J Smith 52
Kennedy 55
B McPhail 83
Match Information
Attendance: 19,000
Referee: J.M. Martin (Fife)
Matchday: Saturday
Match Trivia
Gee, this was a corker of a game! My right fist goes out in sincere congratulation to those who fought and won and in equally sincere sympathy to those who just fought. It was scurvy that this titanic battle of physical and mental skill should end with one side taking all and the other nothing. Rangers didnt deserve to win any more than Third deserved to lose. If Muir, the Cathkin goaltender, had just managed to get a better grip on the winning header of McPhails, seven minutes from the end, the big crowd would have gone home wet but happy. But then, the whole same swarmed with ifs. Take this one sample in the first half. Kennedy got a running pass in open position. He smacked it towards goal. Jenkins was whacked to the wide, but the ball came back off the upright. Young Hart, tearing in from the wing, banged it back first-time. Jenkins again was hopelessly beaten, as any keeper would have been, when up popped Dougie Gray on the very line and stuck his head in the way. The crack nearly put the wee right back out for the count. It took a few sniffs from Arthur Dizons bottle to sort out the stars and planets! Third were the smarter side, first half. A goal lead at the interval would have correctly assessed their advantage. As it turned out, Rangers were a goal better than Third in the second portion with this difference, they got theirs! What a snorter that second half was! The heavens sprayed drenching rain relentlessly. The spectators on the popular side, heads wrapped in newspapers, looked like a queue for the dentist. The players jerseys, pants and stockings, soaked and sagging roared along, skidded, hit the tuft, got up again, and kept on roaring along. Courageous, challenging, captivating. In seven minutes came the first goal. Main, like a ballet-dancer on a surface slippery as a fishmongers slab, sidestepped Johnston and crossed smartly to Smith, who was uncovered. I thought Muir might have prevented the shot, which didnt look particularly creditable. In three minutes, Third equalised. Kennedys shot, which followed clever work by Hart, didnt look a thunderbolt by any means. The ball must have been as slippery as the deuce, of course. On it went, this game of skids and skiffs, dummies and scrums, near things and queer things. And still the heavens blubbered. Smith burst down on Muir repeatedly as if to carry the whole net and fittings into the car park at the back. He hit the ball against the post, knocked the rebound against the keeper, and finally screwed the ball across the gaping goal, with his colleagues scraping for that extra yard to connect. At the other end, Dewar stole out to the right wing and crossed a ball that Jenkins reached with an amazing body-twist to palm behind. Terrific stuff under stamina-sapping conditions. We had all agreed that a draw was the happiest possible result when Bob McPhail spoiled everything! A harmless-looking free-kick, an anything-but-harmless header, a Muir clutch that only slowed the balls progress over the line, and Third Lanarks well-earned point was stuffed into the Ibrox hamper. Theres no doubt that Third and Rangers are good publicity agents. Theyve tacked a big sum on to their Cup final gate by this worthy exhibition. Jenkins, I noticed, shows little improvement in his goal kicks. But hes a lively keeper just the same. Gray, best player afield and Winning, who leaps nearer stardom in every successive game, were splendid. Ross, the fellow with the throw-in like a free-kick, is still playing with a straight spine. When he becomes a bit more mobile, his opponents will require to become even more mobile to elude him! Simpson had some fine moments, while Brown played one of these quiet, sticking-feet gamed that impress the opposition more than the crowd. The wingers were temperamental, although Kinnear worried Carabine more than any other Ive seen Jimmy tackle this season. As for Third I thought Jimmy Blair the best half-back afield. Venters knows what perpetual motion is like now! Mair, in goal, was unfortunate in that winning effort. Doubly so, because he gripped the ball so confidently at other times. Black had a trying day against Jimmy Smith and has little to feel grieved about. McInnes, the man from whom I expected most, gave me least. His fade-out in the second portion was a most unwelcome shock. The best forward, however, was Neil Dewar. The Man Who Came Back will bring Third Lanark back too, once his immediate mates realise Dewars new motto It is better to give than to receive!
