Match Analysis: East Fife v Celtic

Totals (for League, Scottish Cup and League Cup):

Total Number of Goals Scored (in all three competitions):

On 16 April 1927, less than six years after entering the Scottish League, East Fife made the incredible achievement of appearing in the Scottish Cup Final whilst still only a Second Division side. Legend has it that two miners were paid to keep a certain East Fife player out of the local pubs in the week before the match and such meticulous preparations for the big game seemed to have paid off when the 80,070 crowd saw East Fife take the lead after only two minutes through Jock Wood. "Every Fifer went frantic and thousands of impartial spectators cheered to the echoes of the second leaguer's clever goal" reported the Leven Advertiser. The black and gold bedecked spectators' joy was short lived, however. Hesitation in the East Fife defence allowed Celtic to equalise - a misunderstanding between East Fife 'keeper Gilfillan and defender Robertson ended with the latter putting the ball into his own net. From then on Celtic took command and further goals from McLean and Connelly sealed the game for Celtic.

The East Fife team was: Gilfillan, Robertson, Gillespie, Hope, Brown, 'Tiger' Russell, Weir, 'Pasha' Paterson, Jock Wood, Barrett and Edgar.

Below: East Fife defender Robertson, who had the unenviable distinction of putting the ball into his own net to equalise for Celtic in the 1927 Scottish Cup Final

Return to 'Head to Head Analysis'