Celtic moved to within goal difference of securing the Scottish Premier League title by opening up an 18 point lead with six games remaining after a two goal victory over St Johnstone at Celtic Park today. Second half goals from Georgios Samaras and an own goal by Chris Millar settled the game which looked even for long spells.
Samaras has been like a player reborn in recent weeks and continued in the same manner today. From the opening minutes of the game he thundered down the left wing using pace and skill at close quarters to strain the St Johnstone defence.
Gary Hooper could have done better when Anthony Stokes fed him early on but his chip was collected by St Johnstone keeper Allan Mannus. Once play stopped referee Salmond booked Maybury for his foul on Stokes as the Celtic striker played the ball forward for Hooper but despite therefore acknowledging the offence, the ref failed to pull play back after Hooper failed to gain any advantage.
Kris Commons is still looking for his first goal of the season and twice came close today. In the first half Stokes held the ball inside the box until Commons arrives to shoot from 8 yards but he knocked the effort narrowly wide. In the second half a swerving shot was on target for the top right corner of the net before Mannus got a touch.
Liam Craig was St Johnstone’s principle threat and he brought a good save out of Fraser Forster from a free kick midway through the first half. Celtic struggled to create much in the opening period but Michael Lustig crossed from the right wing but found no takers despite running along the six yard line.
Celtic should have taken the lead a minute from the break. Commons sent in a free kick, Samaras missed a header and Mannus blocked but Charlie Mulgrew was on hand the head the rebound, only to see his effort cleared off the line.
Cillian Sheridan and Francisco Sandaza both had good headed efforts to open the scoring early in the second half but neither found the target.
Celtic stepped up the pace just after the hour after Ki and Matthews replaced Stokes and Lustig. Scott Brown saw a shot from inside the D saved.
The opening goal arrived on 66 minutes after Georgios Samaras was involved in a couple of scuffles. The Greek international was grounded inside the box and was then shoved off the ball within seconds of getting back to his feet, again inside the box but the referee didn’t see it. Samaras clearly took exception to this treatment and a moment later shielded the ball using his body until he was dragged to the ground.
It looked like a feisty play by Samaras who was clearly animated. When Kris Commons swung in the resultant free kick Samaras rose and headed back across goal and into the net.
St Johnstone pressed forward looking for an equaliser and might have got one had Adam Matthews not made a last ditch interception to turn the ball behind for a corner. With St Johnstone forward for the set piece Celtic broke quickly. Commons carried the ball forward, and with everyone one else on the field running at full pace, he took a second before sending a 60 yard pass across field to Ki. Ki moved inside before playing the ball out to Samaras on the right. Samaras crossed for Hooper but the ball was turned into the net by Millar.
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Timabhouy on 1 April, 2012 at 17:50 said:
goan stop doin that her maj crap, every page!!! i dont often post but christ on a bike, are you a teenager on a break from school or just a moron?
We know, falkirkin hell, stop it. your startin to do my breasts in.
Stan the man.
Stay strong.
KTF.
FFS Sportscene manage to dig up st mirren beating us 4-0 from 2 years ago!!
Laughable
dearie me. Sportscene plumbs new depths.
How the hell does our 0-4 defeat top St Mirren TWO YEARS ago possibly justify a rerun talking of the CURRENT St Mirren problems.
Oh, Rob is hurting and it’s nice to watch!
Pathetic. BBC Scotland, pathetic.
Annoni
I can’t say that escaping from this insular and backward country has never crossed my mind. Work allows me fleeting experiences of what it would feel like to be part of Celtic from far flung places. The minor issue of taking with me family, friends and all that is Celtic to me personally means that it remains fanciful on a permanent basis. I completely accept that more courageous people than me retain the depth of feeling that many of us have.
Christ! Might change my mind. Just watching Sportscene. Showing St Mirren scoring four past us under Mowbray. What the hell has that got to do with anything? What was I saying about those who hate us taking every opportunity? Doesn’t matter if it’s entirely irrelevant.
bazzabhoy on 1 April, 2012 at 22:42 said:
Correct
He’s a moron
Oh Biko, Biko oh Biko !
Have just seen McCulloch goal from yesterday. Now I was never in any doubt that Motherwell always lay down to the Huns under McCall. I know Motherwell fans who can see it blatantly too. But I have never in my life seen defending like that for the winner. A defender with no one in a radius of 5 yards of him watches a slow looping cross come into the box. He has plenty of time to take it down and do some keepy uppies or lash it in to the stand. Instead he stands still, lets it bounce, almost ducks out of the way of it and lets it trundle into the six yard box. No way that is incompetence.
Gordon64 on 1 April, 2012 at 22:29 said:,
Doing well mate thank you, haven’t been on much lately, I have taken more interest in twitter in my limited spare time. I like the brevity.
I hope you and yours are good, and that you’re looking forward to next week.
Árd Macha
Almost there Neil
Evening bhoys, still warm on the hun free mountain.
Had visitors, a die hard West Brom fan, and knew next to nothing of the plight of the hun, bar what he has heard in London town, I bet he wishes he never asked now :>)
He was genuinly interested, he said that he thought I was talking bollix when I told him a year ago that they were on their last legs.
No apologist
Do you think johnathon watson will do a martin Bain campbell Ogilvie john mc lelland and john greig musical pastiche of michael jacksons smooth criminal video this new year for only an excuse? Bain couldnt wear the hat mind. ;-)
STANDING UP FOR NEIL LENNON
HH
my god Liverpool are pish
give it up Kenny, it’s getting embarrassing now
Ard Macha
Good health to you and your family pal.
HH.
Thought we won comfortably today against well organised form team in spl
Thought imho we looked better after subs because we had 3 midfielders in brown ledley and ki which allowed commons inside to get on ball and allowed mathews to bomb down wing Felt with only 2 midfielders in 1st half we never really got grip of game as we did in 2nd half
Thought lustig did well enough and for my sins i would sell stokes and ki and bye a big strong physical striker and young Russell from Dundee Utd
In conclusion i believe with the new C/H coming our starting 11 could good account of themselves in Europe next season but anyone criticising team or management this season are wrong Key players out injured for long spells and manager getting all sorts of abuse make this title all the more sweeter
It sure is good to support Celtic
The pennies are dropping the big american bidders.from an RTC poster lifted fae the swamp.
From the FF, some concerns about Club9
“Posted by Forlanssister
In terms of Club 9, some interesting reading here:
Hard to find any examples of deals that they (or their “affiliates” Tobacco Road Capitalists, Prometheus Capital and Dornoch) have actually done.
However, Tobacco Road does list 5 deals on its website. Turns out 4 are just companies that Jon Pritchett used to work for so not ACTUALLY deals. The one proper “deal” – you know, money in, investors etc, was Total Sports Entertainment, which they list as an “achievement” went bust in 2004 owing millions and losing shareholders a small fortune which led to lawsuits in 2004 accusing Jon Pritchett (partner in Club9 and potential future owner) and a gentleman named Bill Miller of breach of contract, wrongful conversion of company monies, mismanagement, breach of fiduciary duty and fraud – not saying they DID these things, but there were lawsuits.
Interesting linky no.1 – http://charlotte.bizjournals.com/cha…1/daily36.html
last month “Club 9 Sports” was touting a deal to take an Ice Hockey team to San Diego (deal never actually happened) and the supposed “money man” – remember C9S has no money of their own – was a guy named Bill Miller who in the 4 years since declaring TRAC/TSE bankrupt had apparently moved to Tennessee and become a “towing tycoon”.
Interesting linky no.2 –
http://www3.signonsandiego.com/news/…ckey-sullivan/
Made me worry that this Bill Miller (bankrupt/accused crook/towing tycoon) might be involved in our deal. After all Club 9 has no money of their own – they are just a special purpose vehicle set up purely to do a deal with Sheffield Wednesday apparently – so they must have backers. I just hope Bill Miller is not one of them – if anyone would care to ease our fears, because these Club 9 blokes seem hard to get comfortable with and they certainly have not always had a successful track record, if indeed they have a record at all other than this one failed company-that-never-was.
Their advisor Joe Kosich heads up Dornoch Advisors which he claims is a merchant banking and advisory firm with offices located in Chicago, Birmingham, U.K., Milwaukee, Beverly Hills and Orlando, FL and headquartered in the Village of Pinehurst, NC. yet by his own admission in a post of Owlstalk there are only 2 staff and one office plus an “affiliate” in Chicago My aunt’s old shop in Attercliffe used to do more turnover than them.
http://russellblackandassociates.com…ichCapital.pdf
Lee Strafford himself says that Club 9 has never done a deal because they are an “SPV (Special Purpose Vehicle) set up to invest in Wednesday” – on OT yesterday – and yet how confused must they have been about their Special Purpose if they were trying to buy an ice hockey team in California at the same time.
Lee did say that their predecessor firms, Tobacco Road and Prometheus Capital, have long histories in what he called the small-med cap markets (he means mid-cap).
Except http://www.tobaccoroadcapital.com/Experience.html
states 5 deals – Scheer Sports, French/Vaughan and General Sports Venue were companies where Pritchett worked, not “deals” – this would be like my baby brother starting a bank and claiming to have Barclays, Coca-Cola, Tescos and Marks and Spencer’s as “engagements” just because he’s worked for them all.
Prometheus Capital is no more help, there is no record on any file or database of them having completed a deal since 1992 when, under a different name, John Prutch bought a door maker.
So a Walter Mitty who is bigging up his company (actually all 3), one failed racing business that never actually held a race, and maybe a door maker 18 years ago – hardly fills me with confidence.
Can we find real investment? Not sure, and frankly unless this latest fiasco turns around quickly – not sure I want it any more.
Last thought – remember that movie “Boiler Room” where the guys from JT Marlin go in to town and the guys from JP Morgan are there and he says “hear your a con shop on Long Island, even changed your name to make it sound like ours”.
There are 2 Dornoch Capital Advisors – Joe’s little one man band in North Carolina USA and a large energy financing firm in BC, Canada
There is a Tobacco Road Capital (large Private Equity group in Durham NC) and then there is Tobacco Road CapitalISTS run by Jon Pritchett with no actual address just a mobile phone number on their website that rings off.
There is a $1billion sized hedge fund called Prometheus Capital in Russia, and then there is Prometheus Capital Partners based out of a temp. office space in Chicago run by John Prutch.
I have asked elsewhere for an example of one completed deal and been ignored. I have asked if anyone has actually established there is money here and same thing – attacks on me but no answers to the questions, which are really quite simple. ”
Frying pan, fire, acceptable business plan in lieu of three years worth of accounts.
Goog Night Timland nearly there
HAIL HAIL
TET
Good to hear you had a good day mi amigo.
The 3 supposed bids are all based on them going
into liquidation.
There is no way that they will survive.
HH
You know I despair of the must stay loyal crew. Its normal for everyone to get nervous around this time – and yet anyone who criticses anything gets slated here. Celtic are playing poorly – its no surprise after the run we have had.
Grow up everyone and learn to live with your differences
Mighty tim 20.25
That old should be an inspiration to us all. I spotted her getting out a private hire on Janefield street. Taxi driver couldn’t take her any further and she looked a bit lost. Apparently she always drives and usually parks beside the ambulances at which point one of the stewards spots her and heads out with a wheelchair. Unfortunately she had car troubles two weeks ago on the way back from Hampden so got a taxi assuming it could take her all the way to the door. She was running late cos she could only make it to 11am mass.
Once inside the doors, a couple of good guys took over with a wheelchair and the guy on the door directed then to the 2nd floor lounge – she’s obviously well known.
Whole time walking along she was worried i’d miss kick-off tho we both agreed the first 15 minutes were best missed on recent form.
What an inspiration.
S
Btw mid-40s ya hun.
bazzabouy
Not until their queen
puts the last nail
in their coffin
Neganon
Would not have expected anything else
from your good self.
Left Click
Club9… to pit is a Simply, as Ah kin.
Is a.. MANAGEMENT COMPANY.
They are jist like.. well.. The old Fashioned..”Factor’.
Someone else,owns the Property.. and Club9… “Factors” for the owner.
They would be no help,in bringing in.. Any Fresh Capital To the struggling Ibrox Enterprise, which Needs.. well… a fresh injection of…
Capital!
Kojo
Still, Laughin’
Leftclicktic
And they were being reported as being one of the more robust offers. Duff and Phelps still coining it I wonder if the Singaporean bid is Singapore Celt.
HH
Lmfao! Met Martin Bain many, many years ago. He was working for S&N Breweries in the early 90’s. Manager of the trendiest pub in Glasgow at the time, John St Jam. Very friendly guy. Pub was a regular pre-cub haunt of around 30 of us from Springburn, Milton, Townhead, Parkhead and Coatbridge. Every single one a Celtic man. We helped security keep undesirables out. Nasty types like Orcs. Bain’s hairline was receding then.
I remember my brother’s stag night. Baldy Bain had some foreign lager going out of date one week later. Offered it for sale at half price. We obliged. Next clear memory was the next day – my to be married in 30 mins brother throwing up outside St Aloysious church in Springburn.
Baldy Bain should’ve stuck to selling cheap lager. Bet he didn’t pay the tax on our “transaction”.
Two players stood out for me today;
Brown and Mulgrew, excellent,
rest did ok, thats all.
Except maybe Sammi, good game.
Neg Anon 2
“The loudest cries for liberty come from the drivers of slaves”
Why are the constant critics of Celtic players so thin-skinned when their own views are critiqued?
No one is censoring anybody but if you post an opinion , you leave yourself open to criticism. Be a big bhoy about it and answer back or take your licks. But spare us the poor, poor, pitiful me response
Met some bhoys post match for a wee swallie along the Gallowgate / Barras. my pub guide:
The Drover: quite busy immediately post match & got very quiet very quickly so we moved on
The Squirrel was too loud & too mad so we headed to the Old Barns
God, i wish we had given this a miss… was last in here the night we won the treble in 2001 and there was some authentic genuine Irish folk music on. Tonight? Absolutely desperate. It was a very bad 80s disco nite. really annoyed by the DJ who commented on the “daft Irishman who had odd socks on” FFS. awful, truly awful.
Headed to the Crystal Bells where we could have a chat, a laugh , and some Irish songs on in the background.
Personal views, shared by my mates………
Timabhun
Give it a rest you hun. God bless anybody except that auld boot
I feel quietly confident that within days
they will be more.
We will not mourn their passing.
G64
The bloke who I was speaking to is as smart as eggs, but the coverage in england is non existant.
He kept saying that they would survive, and they would not be liquidised, once I told him what was what, he was gobsmacked, he had honestly believed the bullcrap that they are getting fed via sky and the like.
He is a bit of a sociliast, and when I told him about minty and what he had done, using his tax payers money, his attitude changed for the better, he wanted more info.
He also believed that there are honest and balanced jurnos up in scotland, again I put him right.
All in all it was a very productive evening :>)
Timabhouy on 1 April, 2012 at 23:12 said:7
no being funny but, your not funny.
your either really young, a fud, a hun, or a fud
or even worse, a hun fud. not for me to even contemplate telling someone to stop posting, but im pretty sure every one is sick to the back teeth of reading “her maj…” pash from you every page.
i can only conclude you are young, cos i dont think your a hun, which makes you a fud.
Madra Rua
Ah thought.
Only.. Wan Player Stood Oot..
And that wiz… Three Guesses???
And the Rest wiz no help at awe!
Lennie,has an enormous task.
He has tae Find..at least.. Five New Players Fur Next Season.
We are overloaded , the noo, wi…
Girly Bhoys.
Ma Opinion.
Kojo
Still , Laughin’
kojo,
did you get my reply to you last night @20.57pm?
Martin42
31003
Good evening ! and how are you
on this fine night.
TET
Good on you pal,
A wee bit of help amigos, when are the lenten bevy abstainers allowed to lash back intae it, I say Friday but it might be Sunday???
It’s not for me as i’m already on the malt:)
slainte
tony
bazzabhouy
Not for you to say stop posting
well dont say it then, I dont see
you telling posters off for weather
forecasts in their area or any one
who has a type of calling card post
So that’s us 1 point away from Neil’s first championship as manager.
There’ll be a certain symmetry to games away to Kilmarnock marking the start and end to our league campaign.
Think the team have lost sharpness since admin for them and the big points gap opened although the team’s reaction to sammy’s goal was superb.
S