterson, and taking the ball past Hume, who missed his tackle, whipped in a shot that left Greig powerless. Before the interval Gordon shivered some timber with a venomous drive, and then he and Scorgie collided as the latter was going in to collar a pretty centre from Soye. It was mainly Soye who made Aberdeen’s chances. If the Granite City forwards had possessed cool heads and sure feet they would have reduced the leeway from almost the first run of the second half, for the Rangers’ defence got completely mixed up – a fault they find it difficult to avoid at periodical stages. Speeding up again, the Rangers’ forwards gave us some beautiful criss-cross passing, and within thirteen minutes Reid had scored a fourth goal. He got the ball from Gordon, swung round Colman, and passed to Brown, who galloped along the wing, and centred a fast low ball, that Reid who had followed up, caught in front of goal, and sent past Greig at the pace of a rifle shot. This was one of the dainties movement of the whole match, for from the moment that Reid began it the ball was kept rolling swiftly, and was never touched by another player. As if to show that these things were not a monopoly, Bowie and Paterson later served up practically a repetition, and in this case it was Bowie who shot the goal eight minutes from the end. Aberdeen had the ball in the net previous to this, but were penalised for having interfered with Hempsey after missing their best scoring chance of the game. Supposing Greig might have saved the first two goals, I cannot get away from the belief that Rangers could have applied the screw at any time the circumstances might have required. Again, the play of the Ibrox forwards was the glittering feature. Brown centred quicker, and his play was ever so much more useful in consequence. It was delightful to see how the whole line could participate in a combined sweep on the Aberdeen defence. But I must address a word to James Paterson. It is not the game to beat a back, and then turn and beat him again – just for fun. Hume has no theatricals, and a back who plays the game as he does deserves something better of an opposing forward. Next to the Rangers’ forwards play the feature that could please the club most was Muir’s exhibition at left back. His kicking was straight, long, and certain. Lacking the strength of some, he had to energise his kicks and this increased the chance of putting the ball out of the pitch, which Muir rarely did. His display must have cased one anxiety of the club officials. When Aberdeen’s forwards find themselves able to take fifty per cent of the reasonable scoring chances they will begin to win – not until then. Soye and Main in other respects were clever enough, but the half-backs lacked balance, and Colman and Hume, two good backs, were overpowered by the skill of the Rangers forwards.
