Not often have we found extra time necessary to decide a Cup-tie at Claremont Road, but according to the rules the referee on Saturday had no option but to compel the combatants to play an additional 30 minutes. It was probably against his will, and certainly there was no desire on the part of either Golders Green or London Caledonians to remain on the field, as playing in a blizzard for an hour-and-a-half must have tested the stamina of even the strongest man.

The score was two-all at the end of 90 minutes, and being at home Golders Green might have had less reason than the Scotsmen to grumble at having to play on. But they failed to reap advantage therefrom. The Calies scored two more goals before Golders Green found the net, and thus the local club loses possession of the Middlesex [Senior] Cup which they won for the first time last April.

In themselves the figures do not present Golders Green in an exceptionally bad light, but we feel the match should have been won by them seeing that the Calies had had a hard-fought Cup-tie three days earlier.

To win the toss was a distinct advantage, and Bucci, the Golders Green captain, being lucky in the spin, naturally set his opponents to play in the teeth of a strong and bitterly cold wind.

Within twelve minutes Golders Green were two goals up, the first being obtained by Bucci from a free-kick a good distance out (it seemed as though the ball glanced off Scotland's head into the net), and the second came from Edwards, who rushed forward to take the ball after Best had stopped a shot by T. Evans.

So far so good, but afterwards we had to wait long before we found anything in the play of Golders Green to inspire us. It almost goes without saying that territorially the game was in their favour. Teams much stronger than the Calies could have done little save defend in the face of the gale, but though Best, in goal, was at times hard pressed, Golders Green failed to press home their advantage. There was a palpable weakness on the right wing. Edwards made one or two good efforts, but for the most part the finishing was distinctly weak. Bucci (than whom there were few better players on the field), tried to set an example by taking every opportunity of shooting, but others did not realise that short-passing was utterly useless under the ground conditions that prevailed.

Godding looked a pathetic figure standing idly watching the Calies' defence striving manfully to prevent further goals being scored. For twenty minutes Godding did not have a decent shot to clear, although there were indications that the Scotsmen would take a lot of holding when the wind was on their side.

Two corners to the Calies brought them no advantage, but eventually, at the end of 20 minutes, from a breakaway, Sage found the net, making the score 2-1. So it remained until the change-over, and one realised that Golders Green were face to face with a serious proposition. A lead of four goals instead of one should have been theirs had they utilised their openings.

The wind was not quite so strong in the second half, but sufficiently strong to keep Golders Green mainly on the defence. The Calies had some good wingers and a thoroughly live wire in Sage at centre-forward, and we must pay a tribute to the home defence in keeping them at bay for half-an-hour. Richardson and Boston kicked splendidly, and sound work was put in by the half-backs, but they were more bent upon keeping the Calies out than by looking after their own forwards.

As time advanced it seemed as though the half-time score would stand, and it was evident that the Calies were disappointed that so much shooting at goal brought no luck. However, at the end of half-an-hour, the scores were brought level by Rae following a corner kick.

Then came a bitter disappointment. Drinkwater, who had done much excellent work, found himself with only Best to beat at about six yards range. But he failed, and groans at this mishap could be heard. No other such chance came to Golders Green: on the other hand their goal had a lucky escape from a corner kick.

Considering that they had prevented the Calies from scoring more than once during the second "45", Golders Green earned a considerable amount of credit, but one cannot get away from the fact that they should have made sure of victory before the first change-over.

For the first fifteen minutes of the additional period Golders Green had the advantage of the wind, and kept the Calies' defence fairly busy. One of the best chances came to F. Evans, but his final shot was weak. With the wind less strong, the Scotsmen played strongly, and took the lead for the first time through Finlayson, the left-half, with a long shot which Godding apparently misjudged.

The teams crossed over for the second time with the Calies ahead, and when they scored another goal through Sage following a corner the big army of Golders Green "pessimists" began to leave the field. The cold may have been an excuse, but had Golders Green been leading they would doubtless have seen the end. Edwards scored again for the home club, but the effort came too late, and the London Caledonians, who have not entered this competition for many years, had the pleasure of beating the holders of the cup by the odd goal in seven.