A lack of cutting edge cost Celtic dearly as a Hearts smash and grab sent them into the Scottish Cup final after spending most of the game under the cosh. A controversial last minute penalty by Craig Beattie put Hearts through after an equally controversial equaliser from Celtic four minutes from time.
Celtic completely dominated the first half but had nothing up front to exploit their possession or territorial advantage. Hearts best opportunity of the game came within the opening seconds when Kelvin Wilson was carless with a back pass which was collected by Elliot but Fraser Forster came to the rescue.
Celtic then took over and bossed Hearts comprehensively but could not find a way to open the Hearts defence. Lustig headed over from Kris Commons free kick after the full back was fouled. Midway through the half Commons and Samaras combined to release Mulgrew who crossed from the win for Hooper who should have scored with his header from 8 yards but could not find the target.
Commons nipped onto a short back pass 10 minutes from half time but his touch to take the ball behind goalkeeper Jamie MacDonald was too heavy. Commons had Celtic’s first attempt on target five minutes from the break with a shot from 23 yards but MacDonald saved comfortably.
Ki had two incredible chances in the game, both unmarked back post headers at the end of each half. With 44 minutes gone he struck the upright from 4 yards when he should have scored, an outcome that would be repeated towards the end of the game.
Craig Beattie was introduced at half time and immediately changed the pattern of the game. Two minutes into the second half he played-in Rudi Skacel, benefitting from a ricochet off Kelvin Wilson. Skacel rounded Fraser Forster and shot high into the net.
The goal seemed to break Celtic’s spirit as Hearts created several chances in the opening 20 minutes of the second half. Skacel shot from 35 yards, forcing Forster into a good save. The same player then shot wide after a knock down from Beattie.
Andy Driver dispossessed Michael Lustig just after the hour but Glenn Loovens came to the rescue and conceded a corner. Craig Beattie then played a one-two with Driver before shooting narrowly wide.
Neil Lennon changed Celtic’s shape in an attempt to get back into the game, replacing Samaras with Anthony Stokes and Celtic were soon back in the ascendency. Hooper linked with Stokes on 66 minutes but the Irishman’s shot was deflected wide.
Stokes then headed over from a Ledley cross and had an attempt from 13 yards after Mulgrew cut back to him.
On 82 minutes Ki should have levelled after Kris Commons chipped a free kick towards the back post by the Korean midfielder headed against the post again.
Anthony Stokes should have equalised with five minutes remaining when he got onto the end of a Mulgrew header but he could not turn the ball goal-wards.
A minute later Dylan McGeogh fed Joe Ledley who moved the ball onto Charlie Mulgrew. Mulgrew crossed for Gary Hooper who headed home from 4 yards but the Celtic striker was in an offside position when the cross was played.
In the 90th minute referee Euan Norris awarded Hearts a penalty kick when the ball struck Joe Ledley’s arm when struck from less than 2 yards from him while he was trying to turn his back on the ball to block. Ledley’s arm was not at his side but it was not in an unnatural position either, nor was there even the remotest suggestion of a deliberate act. Beattie struck the penalty straight down the middle as Forster dived to his left.
The last few frantic moments of the game offered further opportunities for Celtic. A Ledley volley was saved before the ball struck Andy Webster inside the Hearts box but the referee wasn’t interested on this occasion.
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Phil
You ever genuinely owed anyone anything – a debt? an indulgence? a favour? a saviour?
I much prefer you making mildly sexist comments about women pilots than you squaring the circle about Beattie’s embarrassing celebration.
But remember – 2 thumbs way, way up for Craig – At least we know he ain’t a dame with that facial hair – Beattie…
We differ.
U
Beattie can celebrates how he likes.
I think Celtic fans have bigger things to reflect on..
“It is dangerous to be right in matters on which the established authorities are wrong”
(Voltaire)
Dangerous is good…. it excites me…. Give em hell bhoys
Better get used to all the huns on here. It will soon become permanent once the embarassing stuff starts. Evolution. Life and Death. Sharks and parasites.
HH
classic Drogba
Can anyone tell me how many times rangers have lost in cups after we have been knocked out vs how many times we have blown it ?
Green oak tree
Correct!!!
After being at the game today, thanks again for the tickets Token, it’s made me realise one thing. Kelvin Wilson isn’t fit for the Hoops.
Get him sold.
StMichaelsBhoy2 on 15 April, 2012 at 18:31 said:
You are bang on with this post,I had a lot of time for him when he was going through all his groin ,,fitness probs when he was with us , but his reactions after the penalty left a very bitter taste in the mouth, he did not appear to show any respect for a club that had looked after and paid him for many years, then again I have met his Father it does not surprise me.
Totally agree with Jude05…
NL needs to be surgically detached from Twatter…and the ‘Barflies’ who haunt it..
He needs to be re-acquainted with the Gillette Contour Plus…
Or mebbies Wee Trial of ‘Veet for Men-Splash It All Over Formula’..
And what’s with that scabbiest of tracksuits that he was wearing today..
Surely,if he is insistent about wearing a tracksuit,rather than a suit…he could be attired in a more elegant design………..perhaps a Hardy Amies number ?
I could go on,but…..
TakingTheBumpsForKojoCSC.
(Bournesouprecipe…”Deja Vous ??”..,not if I see you first,my maist favourite poster)
;-)
Instead of Neil Lennon being called to account at the SFA once again….inevitably…..I’d like to see somebody at Celtic FC have the balls to compile a comprehensive video of Mibbery and the catalogue of questionable decisions over the last few seasons in key games. Hamilton, Rangers, Dundee Utd Dougie Dougie, Cup semis and finals between The Hugh Dallas graduates of Mibbery with an anti Neil Lennon and Celtic agenda.
The blatant double standards, eyes in the back of the head, one rule for one punishments for Lennon and Celtic and Rangers let off the hook time and again on and off the pitch for cheating, man handling the referee, not paying taxes, diving, touch line spats, criticising referees and the list goes on and on and on…
Why don’t Celtic hold their own panel and court to bring to book the sectarian and institutional racism we are now being forced to endure on and off the pitch. The blatant moving of the goalposts when it suits, the stonewalling when it suits and no contrition or recognition of it even taking place!!
Have a good look at yourselves. Your day of reckoning is coming….
timbhoy2 on 15 April, 2012 at 18:41 said:
Robert Tressell you are like a lot on here lennon men ,no matter how many mistakes and comments he makes ,he is stiil the man for celtic ,me i say he is not ,and thats that. oh i forgot its all the referees fault ,grow up .and for the thousand time i aint a hun, i will say what i have to say on here,and i will bow to no man on here
oh yes you are a stinking hun i can smell you from here and yes u will bow to us on her because we are the champions and managed by the legend that is neil francis lennon from lurgan so bow hun and know your place on the champions board TA
I can’t believe more folk not questioning Scott Brown as captain..is he the leader we need?
On any given day, there’s a fine line between success and failure. The width of the post on two identical headers, and a shocking piece of cheating from Euan Norris denied Celtic today.
Over the course of a season though, class always tells and I can’t believe people are saying this player or that player needs to be punted on the back of a defeat in a cup semi-final, while we sit here as Champions not just before the split, but with games still to be played before the split.
I lived through Rangers’ nine in a row when we won two trophies in NINE SEASONS. I’m sure I’m not the only one on here who can say that.
Some of us are coming across as spoiled brats, crying because they can’t have a packet of crisps after you just got a brand new bike. God knows what you were (or would have been) like between 1989 and 1998.
We’re the best team in Scotland by a country mile and everyone of those players today has played their part this season. I’m not going to get mad about them losing a one-off match in a cup semi-final.
What I am mad about is Masonic refereeing.
StMichaelsBhoy2 on 15 April, 2012 at 18:34 said:
I am not daft enough to think that we will get a side as good as Stein’s.
That having been said, on the big occasion we should be able to easily cope with the likes of Hearts or Killie.
Regardless of anything that followed we totally dominated the first half today in everything except the most important of thing of all. Putting the ball in the net.
hope chocolate enjoyed his celebration today
i will be running round my living room like that when i hear his hamstring has gone again and misses the final
dont expect him not to celebrate, but that was way over the top
hope Fenlon does them in the final – owes us from all them days of playing for linfield ha ha
Terrific goal by Drogba. Can’t stand either the London Huns or Oor ‘Arrys Spurs. Missus fed up with footie all day!
Burnley78 on 15 April, 2012 at 18:45 said:
Can anyone tell me how many times rangers have lost in cups after we have been knocked out vs how many times we have blown it ?
—————————-
Its scary how many cup games we’ve lost as favourites, if a gambler had any sense they’d be backing our opponents every time. Killie 7-1, Minis 10-3
It’s all HMRC ‘s fault.
Had them wee pinstriped feckers not taken all that tax money from us we could have had a couple of £15m players out there today and well on our way to a treble;
or would that be winning “bad?”
Kevin Wilson was the CB that we were crying out for last winter. Fortunately Billy Davies threw a spanner in the works and we had to wait.
We might be talking 3 in a row if we had addressed that problem properly.
HH
Hello to you Hun interlopers- yep, there’s been more than a few gleefully expressing their opinions on here today; What? Oh, that’s right – you’re all good Celtic men who just happenend never to have posted before the latest fit-up…
Enjoy your coming oblivion…’history’ Five Fag Burns’ etc, etc, fnarr-fnarr…Bye-ee.
As for anyone who tihnks the penalty decision falls into ‘seen them given’ – just quit while you’re miles behind and spare us the p*sh.
Euan Norris – vacuous, servile wee Hun forelock-tugging soul-less scumbag of a skitterous excuse for humanity. I think that cleared it up.
We played at 60% capacity, still deserved a crack at extra-time; that’s right sports-fans, the Celtics’ goal was no more of an off-side call than the Heartics first where their offensive centre strolled into illegal territory…
Cheated. Simply put.
Commendations to Lenny for not smashing his frustration right through Norris’ playdo-heid at full time. Verbal abuse was noted and will provide slavering Hun rent-boy Lunny with letter-writing froth all week long.
As for our long-silent boo-bhoys crawling out the mire eager to bury Lenny and the bhoys – you know f*ck all. And you’re insulting a squad who took a title against all the odds (or can’t you see the plain truth of it today?) and against the most embittered last stand of an anachronistic regime.
God Bless them.
Keep your cups for ever more. I’ll take the title EVERY season over any SFA bauble.
And if anyone still harbours any goodwill towards Hearts after seeing their DESPICABLE Stan Petrov banner today, then bury your head in the pit of shame and never darken Celtic Park again with your filthy shadow. Will the MSM note it in their columns? What do you think?
I’ll take Skachel as a squad player and happily see those sh*te-gargling vermin luiquidated along with their filthy Glasgow cousins.
Heads up, CHAMPIONS.
And all the best to the Hibees – I hope you win it in style.
Burnley78 on 15 April, 2012 at 18:45 said:
I would guess very few.
Disappointing today once again. This young team has many lessons to learn, as does our management team, but they can do so in the knowledge they are league champions. This disappointment will wear off but some questions remain about this team.
Just watched the penalty again….Shocking..
Re our centre backs
Loovens is a 6.5 out of ten centre back.
If he could stay fit, I think he would nudge up to 7.5
Majstorivic is a 7 out of 10
Charlie is a 7.5 out of ten, potentially an 8 out of 10, maybe an 8.5
Thomas is also a 7.5 , if he could stay fit , I think he could be a 8.5
Wilson is a 5 out of ten, and IMHO is a liability
We made a mistake today , by playing Wilson, which cost us on two fronts.
First Charlie , for all his attributes, doesn’t get to the bye line often enough. Izzy would have got to the bye line, whilst Charlie would have been able to pick his passes if he played at CB.
One final thought, my memories of double winning Celtic teams are the MoN teams, the Strachan teams and the centenary teams.
This team is a work in progress, and frankly not good enough to be a double team.
Very disappointed but can clearly recall when we won the Scottish Cup in Martin O’Neil’s last season having lost the league at Motherwell the week before. Winning the Scottish Cup back then meant nothing, zilch, winning the league was all that mattered then and now. Next season we’ll be better prepared for another go at the treble but as long as we retain the league title I’ll be well pleased, onwards and upwards.
We all know there are a fair few fringe players who will leave in the summer.
We need, as a minimum, a keeper (hopefully Forster), a centre half (Fojut plus possibly one other depending who goes) and a big physical striker.
With the likes of Kayal and Forrest fit again, Izaguirre and Commons getting a full pre-season and back to something like their best and young players progressing we will have a pretty damned good squad.
theglasgowcelticway on 15 April, 2012 at 17:33 said:
Headtheball
Totally agree!!I’m fed up hearing the, “We didn’t play well so we didn’t deserve to win” nonsense.You can have bad games and still win but you can’t with the type of decisions we had in today’s game and the cup final.
First bit of sense I have read on these pages today!!!!!!!!!!!
Today is the second time we have been denied by the MIB in the last 15 days, the Kilmarnock non-penalty cost Club in excess of 1.4 million pounds in lost revenue.
Today’s ‘fiasco’ will cost us in excess 3.0 million, ( conservative estimate!)
I had the pleasure of visiting the ‘ Lennoxtown Complex’ this week, what an investment in football!, we are a PLC, and as such, we have, a Board of Directors, Shareholders, etc, we need to make profits to hold all this together, we simply cannot afford to be treated like this!
Looking on to the future, many of you expect the club to reinvest in new players, etc, for our European adventures, and this will be Neil’s and Peter’s priority, but they don’t half make it difficult for us.
If Neil has a rant at an MIB who can take his 850 pounds and swan off, suffering no ‘ill effects’, then i say! go for it Neil!
Someone!, needs to highlight the ‘bias’ that is perpetrated against our club, and we need to stand firmly behind him because he is the most honest of men that i know, one who has absolutely no time for ‘cheats’,’wasters’, and will always ‘out them’!
Hail!, Hail!
Awe_Naw_No_Annoni_Oan_Anaw_Noo on 15 April, 2012 at 18:50 said:
Only a couple of weeks ago I was being shot down on this forum for suggesting that PL was serially neglectful in January transfer windows.
Why is it that anyone being even mildly critical is regarded as being a closet Hun?
Vmhan Supporting Lenny! on 15 April, 2012 at 18:27 said:
Evening Celts just back from the game, I was tempted to book into a hotel in Glasgow and get blootered….. But home now… Ah well.
Hampden is becoming a bit of a jinx for us lately from the Ross county game which I also suffered through, we need to grow a winning mentality, and soon as the Euro qualifying games will be coming up pretty soon.
Oh for a midfield general or CH like big Roy…. We need this badly…. Maybe it’s a mentality thing, they had it last week….. What’s changed.
V
The manner in which the game was gifted to Hearts will drive Neil on.
They have only succeeded in driving him on with more vigour.
Shit, all weve done is win the league – I can live with that.
Scott Brown will go on to win many more trophies as captain. Be assured of that.
Disappointed, but would have settled for all of this season’s outcomes before a ball was kicked.
Hail Hail to the CHAMPIONS.
Guys, forget about the argument that we are not cynical enough and the huns would have a treble in the bag had they been in our position.
If anyone one of you can say honestly that the decisions made in the final minutes of our last 2 matches at Hampden, had gone against the huns, then I’ll give this so called game a miss.
Árd Macha
Richie on 15 April, 2012 at 16:44 said:
Having ‘bhoy’ in the username doesn’t mean what it implies in every case
…………………….
What the hell are you implying?
Gerry
gerald766 on 15 April, 2012 at 18:53 said:
Sorry. Regardless of any last minute decisions today, like the league cup final was a game that should have been done and dusted before half time.
No doubt Hearts will be going into administration sometime soon, so that’s reassuring.
Now, any chance of those refs being liquidated?
The BBC have just released a diagram showing how the ball hit ledley and then Victor
http://www.orwelltoday.com/jfkbulletmagic.jpg
Awe_Naw Awe_Naw ed himself :O)