Partick Thistle 2 - 2 Aberdeen

Partick Thistle and Aberdeen served up a hard and exciting contest at Firhill Park, Glasgow, to the 15,000 spectators who attended. The visitors made a promising start, and scored through Fisher and Flanaghan. The home team were awarded a penalty kick, from which Salisbury scored, and later Harris secured the equaliser. The game was anything but brilliant, and a draw was a true reflex of the game.

Source: The Scotsman, 4th April 1921

Aberdeen probably not been seen to better advantage this season than against Partick Thistle in their Scottish League match at Firhill, Glasgow, on Saturday. True, the team had to be content to divide four goals, but had the fates been kind at all they must have been comfortable winners. There were 12,000 spectators, and these saw a strenuously contested game in which the Thistle were always striving to avoid defeat after the first ten minutes of play. It was at the end of that period that Aberdeen fore and aft seemed to acclimatise themselves to the spongy surface of the rain-sodden ground, and they settled down in the first half to give a delightful exhibition of football. The forwards, backed up by a solid defence, showed clever touches, and their cleverness was reflected in the praise given them by the spectators, who repeatedly applauded their work.
Both sides scored once in each half, but whereas the Aberdeen goals were the outcome of really delightful football, there was a big element of luck in the manner of the Thistle scoring.

Scoring of the Goals.

Aberdeen took the lead after 25 minutes' play, and it was lively triangular work that led to their opening goal. Thomson, getting the ball near midfield, worked well down and gave a grand pass to Connon. That player in turn took the ball along and returned to Thomson, who slipped it obliquely along the ground for Fisher to follow up and beat Campbell at close range. Before and after that the Thistle goal ran many narrow escapes, and the game developed into a struggle between the Aberdeen attack and the Firhill defence. For a period of 15 minutes Campbell was virtually bombarded, all the Aberdeen forwards and Wright and MacLachlan having creditable tries, and Fisher and Thomson were unfortunate in missing with shots a trifle wide which Campbell could not possibly have saved. A minute from the interval a stroke of misfortune befell Aberdeen. In a raid Hannah played the ball with his elbow, obviously accidentally, and the referee awarded a penalty-kick, from which Salisbury put the Thistle on level terms after they had been well beaten on play, Anderson not having to handle single shot in the period.

Strenuous Play.

The second was much more evenly contested, but still the advantage was with Aberdeen, who were always more dangerous and more methodical in their attacks. After ten minutes, Middleton got away from a long pass by Connon. The right winger centred beautifully to Thomson, who was in an outstanding position to score, but he passed neatly to Flanaghan, and the left winger cleverly eluding Johnstone, scored a brilliant goal. The Thistle were not long in arrears, and it was a soft goal that fell to their lot a few minutes later. They were granted a free kick just outside the penalty line, and Harris lobbed the ball into goal, Anderson being deceived by its flight. Thistle gave a much improved display after that, and both goals were well visited, but the feature of the second half was the clever play of Flanaghan on the Aberdeen left. The Partick defence was repeatedly in trouble from his centres. On one occasion the Thistle claimed a goal when Anderson saved from McIntosh, but the referee, who was well placed, ignored the claim. Although both teams played hard, there was no further scoring, and on the run of the game Partick Thistle were fortunate to take a point, considering how they had been outplayed in the first period. On the Aberdeen side the outstanding players were Hutton, Hannah, Wright, MacLachlan, Thomson and Flanaghan. Partick were best served by Campbell, Johnstone, Bulloch, McMullan, and Salisbury.

Source: Aberdeen Daily Journal 4th April 1921