The first of the season’s inter-League matches was played on the 8th September 1965, when the Scottish League met the Irish League at Ibrox. Normally, this was not an encounter to set the pulses racing – with the Scots record by far the superior – but on this occasion, there were extenuating circumstances to make the game more interesting, as one of our national dailies pointed out that morning;-
IRISH MATCH WITH A DIFFERENCE AT IBROX
For every man Jack in the Scots line-up, which already includes 6 full internationals, is playing with the prospect of 4 international caps to be picked up before the end of the year. Jock Stein, along with the League selectors, has chosen a ‘form’ side for the occasion.
They had indeed. It consisted of;
Donaldson (Dundee); Hamilton (Dundee), Gemmell (Celtic); Murdoch (Celtic), McNeill (Celtic), Greig ( Rangers); Henderson (Rangers), Cooke (Dundee); Wallace (Hearts), Penman (Dundee) and Hughes (Celtic).
An experienced eleven, with much to play for.
While that match was catching the attention of the football fans in Scotland and Ireland,
round the world, other events were making the headlines;-
Indian Planes Bomb Four Cities
‘Indian planes today bombed the Pakistani capital of Karachi, Dacca and Chittagong as fighting raged with increased intensity between the two countries’
Across the Channel….the Hard Way
Greta Anderson, the 17-year-old Danish/American long distance swimmer, today completed the first half of her attempt to swim the English Channel both ways non-stop. She stepped ashore on Sangette Beach near Calais after taking 13 hours 51 minutes for the swim from England.
Bing ill….won’t be at Doncaster
Bing Crosby, part owner of the 5 to 2 favourite Meadow Court, will not be at Doncaster today after all….he has a virus infection.
Sandie out
18-year-old pop singer Sandie Shaw has had to cancel two TV spots and a week’s cabaret in Manchester because she is ill again with laryngitis.
Just as the match at Ibrox got underway, torrential rain had the spectators diving for cover. However, while the fans might have been soaked by the elements, they would undoubtedly have been cheered up by the action on the field. As the headlines read;
THE IRISH NEVER IN THE HUNT AT IBROX
The score reflected that comment, the Scottish League winning 6-2, with the goals coming as follows;
7 minutes: Penman opens the account with a powerful shot from an acute angle. 1-0
9 minutes: Wallace fires home an 18-yarder. 2-0
20 minutes: Wallace again, this time from a Henderson cross. 3-0
25 minutes: Outside-right Watson pulls one back for the Irish. 3-1
47 minutes: Wallace shot blocked, the ball falls to Henderson, who side-foots in. 4-1
50 minutes: The Irish get another through centre-forward Guy. 4-2
75 minutes: A Hughes penalty adds another. 5-2
81 minutes: A pass by Wallace into the path of Henderson and the winger drives home
On the same night in Albania, Kilmarnock drew 0-0 with Nandori Tirana in the European Cup preliminary round in front of a crowd of 30,000
It was announced that Jock Stein would be travelling to Holland at the weekend to watch Celtic’s opponents in the Cup-Winners’ Cup, Go-Ahead of Deventer, and just to show how little money was in the game in 1965 compared to today, Manchester United reported a profit of £48,7000 in the previous year.