29th Mar 1994 Partick Thistle 1 Rangers 2 (SFL Premier Division - game 35)

matches:1993-94: ← 42game 4344 →

53y, 0m, 27d	John Lambie	Walter Smith

no changes
no changes

Isaac English (1-1, 54 mins)		Richard Gough (0-1, 43 mins); Ally McCoist (1-2, 90 mins)

David Byrne (Andy M. Gibson, 89 mins)		Trevor Steven (Gordon Durie, 65 mins); Alexei Mikhailichenko (Duncan Ferguson, 82 mins)

22y, 10m, 1d	Craig Nelson	Andy Goram
33y, 0m, 24d	David Byrne	Gary Stevens
28y, 3m, 5d	Bobby Law	Stuart McCall
23y, 6m, 8d	Gregg Watson	Richard Gough
32y, 5m, 18d	Grant Tierney	Dave McPherson
30y, 11m, 2d	Willie Jamieson	John Brown
32y, 2m, 26d	Albert Craig	Trevor Steven
27y, 7m, 5d	Ian Cameron [i]	Ian Ferguson
27y, 6m, 13d	Roddy Grant	Ally McCoist
22y, 4m, 17d	Isaac English	Mark Hateley
30y, 9m, 18d	Chic Charnley	Alexei Mikhailichenko

28y, 3m, 28d

25y, 8m, 9d	Andy Murdoch	Ally Maxwell
25y, 1m, 27d	Andy M. Gibson	Gordon Durie
31y, 3m, 12d	Bobby Barnes	Duncan Ferguson

TTA report

Last match with the shed. Thistle matched Rangers for long spells but they trailed 1-0 at half-time. English took a through ball to shoot home to level (54). Gradually Thistle were pushed back with Nelson making some heroic saves and a creditable draw looked fair until the winner from a tight angle (90). Cruel. Still 7th.

Media report

30-Mar-1994, Glasgow Herald

ONLY a curmudgeon could ignore Partick Thistle’s grief. They were playing and fighting admirably to hold Rangers at 1-1 and perhaps beginning to believe a point would help ease their increasing relegation worries as last night’s match careered into injury time. Thistle’s Craig Nelson was performing heroics behind a resilient back line at the heart of which Grant Tierney was immense in dealing with the powerful threat of Mark Hateley. The keeper, in fact, seemed to have had the last, crucial involvement when he denied Gordon Durie and then Ally McCoist in rapid succession in the closing minutes. McCoist, though, was biding his time. As the referee was looking at his watch, Stuart McCall ploughed through the midfield area made treacherous by a downpour of biblical proportions and McCoist took over on the right. Having missed a minute or so earlier when it had looked easier to score no-one expected him to do any damage, but then McCoist never has observed normality. Even though the angle was acute, the striker looked up and hit an excellent shot into the net leaving Nelson and his defenders stunned. They couldn’t believe it. They had put so much into the night. They didn’t deserve this. Rangers, thus, moved seven points clear of Aberdeen, who lost to Hibernian and who must now stop off at Ibrox on Saturday. They can’t afford to fall further behind if they are to retain genuine hopes of winning the championship. Motherwell, who are six points behind the defending champions, play at Tynecastle this evening and they, too, know they can’t slip, but the feeling at Firhill last night was that McCoist’s late contribution — it was his ninth goal in 11 starts — probably clinched the title.

As Walter Smith was explaining that he felt the game would end in a draw, especially after having watched Nelson make his double save from Durie and McCoist, the Thistle dressing room door remained closed. It was, however, still possible to feel the frustration, confusion, and sense of injustice swirling around on the other side. Thistle had taken time to settle and, after their goal had survived some attacks, began to push forward and were able to put Andy Goram’s area under some pressure. The Ibrox side’s defence looked slightly uncomfortable, but it was the captain, Richard Gough, who took it upon himself to ease concern two minutes before the break. Nelson had just slapped away a McCoist effort, conceding a corner and, from the right, Trevor Steven sent the ball to the edge of Thistle’s penalty box where Gough rose and headed powerfully. The ball bounced awkwardly then flew into the net. Rangers went indoors one up. As they returned the heavens opened to greet them and players began to slip and slide in the mud, but Thistle were coping better and manufactured an equaliser in 54 minutes. Chic Charnley, who had a marvellous game in midfield making himself available and playing passes while others, like Albert Craig, toiled diligently, pushed the ball through to Isaac English and he sped on before shooting low into Goram’s right-hand corner. There was a spell after that goal when it looked as though Thistle believed they could go on and win the match, but Rangers gradually forced them back and, as time ran out, most of the action centred around Nelson’s goal, although Goram was called upon to make a wonderful save from one of his own players. Roddy Grant’s attempted cross was deflected by Gough and, as the ball turned goalwards, Goram twisted, dropped, and saved on the line.

McCoist, as we all should have known, had the last touch, propelling Rangers towards what will be their sixth successive championship and pressing Thistle into the relegation zone. It doesn’t matter that they didn’t deserve such a cruel finish to a night of laudable endeavour. The cold truth this morning is that they have to drag themselves out of their despair and fight harder. Rangers, incidentally, lost Steven in 65 minutes after he had damaged a groin and his place was taken by Durie. Steven will miss the game against Aberdeen, although Smith said David Robertson could be fit enough to return against his former club.

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