the team's green and gold harp logo, upon the mayor's lapel. The first tour match was played 8 May 1949 against a representative team of players from the Greater New York professional American League clubs Brookhattan, Brooklyn Hispano and Brooklyn Hakoah at Triborough Stadium in New York City. There was a public uproar in Northern Ireland when a photograph of the team marching behind an Irish tricolour flag before a match in New York was published in the Belfast Telegraph on 11 May. Likely fearing that the incident would ensure the end of the team in Belfast, the Protestant Elisha Scott sent a letter signed by seven of the players in which he explained the incident and claimed that the team was loyal to the United Kingdom: "Before the game the team was requested by the American Soccer League officials to parade in single file round the Stadium, led by myself. Half-way round, Mr Connolly, editor of the Irish Echo, New York, took down a Tricolour which was flying in front of the enclosure. He requested me to carry one end and proceed in front of the team. We considered it better to carry on with the parade. Since then, steps have been taken to ensure against a recurrence. On the other side of the picture, which has apparently received no publicity, I may say that while the team was in Toronto, the King was toasted at a dinner given in honour of the Belfast Celtic Club, and further, before the match in Toronto, both teams stood to attention while the British National Anthem was played." On 29 May, Celtic defeated Scotland 2-0 in front of 15,000 fans at Triborough Stadium. Fights broke out during the second half, including Scotland's Willie Waddell and Celtic's Mick O'Flanagan throwing punches. The New York Times reported that the American crowd was overwhelmingly partisan in favour of the Scots, cheering any of the referee's decisions against Celtic. Reported The Times, "The game held the crowd spellbound from beginning to end. Part of the reason was that it had come to see a highly favored Scots eleven—a team that had won the British Isles triple crown before 97,000 at Wembley Stadium last month—take the Irish into camp. Instead, the throng saw an inspired Belfast combination score once in the opening session and again in the second half to sew up the decision." The game was