| Match Pictures | Matches: 1918 – 1919 | Pictures: 1918 Pics – 1919 Pics |
Trivia
- Rangers score in the first minute and Celtic miss a penalty and with this result and the defeat of Morton, Rangers are in the driving seat in the league, 3 points clear of Kilmarnock with Celtic then Morton trailing 5 points adrift.
- The Glasgow Herald reports that Harry Lauder, the 48 years old music hall performer has been served with a notice to present himself for a medical for army service next week. LINK
- Althought the tone in the Herald is positive regarding the war the casualty figures for the week show no letting up and 285 officers and 6,425 are reported.
- Philip Gibbs the war correspondent gives a report of joy following four years of martyrdom from the Belgian cities of Bruges and Ostend.
- Davie Syme's last game for Celtic.
- Despite winning convincingly, Rangers top scorer for the season (Davie McLean) didn't play in this game. Note: Davie McLean was an ex-Celt.
Review
Teams
Referee:
Attendance: 35,000
Articles
- Match Report (see end of page below)
Pictures
- Match Pictures
Articles
RANGERS AGAIN DEFEAT CELTIC
Rangers had very little difficulty in inflicting a second defeat on their Parkhead rivals. Indeed no other result seemed possible when one team was up to war, or pre-war strength, the other a veritable shadow of its former self. The suspension of Purcell and McColl and the continued indisposition of McLean made alterations in the opposing attacks inevitable, but it could not be said that Celtic scored, literally or otherwise by selecting Elliot (Middlesbrough). The disparity between the teams as revealed as in the City Cup final, was too pronounced to be bridged over by pitting an International centre against one with but a few months experience of senior football. Further, neither Rangers, nor Celtic in their long intercourse have ever profited to any extent by introducing players of established reputation at the last moment. The newcomers have invariably confounded their opponents when expected to discomfort their opponents, and Elliot’s failure to utilise a penalty kick was the latest illustration of what has frequently befallen both clubs in the past when seeking to spring a surprise on each other.
An early goal is an unsettling factor when both sides are well matched, but a goal scored by the all-round better team in the first minute practically determined the result. That at any rate was the outcome of Cairns’s initial success; it gave confidence where such was badly required; it further dispirited two comparatively inexperienced wing half-backs, and caused the first period of the game to be one of almost incessant pressure. There came improvement in the Celtic defence after the interval, a better understanding among the forwards, the made the second portion more interesting without producing anything in the way of goals. It was a case of pressing without impressing, of hovering near the Ibrox goal without once threatening to bring about its fall. The opportunism that brought about goals to Cairns, McDermid, and Bowie was strangely absent in the other side, whose forwards were unable or unwilling to invite applause or ridicule with a shot from the penalty line. Lack of confidence was the sole cause of the lack of goals. Forwards who were easily held up by a strong defensive middle line in the first half found a way through afterwards, and then fell victims to their own timidity. Of course there are excuses ready for a line which has almost reached vanishing point – McAtee, McColl, McMenemy, and Browning have disappeared for the nonce – still one expects better things from the First League forwards than the Parkhead division showed at home or at Hampden against admittedly the strongest club they are likely to meet.