Morton 1 - 1 Aberdeen

Rice-Hamilton Wing Promises Well

ABERDEEN F.C. have not had their troubles to seek recently, but if the side continues to play with the same spirit as they showed when drawing 1-1 with Morton at Cappielow Park on Saturday it should not be long before they start climbing the league ladder.

A disappointing feature of the Dons' play has been their apparent inability to fight back. There was a complete transformation at Greenock, and they rallied strongly to gain a point after losing an early goal.
It was not by any means a classic display. The low pitch in its present state is against good football, and the relentless tackling by both sets of defenders did no give either attack much opportunity to settle to a constructive game.
Apart from the all-round improvement in the play of the side, the most pleasing feature from an Aberdeen point of view was the good form shown by Peter Rice, the new recruit from Hibs. He has speed and punch, and it seems probable that he and Hamilton will settle down into an effective wing.
The Dons' skipper is rapidly coming back to his best form, and despite getting some rough treatment he was constant menace to the Morton defence. Harris atoned for a bad mistake with a wholehearted second-half display, but in the middle Kelly was unable make much headway against the astute Miller.
Pearson's return to the left wing didn't produce the expected improvement, and he gave the impression that he wasn't fully tuned after five weeks' idleness. He left the field limping.

Wing Halves Improve

Without reaching the heights attained by Billy Campbell, the Morton skipper, Aberdeen's wing half-backs were better than they have been of late. Waddell was not blameless when Morton scored, but he was the keystone of the defence in the closing stages when the home team went all out for the winner.
An early injury to Farquhar limited the striking power of the home right wing, and McKenna's task was eased in consequence. On the other side of the field, Massie had an uncomfortable time against Liddell, until he started to go in and tackle the left winger first time.
Liddell and Mochan, a live-wire leader, were the danger men in what was practically a three-man Greenock attack, due to the ineffectiveness of Murphy. It was the centre who got the opening goal in nine minutes, when he took advantage of Waddell's slackness to fire in a rising ball which Johnstone touched but could not stop.
Hamilton instigated Aberdeen's reprisals, and, after a bad miss by Harris, he shot home off a post in the thirty-sixth minute. The referee, who was up with the play, awarded a goal, and then changed his decision on the advice of a linesman, who adjudged Kelly to be offside.
Four minutes later Stenhouse lobbed a free kick into the middle and Hamilton fastened on to beat Clark from close range.
Mochan and Murphy both failed for Morton from good position.

Source: press & Journal, 20th December 1948

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