by David Dewar

November 20^th 1954 v Brechin City (League) at Glebe Park

ARBROATH: - Robertson, Thom, Aitken, Anderson, Gray, Box, Donegan, Smith, MacKenzie, Lawrence, Cruickshank.

BRECHIN CITY: - Tidy, Paterson, Hodge, Phillip, Smith, Liddle (Forfar Celtic) Kiddie, McRae, Neilson (Brechin Vics) Mulhall, Barclay.

Brechin took the lead after twenty three minutes: - Robertson punched out a cross and Kiddie, seeing the keeper off his line, lobbed the ball forward for MULHALL to head into the net. Two minutes later the home side were two up. McRae passed through to BARCLAY who netted for Brechin. On the half hour, City looked to have the game sewn up as MULHALL latched on to a bad clearance to race in on and fire a shot past Robertson.

Arbroath pulled one back, three minutes before half time a cross/shot from Donegan beat Tidy and MacKENZIE was left with a simple tap in.

Less than a minute into the second half and it looked as if the Arbroath revival was to be short lived as NEILSON scored Brechin’s fourth goal of the afternoon. But with fifty one minutes on the clock, Arbroath pulled one back. A looping ball from Donegan came down off the crossbar and  MacKENZIE chested it over the line. In sixty five minutes, Arbroath got a third goal. The ball was lobbed in from the wing and a goalmouth melee ensued. Smith got the ball past Tidy with MacKENZIE making sure by assisting it over the line.

Kiddie then had the ball in the net for Brechin but the goal was disallowed as Robertson had been fouled.

In seventy five minutes, the Lichties levelled the game at 4-4. MacKenzie sent Cruickshank away and he crossed for DONEGAN to crash the ball into the net. Five minutes later, the visitors took the lead for the first time in this game. From a cross into the goalmouth, SMITH got the ball over the line with MacKenzie following it up. Arbroath then had a gaol disallowed to round off a thoroughly entertaining afternoon of football.

BRECHIN CITY 4 ARBROATH 5

ON THIS DAY 8^th November

1947 v Alloa Athletic                  H (League)        1-1 Carrie

1952 v Hamilton Academical      H (League)        3-2 Rennet, Gallagher, MacKenzie

1958 v Dumbarton                     H (League)        5--4 Easson 5 **

1969 v Falkirk                           H (League)        3-1 Cant, Ward, Stirling

1975 v Clyde                             A (League)        2-5 Bone 2

1980 v Queens Park                  A (League         2-2 Hyslop, Harley

1986 v Queens Park                  H (League)        4-1 Fotheringham 3, Lynch

1997 v Berwick Rangers H (League)        4-1 Florence, Grant, Burns, Spence

2003 v Alloa Athletic                  A (League)        3-1 Dow, Cargill, McGlashan

** (Gallacher who scored for Arbroath in the game above, got all four of Dumbarton’s goals in this match)