| Match Pictures | Matches: 1962 – 1963 | 1962-63 Pictures |
Trivia
- This was a Wednesday night game at Hampden Park with a 7:30 pm kick off. It was not an all-ticket game and entrance was available at the gate.
- Rangers were most definetly the favourites going into the game never having lost a Cup Final replay
- Celtic's fourth consecutive Scottish Cup final defeat since 1955.
- After Rangers’ victory Jim Baxter retained the match ball which he placed underneath his shirt as he walked from the pitch. He is said to have given it to Ian McMillan – 'Ian, as this will possibly be your last Cup Final you should have the match ball.' The referee Tiny Wharton was instructed by the SFA to retrieve the ball from Baxter which was very reluctantly returned to him by Slim Jim. Baxter was very unhappy about the decision and for three weeks after the game phoned the SFA on a daily basis for the ball to be returned to McMillan. A few weeks later the ball was sent to Ibrox anonymously for the attention of Ian McMillan, the SFA clearly having changed their stance. No one knows for certain if it was the actual match ball.
Review
Celtic inexplicably dropped wingers Johnstone and Brogan from the team who drew on Saturday in the first match. In later weeks it would be discovered that chairman Robert Kelly had interfered with team selection and this led to massive unrest amongst the supporters as they realised that manager Jimmy McGrory was now no more than a figure head. When the team was announced on the Tuesday night there was a degree of surprise about the forward line and when the team that lined up on Wednesday night only Divers was in the place he was said to be at inside left. The mystery of Bobby Craig at outside right is argued to this day.
This was arguably Rangers' finest side in their history and in midfield Baxter and McMillan were exceptional and ran the game although they did not have a failure in their side.
Haffey, who had been Celtic's hero in the first game, was poor for two of the Rangers goals and whilst McNeill and McNamee fought manfully to the end the forwards were dismal and were ridiculed as 'The five sorrowful mysteries'.
After Rangers third goal in 71 minutes it was damage limitation and thousands of Celtic fans left the ground at that point in disgust at both the team selection and performance.
This was undoubtedly one of the darkest hours in Celtic's history.
Teams
Rangers:
Ritchie; Shearer, Provan; Greig, McKinnon, Baxter; Henderson, McMillan, Miller, Brand, Wilson.
Scorers: Brand 2 ( 7, 71), Wilson (44)
Celtic:
Haffey; MacKay, Kennedy; McNamee, McNeill, Price; Craig, Murdoch, Chalmers, Divers, Hughes.
Scorers:
Referee:T Wharton (Clarkson)
Attendance: 120,263
Articles
- Match Report (see end of page below)
