Aberdeen 5 - 0 Solway Star

Chiefly because of brilliant goalkeeping by McBride Aberdeen failed to open the scoring until 25 minutes after the start. Yorston got the first and Cheyne another before the interval. Smith, McHale, and Yorston added further goals in the second half.

Source: The Scotsman, 21st January 1929

As confidently anticipated, Aberdeen passed into the second round of the Scottish Cup at the expense of Solway Star at Pittodrie Park, the margin being five goals to nil.
While one is anxious to give every credit to a plucky side, it would be an exaggeration to say that the issue was ever in serious doubt. Albeit Solway Star made a great fight and up to half-time they played with a spirit and fearlessness which was greatly to the liking of the crowd, who could not complain that the game was lacking in interest or excitement. The fact that the Dons score finished at live goals, without reply from the visitors, is sufficient indication of how the game went. The Aberdeen men were trying hard all the time, and it was a personal triumph for McBride, the visitors' goalkeeper that at the interval the home side held a lead of only two goals. McBride gave one of the most sensational goalkeeping displays seen at Pittodrie for a long time. He was here there, and everywhere, parrying, clutching, diving; and thirty-three minutes had gone before Yorston brought about the inevitable with a deceptive screw shot. The bombardment proceeded, but the crowd had to wait until three minutes from the interval for the second goal. The gallant McBride never saw the ball as it fleshed into the net from Cheyne's foot in a general scrimmage. But all this time the visitors were not content with trying to keep their end up. On the contrary, they were very near to scoring once or twice.

DESPERATE DIVE.

The best effort came in the first ten minutes when, following a nice left wing movement, Telfer, the inside man, had his shot smothered by Yuill, whose desperate dive at the feet of the oncoming forward saved the situation in the nick of time.
The real disparity between the sides was fully evident in the second half, when the Dons chalked up three more goals. Within three minutes of the resumption, Smith capped a brilliant touch-line run by finding the net, and seven minutes later McHale, with beautifully-timed header, added a fourth. The visitors' goal had many "escapes" before Yorston completed the scoring ten minutes from the end. The Star was not so much in the ascendant this half, and while every now and again they broke away, their efforts in front of goal were sadly lacking in finish, and the home defence was not seriously troubled.

NOT A WALK-OVER.

This, then is the story of Aberdeen's first round tie. It was not a walk-over, for which the crowd was profoundly thankful, and they expressed their gratitude to the visitors for making a game of it by according them a well-deserved ovation at the close.
Mention has been made of McBride, who was the hero of the match, and he had front of him two exceedingly tousy backs. The visitors' halves strove manfully all through to stem the tide of the Dons' attack, but theirs was an unenviable job.
The Star forwards, like the rest the team, were full of pluck, but in front of goal they failed to make the best of those opportunities that came their way. Forsyth, their centre, was hard-working and opened out most of his side's attacks. But it was the left wing, Telfer and Keddy, who were the mainspring of an attack which could not hope to overcome a defence trained to the minute and giving nothing away. Aberdeen's form can hardly be fairly gauged from their performance against a team so much below their class. Half-backs assisted forwards in the '"great siege," and Black and mcHale were particularly prominent in having a shot for goal.
The home forwards were in fine fettle, and the crowd seem pleased with Smith's dashing work on the touch-line. McDermid was his usual purposeful self, while the right wing was also at its strongest. Love signalised his return to the extreme berth by hard, powerful shooting, and with Cheyne, made the lot of the visitors' goalkeeper a particularly arduous one. Yorston, too, harassed the Star defence to some tune, but he has been in better shooting form, and he could have added more than two to his bag. Nine thousand two hundred and ninety six paid for admission, the gross drawings amounting to £482 7s 6d.

Source: Press & Journal, 21st January 1929