South Yorkshire Times — April 19, 1952

Dearne win the Challenge Cup but Montagu Cup final is not decided

Principal Easter games offer mixed fare at Mexborough

Easter’s principal holiday fixtures in the Mexborough area—the Challenge Cup and Montagu Cup finals—produced in the case of the Challenge Cup a good game, and in the case of the Montagu Cup a poor one. In contrast there was a very poor gate for Saturday’s final, in which Dearne beat Rawmarsh 2-0 to win the Challenge Cup for the first time, and a reasonably good gate for Monday’s fixture in which Denaby Rovers, appearing in the final for the first time in their history, drew 2-2 with Silverwood Colliery.

The Challenge Cup

After the first 20 minutes of Saturday’s Challenge Cup final at Hampden Road no-one would have convinced you in a month of Sundays that Rawmarsh were going to be beaten. Their forward line cut out the work, and spurred by a half-back line of Hughes, Price and Walker, which supported them so splendidly, they made Dearne look lethargic by comparison.

It was strange then when in the first response, a left wing movement brought Dearne a goal. Taking a through pass neatly, outside-left FELLOWS worked the ball to an oblique angle before shooting. Ward dived at it and either he or a defender deflected it over the line, for the referee’s whistle had signalled a goal well before centre-forward Barker crashed the ball into the back of the net—just to make sure.

To that stage Dearne had been nowhere so much in the picture as Rawmarsh. It had been spasmodic machine gun fire as compared with heavier artillery. Their control and distribution of the ball was less accurate, but this goal changed all that. To half-time it was a tense struggle. Rawmarsh never out of the picture, but rarely able to penetrate sufficiently deeply into Dearne territory notwithstanding Hamilton’s near misses and a Pickering (Dearne centre-half) save from Lloyd when Evans had already been in action gallantly.

Double medal

It was one-nil at half-time, and when Rawmarsh came back they threw a great deal into retrieving that one goal. But the Dearne defence worked excellently, and Pickering deserved a double medal for the splendid part he played in their success. Positioning with wonderful anticipation he halved Evans’ work for him and at the same time reduced Rawmarsh centre-forward Charlesworth to a state of ineffectiveness. Indeed, it was left back Turner—another truly outstanding figure among the 22—who tried to give his forwards the lead, and he was followed by the half-back line. But deserving as they were they were doomed to failure.

Rawmarsh really earned a goal in this second half, for twice they had shocking luck with two rasping shots which ricocheted high into the air from the crossbar, and a 2-1 margin would more adequately have represented Dearne’s margin of superiority, though there was no mistaking their value for victory.

Fellows was excellent on the left wing and BARKER, allowed a very loose rein by the Rawmarsh centre-half, was a worrier, a constant trier, and an excellent craftsman too. He it was who scored Dearne’s second goal with four minutes of the second half gone. Again it was the swing of the pendulum for Rawmarsh had forced two corners and the goal, when it came, resulted from a break-through, Barker rolling the ball goalwards rather than driving it hard, a chance taken on the run.

Rawmarsh hit yet another near miss against the Dearne crossbar before the final whistle, but it was obviously not to be. Cox, with Fellows, formed an effective left wing from whence came both goals.