Dundee Football Club Season 1961-1962
Championship season
Game Six.
Saturday 7th October 1961
A Great Win To Top The Table
DUNDEE 5, KILMARNOCK 3
With Rangers out of action today, the Dundee – Kilmarnock clash at Dens becomes a "table – topper," virtually four points being at stake.
After last week’s successes, both sides are unchanged. A mist envelopes the pitch 15 minutes before the kick off and gradually thickens until the Dens Road tenements are invisible from the stand.
Dundee --- Liney, Hamilton, Cox, Seith Ure, Wishart, Smith, Penman, Cousin,
Gilzean, Robertson.
Kilmarnock --- McLaughlan, Richmond, Watson, Davidson, McGrory, Beattie,
McIlroy, Mason, Black, McInally, Muir.
Referee --- W. Elliott, Barrhead.
McLaughlan is first in action, easily clutching a Cox "free" after Gilzean has been fouled by Davidson. Killie give their reply in two minutes – with interest. McIlroy eludes a flying Cox tackle and parts to McINALLY. The hotshot inside left travels for nearly 30 yards before blasting the ball high into the net from 12 yards.
A silence as chill as the fog laden atmosphere greets this set back to Dundee hopes.
The Dark Blues are taking a long time to warm up. Several promising moves are spoiled by inaccurate passing. Gilzean, one of the chief offenders, twice earns the crowd’s displeasure.
Hamilton sinks to the turf in a clash with McInally. A quick rub down brings him back to life. Cousin bludgeons his way through the right and curls back an inviting cross. But Gilzean is beaten to the jump and the danger is cleared. For a change, the big inside man gets a round of applause for a 20 odd yarder.. Even with Mason’s deflection the shot is only inches too high.
Smith tries a speculative 30 yard grounder, but McLaughlin, although inactive, has not fallen asleep. Muir tests Liney with a similar "rasper" at the other end. It carries more zip, but Pat copes confidently.
Penalty claim
There are howls for a penalty as Penman is grassed when lining up for a first time shot. However Mr Elliott says the offence occurred on the edge if the area. Penman and Seith try the old "dummy" routine. After Andy has leapt over the ball, Bobby strokes it clean through the line-up to McLaughlan. The Killie keeper is really tested ad Dundee develop punch.
Gilzean gives Cousin a great chance, but the centre’s fierce drive is too close to the keeper. Seith curls a long-ranger just under the bar, Penman hooks the ball over the out-coming McLaughlan’s head only to see it slam past the junction; then Wishart smashes a vicious 35-yarder which squirms from McLaughlin’s grasp and cork-screws just past the post.
All of a sudden, as if someone had thrown the correct switch, it’s all Dundee.
Like the raising of a curtain, the mist lifts after 30 minutes. For the first time it is easy to follow play.
Now Dundee have only Killie’s "iron curtain" to cope with. Smith finds a chink in the all-covering defence with a hanging cross "homed" on Gilzean’s head. On his own, eight yards out, Alan makes a sorry mess of his header.
Amazing Turn-Up
The next two minutes, from 34-36, bring an amazing turn-up. First of all Cousin – who has been doing a lot of roaming on the right – slings in yet another inviting cross.
Gilzean turns the ball towards the incoming Penman. However WATSON gets there first and, to everyone’s surprise, saves Andy a job by turning the ball past McLaughlan into the far corner.
Killie are still suffering from shock, when they find themselves a goal down. It’s that irrepressible rover, Cousin, who lays this one on too. He side-foots a Smith slip to PENMAN just outside the box, Andy slide-rules an angular shot past the diving McLaughlan’s clutching fingertips. What a howl shakes the terracing.
However just on half-time, McILROY makes it level pegging with a piece of snap opportunism. Liney palms out his first attempt but, following up, the tiny winger slams the rebound home from a narrow angle.
Half-time – Dundee 2, Kilmarnock 2
Reflections. The Dark Blues have had 70 per cent of play, but have found the Killie rearguard tough. The visitor’s forwards may not be so pretty to watch but they know the road to goal.
Second Half
The gloom thickens once more – if anything worse than before. Play develops into a series of midfield tussles. There is a flash of the old Gordon Smith in a double act with Penman. An illegal tackle on Penman breaks up the move.
Hamilton takes the kick, drops an intelligent lob at the far post., and GILZEAN emerges from the murk at full tilt to bullet the ball into the rigging. Time – 54 minutes. A great goal. Alan’s sixth in four games.
As before, Dundee show their belief in the old one-two. The cheers for Gilzean are still echoing in the fans ears when PENMAN picks up a ball from the left, drags it two paces to the right, the hammers a pile-driver past McLaughlan from 20 yards. Time – 59 minutes. The fans are getting their money’s worth today.
Killie are really up against it now. McInally wriggles into the box. But Cox is right there to smother the shot. Liney saves a counter when he courageously hurls himself at McIlroy’s feet on the penalty spot, and comes up with the ball.
Hat-trick
The game is deepening for Kilmarnock when, in the 80th minute, ANDY PENMAN slams in goal number 5 for his hat-trick.
The young inside-man’s marksmanship had been demoralising this afternoon. If McLaughlan has nightmares tonight there will be little doubt about the man responsible.
This set the seal on a wonderful day for the 19 year old wingman turned inside-right.
WATSON
pulls one back for the Killie three minutes from time with the strangest of goals from a 25 yard free-kick. He strokes the ball for goal. Ure and Black jump for it. Both miss. So does the unsighted Liney and the ball manages to crawl over the line at the base of the post.
Final – Dundee 5, Kilmarnock 3
Summing-Up – No doubt about it. Dundee deserved this great win. Naturally the early goal unsettled them. But having hit their stride, the result was never in question. They were sound in defence, clever in attack and carried punch as well.
Killie looked good at times, but the fighting Dark Blues refused to let the settle. So Dundee become League leaders – and on this display cab wear their mantle proudly.
Attendance – 14,000