| Match Pictures | Matches: 1924 – 1925 |
Trivia
- The official Cetlic site has the goalkeeper as Stevenson but he was also known as John Stevenson Falconer and John Falconer and would later play in goal for Celtic under that name.
- This is also a debut match and sole appearance for Willie Garden
- The Glasgow Herald reports of a meeting in Dunfermline at which Arthur J Cook stated he knew his campaign for a living wage for miners was on the right track by the way the capitalist press attacked him. LINK
- The Glasgow Herald also advertises the J. B. Rubber Figure Reducer Corset for ladies for as little as 35 shillings (£1.75p)
Review
The opponents: 1924/25 was to be Cowdenbeath’s best ever season, finishing in 5th place in Division 1 with a 42 point tally – good enough for a UEFA Cup place nowadays. Average gates at Central Park were over 9,000. Willie Devlin was Scotland’s top scorer with 33 goals and he was ably supported by men such as Willie Rankin, ex-Motherwell, a schemer who made the team tick, and Jim ‘Hooky’ Leonard, a mercurial talent signed from Saltcoats Vics. The regular team in this first ever season in the top flight comprised : Falconer, Murray and Hopewell; Letham, A. Rankine, Chambers; Pullar, W.Rankin, Devlin, Leonard and Wilson. [from official Blue Brazil site]
Teams
COWDENBEATH: Stevenson Falconer, Murray, Hopewell, Letham, Rankine, Chambers, Pullar, Willie Rankin, Devlin, Leonard, W Wilson.
Scorers: Pullar, Devlin (2)
CELTIC: Shevlin, McNair, Hilley, Wilson , J. McStay,
Corrigan, Connolly, Fleming, McGrory, Thomson, Garden .
Referee: W. F. Campbell (Dundee)
Attendance: 8,000
Articles
- Match Report (see end of page below)
Pictures
- Match Pictures
Articles.
The Scotsman, Mon 16 March 1925
CELTIC TROUNCED BY COWDENBEATH.
Celtic were completely outclassed at Central Park, and Cowdenbeath thoroughly deserved their 3-0 victory. In fact, but for a slice of good fortune which favoured Celtic for a considerable time, the margin might easily have been larger. Celtic of course were considerably below strength. McStay, McFarlane, Gallagher, and McLean all being absentees, and the side which did duty was thoroughly eclipsed in the second half. The first half was more even, principally because Cowdenbeath took a long time to settle, but though the teams were on level terms at the interval with no scoring, Cowdenbeath by that time had the game well in hand. They reopened in sparkling fashion, and it required some fine goalkeeping on Shevlin’s part to keep them at bay. Eventually Pullar nipped through to open the scoring, and later Devlin tapped in a header from A. Rankine, while in the last minute the centre scored a third goal for the home side. Once the Fifers had settled down they played a grand game , every man rising to the occasion. Celtic were best served by the defence, Shevlin, Hilley, and the veteran A. McNair, all putting in useful work. J. McStay and Connelly were the only other two who accomplished anything of note.
The Glasgow Herald, Mon 16 March, 2025
Cowdenbeath had a notable victory at home in their return game with Celtic, who were beaten by three clear goals . Celtic had an unfamiliar representation, owing to divers causes in the Fifeshire town, and made an even contest in the first half, but were over-played by the home side after the interval, and lost three goals without response. Cowdenbeath are assured now of finishing in a satisfactory position on the table in their first year as members of the senior division, and with St Johnstone the other promoted club, are to be commended for the success they have achieved.
