| Match Pictures | Matches: 1938 – 1939 | 1939 Pictures |
Trivia
- Almost 120,000 in Ibrox but Mr W. Roger Simpson, Secretary of Rangers F.C. reckoned that another 15,000 fans could have squeezed into the west terracing if only they "had packed themselves a little better"! [See Below]
- The Ne'erday game, played on the second of the month as the 1st had fallen on a Sunday, saw Celtic hit the woodwork three times with the keeper beaten but their luck was not in.
- Young Fifer John Watters seems to have been overawed by the near 120,000 crowd that turn up at Ibrox to what is described as "the big club event in the soccer world."
- Herald reports that many of the record crowd never saw the game having to sit on the reverse slopes unable to penetrate the terracing but unable to leave the park as the gates were locked.
- As well as the large number locked-in there were in the region of 32,000 locked-out.
- Loudspeaker announcements asked the crowd to "move closer" but the crowd was so tightly packed that they could not get their hands in their pockets and a charity collection at half-time was disappointingly low.
- The crowd sang "A Guid New Year" and were praised by Lord Provost P. J. Dollan who said "Glasgow crowds are the most orderly in the world."
- Hearts hosted Hibs to a crowd of 40,000 who were not so orderly, and the game was held up after a "break-in" saw hundreds of fans spill onto the track at the South end of Tynecastle bringing the game to a halt until order was restored.
- The Lanarkshire derby at Hamilton saw Accies beat Motherwell 2-1 before a crowd of 20,000.
Review
The Scotsman – Tuesday, 3rd January 1939, page 3
118,730 SPECTATORS SEE RANGERS BEAT CELTIC
RECORD ATTENDANCE FOR CLUB GAME IN BRITAIN
HEARTS FALL TO HIBERNIANS
As a result of the New Year s Day football matches in Scotland yesterday Rangers went further ahead in the League championship. They defeated Celtic by two goals to one at Ibrox Park, before an attendance of 118,730—a record for a club game in Scotland or England. Celtic, the present runners-up, are now eight points behind Rangers, with a game in hand.
Heart of Midlothian, who, with one more game played, have the same number of points as Celtic—30—were also beaten yesterday by their Edinburgh rivals Hibernians. An attendance of 44,000 made Tynecastle uncomfortable for spectators, who twice overflowed on to the pitch.
Teams
Rangers
Dawson, Gray, Shaw, McKillop, Simpson, Symon, Waddell, Harrison, Thornton, Venters, Kinnear.
Goals: Kinnear, Venters
Celtic
Kennaway, Hogg, Morrison, Lynch, Lyon, Geatons, Delaney, Carruth, Watters, Murphy, Birrell.
Goals: Carruth
Referee: A. Henderson (Kirkcaldy).
Attendance: 118,730
Articles
- Match Report (see end of page below)
Pictures
Link
Articles
The Scotsman – Tuesday, 3rd January 1939, page 3
CELTIC FIGHT BACK
RANGERS ATTACK ALWAYS MORE DANGEROUS
A MEMORABLE GAME
The Ibrox Ne’erday match will be remembered for the wonderful spectacle the ground presented, and also for the tenseness of the struggle. Celtic under the necessity of finding substitutes for Paterson, Crum, and Divers, were outpointed in the first half, rallied grandly after the interval, and at the finish would not have been flattered by a draw.
Where Rangers excelled was in the quick covering up by their half-backs and backs and the more penetrative power of their forwards. One glorious save by Dawson early in the second half foiled Celtic of a point, but, on the other hand, Kennaway, in the Celtic goal, had oftener to come to the rescue of his team when the Rangers forwards worked through to shoot at point blank range.
The winners were more resourceful at back. Gray and Shaw were better in anticipation than Hogg and Morrison, who frequently failed to set direction with their clearances. Celtic's half-backs had not a good first half, when they were puzzled by the quick short passing of the Rangers inside forwards, but' they took an important part in the Celtic rally after the interval.
Kinnear had the beating of Hogg for speed, but a second-half injury caused him to fade out to a great extent. Venters and Thornton were the real danger to the Celtic defence, and more than once their crisp passing movements and sparkling thrusts failed, and no more to bring results.
Up to a point, the Celtic forwards played really well, but the inside men lacked power in finishing, and Delaney, realising this, worked a lot through the centre in the second half and saved the Rangers defence their greatest worry. Rangers’ forwards were right on their toes to begin with, and after the Celtic goal had come through some hairsbreadth escapes, Kinnear raced away from Hogg and steadying for the shot, whipped the ball into the net well out of Kennaway’s reach.
CELTIC FULL OF FIGHT
Celtic were full of fight, but Rangers' forwards continued to be the dominating factor, and in 39 minutes, a cute pass from Thornton sent Venters through to score a second goal. From that point to the interval, it was a came of thrills with the Celtic forwards just failing to take advantage of some gilt-edged scoring chances.
Celtic made a great fight back in the second half, and well deserved the goal scored by Carruth 30 minutes after the restart. Only occasionally could the Rangers forwards relieve the pressure on their defence, which enjoyed a big slice of luck, but in the Ibrox front line's raids there was still more danger, and both Harrison and Venters came as near as possible to increasing the lead.
The official attendance was 118,730, a record for a League game in Britain. The gates at the west end were closed after the start of the game, but there was room at the east end for more spectators.
