A CONCISE POST WAR HISTORY OF THE RED LICHTIES

© Fraser Clyne

Part Seven: 1951-52

The obvious highlight of an otherwise disasterous season was Rangers visit to Gayfield for a Scottish Cup third round tie on February 23rd 1952 when a record crowd of 13,510turned out for the big match. That attendance figure will never be beaten now that the ground capacity has been dramatically reduced to meet current safety standards.

The Lichties received a bye in the opening round of the tournament before crushing Cowdenbeath 4-1 in front of 5200 spectators at Central Park in the second round. The Fifers must have been shocked by this defeat as just six weeks earlier they had thrashed the Lichties 8-1 at the same venue in a league match. Centre-forward  Hugh Gallagher was Arbroath’s star man. The talented goal grabber notched a hat-trick – the first by an Arbroath player since Waggie Ross got three against Dumbarton on 27th August 1949 – to secure the victory. Winger Bill Rennet, who manager Cheyne signed from Celtic in the close season, got the other goal. Goalkeeper Jimmy Dorward also played his part with a series of outstanding saves.  The Arbroath victory was also attributed in part to the players wearing a new set of rubber boots which had been gifted by the Supporters Club and picked up from a shop in Dundee on the day of the match. The special footwear allowed the Lichties players to keep their footing much better than their rivals on what was a slippery pitch.

The visit of the mighty Rangers side, which included legendary players such as Scotland captain George Young and tough tackling centre half Willie Woodburn, attracted widespread interest. Special trains were put on to bring supporters from all over the country. Home hopes of claiming an historic victory were however dashed by Willie Thornton’s two goals, one at the beginning of each half, which gave the visitors the result they wanted. The Arbroath Herald reported: “In the whole game the Light Blues got only three chances. They took two and hit the post with the other. That was the measure of their success.” According to the paper, Arbroath matched their illustrious opponents in every department except for finishing. Otherwise the outcome might have been different!

The thrills of the Scottish Cup were not, however, matched in the league cup or league campaigns. The Licthies garnered just one point from six league cup group matches and won just six of 30 league games. Five of these league successes came at Gayfield. Forty goals were scored and 83 conceded. Not surprisingly this dismal record saw the club finish at the foot of B Division. Fortunately there was no longer the threat of demotion to a C Division, but it still marked only the second time that the club had finished in bottom place since entering the Scottish League in 1921.

There was further disappointment in the Forfarshire Cup Final at the end of the season when Montrose defeated the Maroons 2-1 at Gayfield to collect the trophy for the first time in 20 years.

Next: Signs of Improvement

SCOTTISH LEAGUE B DIVISION 1951-52