Dawson and Celtic enjoyed a 1-0 victory at Muirton Park, Perth the following Saturday, 5 January 1935. A Jimmy McGrory header on the hour was enough to hand St Johnstone their first home defeat of the season and keep the Hoops in contention for a first League title in nine years. Seven days later, the Celtic supporters would look forward to welcoming two of their own back to Parkhead, where Hamilton Academical were the visitors. As it transpired, former skipper, Jimmy McStay would not be fit enough to play, although he would recover to lead his men all the way to the Scottish Cup Final that season, ensuring that there would be Hoops at Hampden, albeit in the red-and-white colours of Accies.
In goal for the Douglas Park outfit on Saturday, 12 January 1935 was Peter Shevlin. Another former St Roch’s man, he had kept goal for Celtic as they won the Scottish Cup at Hampden in 1925, the Hoops beating Dundee 2-1 thanks to a last-minute Jimmy McGrory strike, in a game forever remembered for Patsy Gallacher’s ‘somersault’ equaliser, before winning a Championship medal the following season, the last time Celtic had won the title to this point. Peter would return to the national stadium with the Bhoys for the 1926 final, however, on this occasion, he would be widely blamed for the two goals which took the cup to Paisley.
When he followed that performance by shipping three at Glebe Park, Brechin, in another Scottish Cup tie the following February, the fat lady had begun to gargle in terms of his Celtic career, despite his forwards racking up six in response to progress. Willie Maley would turn to Shevlin’s deputy, teenage Fifer John Thomson, for the next match, and that would pretty much be that. It would be The Prince who would wear the Celtic goalkeeper’s jersey for their third successive Scottish Cup final in April 1927, John defying his local side as Celts beat Second Division East Fife 3-1. Peter would leave Parkhead for South Shields that summer, spending time in Dublin as Shelbourne’s player/manager, before returning to Scotland to sign for Hamilton Academical in April 1933.
