After the Great War finished in 1918, many families found it hard to make ends meet, with jobs scarce and prices rising. To help them, Glasgow Corporation, in conjunction with the SFA, began a competition called the Unemployment Cup, the proceeds of which would go to the poor of the city.
On this day in 1921, with 3,000 watching, Celtic played their third match in the tournament, when Third Lanark were the visitors to Parkhead.
In 15 minutes, inside-left Tommy Craig slid a nice pass into the path of Tommy McInally (pictured above), who scored Celtic’s first. Thirds then equalised but in 40 minutes, McInally scored again, with outside-left Andrew Miller the supplier of the crucial pass.
The great Jimmy Brownlie, with 16 caps for Scotland, was in goal for Thirds that day and played his part in keeping the score down, making two good saves from Joe Cassidy as Celtic raised their game and kept the pressure on but the game finished 2-1 and captain Willie Cringan was a happy man as he led his players off the field.
Born on this day in 1916, Matt Lynch turned out to be one of a rare breed, a fine player who also gained a BSc degree as well.
Between 1935 and 1948, Matt played 206 times for Celtic, scoring 30 goals before moving on to Dumbarton.
Jim Craig
