The players would have had a light training session at Lennoxtown today as muscles continue to refill after Wednesday night’s exertions. Expectations of Celtic in the Champions League are not high, and were exceptionally low when this group was drawn, but even so, these games have a huge financial, physical and even emotional impact on every area of the club.
One argument suggests the last thing we need is a cup semi-final four days after a Champions League outing. An alternative thought is that this is the perfect game for Celtic right now. Memories linger of sitting stressfully at Fir Park days after Celtic beat the reigning European Champions, Milan, as (subsequently liquidated) Grenta held onto a lead until the 87th minute.
While playing (subsequently liquidated) Rangers away 64 hours after winning a Uefa Cup semi-final 1200 miles from home in 2003 proved to be the perfect game to instil steel into the legs.
With what passes as a fully fit squad, Brendan has choices to make for Sunday. Did Patrick Roberts do enough off the bench against Borussia to justify a start? Perhaps. He’s a player who owes us one at Hamden too.
Callum McGregor will also fancy his chances ahead of Nir Bitton, who didn’t have a great Scottish Cup semi-final against the same opponents in April.
It would be a huge surprise if Moussa Dembele didn’t start as the lone forward, despite Leigh Griffiths itching to get on alongside him. Brendan will not change formation for this game, while Moussa will fancy his chances against a defence he punished to ruthlessly last month.
For me, our two most important players on Sunday will be Scott Sinclair and Tom Rogic. They are the epitome of the modern footballer, strong, skilful, intelligent and difficult to defend against. If we can get them on the ball often enough we’ll score a lot of goals.
Pretty much every Celtic fan I know expects Mark Warburton to have learned a lesson from his Celtic Park whipping and for him to deploy a more defensively-minded team this time. My Newco pals don’t expect this to happen. Warburton hasn’t varied his game-plan since arriving at the club and is apparently reluctant to start experimenting now.
He took his team to Hampden to face Celtic against similarly long odds last season. Within minutes we knew we were in a game, and despite the clear chasm between the teams, it was Newco who faced Hibs in the Scottish Cup final.
A repeat of the 5-1 win at Celtic Park is possible, but you’ve seen enough football to know that nothing can be taken for granted on Sunday. Remember that Newco came close to levelling that 5-1 game at 2-2 early in the second half, and the latter part of their collapse came after going down to 10 men.
I’m off later to meet those from the Tyneside No. 1 and friends, who have walked (yes, WALKED), from Merthyr Tydfil and will reach Doherty’s Bar in Hamilton this afternoon. They’ve pretty much walked a marathon a day for 13 days and will make the final journey to Celtic Park tomorrow.
This herculean effort has been made to mark the memory of Jonathan Thomas, who aged 30 lost his biggest fight one year ago tomorrow.
We’re lucky as Celtic fans that we get to meet and read about people who do these things in our name. It’ll take you 2 minutes to let them know how inspiring they are here.
It’s also worth marking the events in Aberfan, the village a few miles from Merthyr Tydfil which was visited by unimaginable tragedy 50 years ago today.
John Humphrys: What we owe the people of Aberfan 50 years after tragedy struck the village, and why it shows authority must be challenged. pic.twitter.com/OdjyaAGTsQ
— BBC Radio 4 Today (@BBCr4today) October 21, 2016
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GREENPINYATA Yes many many times, that’s a great song, and I get where your going, but I still call it Celtic Park sorry if it upsets you, I just don’t like parkhead, what’s the problem, same with ..bring on the hearts the hibs the, I sing sevco, should I say Rangers? You get where I’m coming from here, my team plays at Celtic Park, and it annoys me people won’t recognise it.
Parkhead v Celtic Park debate: my take on it growing up, we never really referred to the ground at all. We just asked: are you going to the game on Saturday (or in my teens: Wednesday nights)? We sometimes even asked on a Friday, as that was usually when the reserves played.
Iv called it Paradise too, mostly to any Huns, in the vicinity or within earshot,and The Holy Ground, or The Planet Of The Papes, they hate when you say that.
philbhoy
friend of mine used to own the masonic arms but it was in dumfries.
FAC Post.
Urgent: please read if you have already made a submission to the consultation
It has become evident that there has been some confusion with regard to Question 1 of the consultation. The question asks if you are supportive of the proposal and this refers to the proposal to repeal the Offensive Behaviour Act. Our preferred answer to this is ‘Fully supportive’.
Some people have clearly thought it was referring to the Offensive Behaviour Act itself and have ticked ‘Fully opposed’ but then gone on to provide reasons which set out why they are, in fact, in favour of the proposal to repeal. See below.
If you have done this – or think you might have – then please email James Kelly MSP (James.Kelly.MSP@Parliament.Scot) using the email address you used when making your submission and tell him you wish to change your answer to Q1 to Fully Supportive. This is very important because they will count your submission as being in favour of the Offensive Behaviour Act if you don’t change this.
TD
The Planet of the Papes is a new one to me. :))
They really hate Paradise or The Holy Ground in my experience, but in your style GIRUT.
TD67,
The point is moot.
You always referred it to the name your father and grandfather called it. Fair enough.
I suggest that the majority of our generation and any pre Fergus one, used the name Parkhead.
I would never grant Them ownership of anything to do with us.
TIMHORTON
John Yogi Hughes took over the Masonic Arms in Condorrat and quickly changed its name to “Condorrat Arms”.
Sadly it didn’t last that long.
Don’t know if its opened again or not.
Philbhoy.
It did reopen, but it is shut again.
All boarded up, guessing a bit of fire damage too.
Philbhoy/Timhorton
Pretty sure the Masonic Arms in Condorrat is predominantly a Celtic leaning pub.
JNP
*was* :-)
Celtic Park for me.
`Parkhead` was a media creation ( just like `The Hoops`). Would you ever hear a media person referring to Sevco`s home ground being `Govan`?
Ask yourself why they never do that then you might start calling our ground Celtic Park.
JJ
HT
When I lived there more than 30 years ago it was a mixed bag, but everyone seemed to get on well!
The Craigmarloch Lodge wisney a twinkle in anybody’s eye at that time!
CRAIGMARLOCH LODGE BHOY!
Yer sorted mate!
:-)
HOT SMOKED
Ibrox is in Ibrox :)
I always call it Celtic Park, you know what else used to rile me, people saying the rangers end, I always replied no such thing at Celtic Pak it’s the visitors end por cierto
TONYDONNELLY67 on 21ST OCTOBER 2016 1:53 PM
It doesn’t upset me in the slightest. I guess it’s down to what each of us is used to saying. It’s always been Parkheid for me.
HH.
PS : We all call Ibrokes Greyskull , although some prefer to call it Snake Mountain.
HAMILTONTIM on 21ST OCTOBER 2016 2:12 PM
Philbhoy/Timhorton
Pretty sure the Masonic Arms in Condorrat is predominantly a Celtic leaning pub.
It is is or was,indeed.All the Condorrat No 1drank in it.
SOUTH OF TUNIS on 21ST OCTOBER 2016 10:17 AM
Aberfan . This old git remembers that, within days of the disaster, there were two Aberfan ” jokes ” on the go.
*I recall that tae but for the life of me even with the excellent memory I have I just don’t remember them, probably just dismissed them as being sick.
My memory of Aberfan is standing at the bus stop that Friday night and a woman from round the corner was very sadly talking about it, didnae know she was Welsh and she had lived beside me for 12 years at the time.
Also living down by the Bonnie Banks where the main industry for years had been silk dyeing before light engineering moved in and in the neighbouring towns further up the Clyde it was shipbuilding I had no concept what a mining village was even though my maternal granny had been born in one as had her siblings. It was the aforesaid dye works that brought her mother across the country in pursuit of a better living.
At that time we had family, including the same granny, now living in the “new” town of Cumbernauld and it was pointed out to me that the grass covered “hills” that we saw enroute for visits in the likes of Moodiesburn were actually coal bings.
The following day, Saturday, Scotland played Wales in a UEFA Championship game at Ninian Park in Cardiff which is only about 14 miles away from the scene of the disaster; we had 4 players in the side so our game was rescheduled.
Why was the game not cancelled, it probably would have today but in an era where communications was not as easily accessible as now it may have not been possible. Still a sad day which should never be forgotten.
TURKEYBHOY
Can’t remember a bus from there.
I do remember that if there was a big game on the telly the manageress, Brenda, I think, served great hot pies to the punters for free.
A nice wee memory.
DONTBRATTBAKKINANGER:
Biafra Famine for me….
So Nico probably out for the season.No harm to the guy,hope he recovers,but what a kick in the plums to his employers.Added to Joeys expenses,thats around 40 grand a week doing hee haw.
We might have been downhearted after Wednesday,but a look across the City to the utter shambles unfolding once again before our eyes should put a song in our hearts.
A Celtic song.
I remember as a kid growing up in Partick, when the Masonic arms was across Benalder St. from the Dolphin. Was like the wild west at chucking oot time.
As the away-ticket allocation tightens as a result of our new-found fan-base, me and Wee BGFC find ourselves sans-tickets for both Dingwall next Wednesday night and Aberdeen that following weekend.
We are going up to both in any case, heads out the car looking for spares.
Obviously Ross County on a school night in particular is a stretch, so will be doubly disappointing if we end up unsuccessful in our efforts – long road down listening to the radio! Grateful, therefore, if anyone hears of any spares for that one in particular.
Getting Aberdeen ones will, I know, be a stretch – but we are giving it a bash anyway.
You can get either of us on here, or via Paul 67.
Cheers – BGFC
My mind simply can’t comprehend the tragedy that was Aberfan – the horror was beyond understanding – thoughts with everyone who will still be scarred.
Philbhoy,
Dont think the bus actually left from there,think it left from the school,but all the punters,most related to me drank in there,and the club across the road.
There’s a pub in airdrie called the mason arms suprise suprise HH
TURKEYBHOY
We called it the OK CORRAL.
There was so much trouble in and around that place at the weekend we were all on first name terms with the polis who came in to clean up and round up!
It was a great place to drink.
Philbhoy
Not a chance!!!
Big Georges
I’ll ask about for you mate.
For those struggling with pop up ads,not sure who posted it but opening a private window on Mozilla Firefox works a treat,not ads whatsoever using this
Early Friday muzic,
The Waterbhoys…
‘Raggle Taggle Gypsy ‘
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4s7CqLuzp5A&list=PL9kkboiDms6QJqpQv0euiyhiIug_RhVoK&index=12
GORDYBHOY64
What’s a private window please?
philtheludditecsc
DELANEYS DUNKY:
A lot of good Tims worked in the Masonic Arms, a lot of good Tims drank in there too.
Por Cierto
Thanks for that.
Although a Glaswegian, I really only know my own area plus the Town Centre.
I thought Ibrox was in the Govan Borough.
JJ
Kitalba
My dad was one of the Tims who drank in the Masonic Arms infrequently. More likely to be in the Dolphin or the Roost.
Philboy,
it prevents your computer storing information in your search history,
also blocks cookies and ads etc,most browsers have them,just found Mozilla works really well
DELANEYS DUNKY:
Ditto
GORDYBHOY64
How do I open it please?
This could be along afternoon for you, by the way!
Anyway, each to they’r own, I’m off to do some business, then hit the zoo, HH
Philboy,
its accessed by clicking the 3 wee lines in the top corner and then open private window
HAMILTONTIM
Cheers HT.
Ross County is our favourite away trip, but there has been a slight change to eligibility criteria this time which means we missed the eligibility by one game (same with Aberdeen).
Turns out we apparently never took a ticket for an Aberdeen game last year that we were eligible for. As it happens, I’m sure we weren’t actually offered the ticket.
We went up anyway, and were very lucky to get two from two elderly ladies at the gates of the stadium, when were in the middle of a crowd of about 60 people who were looking for tickets. I remember it well – it was a couple of days after we buried my mum – we think she made the ladies offer us the tickets :-)
HH
BGFC