Game intelligence to succeed in 30 successive cup games

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I could make a case that the Hibs dressing room has a feeling of empowerment that belies their lowly position.  Whatever happened when Leeann Dempster and Neil Lennon agreed the latter would leave his position as Hibs manager, the dressing room was almost certainly an active component in the process.  The same players now have Paul Heckingbottom to contend with, and you do not need prophesising skills to know that Paul will soon leave in a similar manner to Neil Lennon.

When players have an influence on the manager’s position, they also decide when they want to put a shift in.  A home game against Livingston might not get the juices flowing, until embarrassment kicks in, but a Hampden semi-final will.  Hibs players are choosing their battles.

Tomorrow is a big test for Celtic, the 30th domestic cup game since our last elimination.  Sure, we are better than the rest, but still, the uneven distribution of chances, goals, red cards, freak events and honest mistakes, means that such runs are statistically very unlikely.

I would rather be cautious than flamboyant tomorrow.  Get through the game without tackles that risk a Christie-Livingston-type red card, or that denies Hibs space inside our box that can result in an Inverness or Ross County-type semi-final penalty.

We have won 12 games at Hampden on the bounce, without the need for extra-time or penalties.  It is our home-from-home, we have the game intelligence succeed, so let’s get to the final.

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  1. DAVID17 on 2ND NOVEMBER 2019 2:01 PM

     

    Newco Rangers have existential issues, they are trying to be something they are not. Their supporters have bought this narrative hook, line and sinker. But the version of Rangers they have bought into doesn’t exist. All of their eggs are in the stop the 10 basket. They may well stop the 10 but this period in their existence will pass quickly. I suspect the PLC Board are looking at the medium and longer term. Newco will implode trying to keep pace with Celtic. Generations of Celtic dominance will follow. The big questions are can they stop the 10 and have we done enough to get it.

     

    ===================================

     

    Again spot on and perhaps that Big Question will be posed at the AGM plus how much is it costing Celtic to stay ahead of a rigged game?

  2. My goodness, this Bournemouth v MU match is seriously underwhelming. Would make your eyes bleed.

  3. Canamalar it looks like OCD obsession on

    Brew..,

     

    Cheers,

     

    I thought it might be something we previously discussed and I forgot.

  4. hahahaha I we,ve done a bit of that over the years …

     

     

    smiley a substantial win for Lenny,s Loons today thing

     

     

    Braw

     

     

    Saor Alba

  5. Great to hear wee Mikey Johnston is back. Seriously fantastic talent.

     

     

    Looking forward to a slightly strange 530pm on a staurday kick off.

  6. Canamalar it looks like OCD obsession on

    Take any win but love a good performance and to give hibs a thrashing

  7. Wenn du die Wahrheit nur magst, wenn es eine Wahrheit ist, die du magst, magst du die Wahrheit nicht.

     

     

    smiley the world is a braw place,now is oor time on it…”over the tannoy ” theme park closing soon ..thing

     

     

    Braw

  8. !!BADA BING!! on 2ND NOVEMBER 2019 3:09 PM

     

    Do we have any guys on yellow cards today?

     

     

     

    Frimpong, Hayes and Bitton bizarrely.

  9. Nothing like a bit of ‘Sevco going bust’ to spruce up the big game preamble.

     

     

    Hibs unable to attract their own supporters, leaves us with an abundance of tickets to further line the coffers and the corrupt corridors at Hamdump as we face the latest episode of Petrie‘s putrid ‘anybody but Celtic’.

     

     

    Like a finely tuned Rolls Royce, we turn up to swat a misfiring dysfunctional Hibs not even trusted by their own support to have a cat in hells chance of playing inevitable wind assisted Sevco in the final.

     

     

    So to the champions and team selection riches where tweaking is hard to guess as NFL does it his way, best just to wait and see other than team sheet latest………. James Forrest. Would like Ntcham, if Brown doesn’t make it, though it’ll be hard to stop him captaining the side in cup tie, 30 in a row. Rogic and Christie can battle it out to start, Bolingoli is by far the best leftie, but its any one from three at right back, where NFL might go for security and El Hamed.

     

     

    No need for goals difference any win will do Celtic, just win.

  10. On the walk over to Hampton

     

    Expecting a professional job today

     

    No mess in Celtic

     

    Go to work lads

     

    Earn yourselves a final place

     

    Do your best

     

    :-)

     

    HH

  11. Anybody feeling too complacent look at the half times in the EPL, Both Man City & Liverpool i down at half time.

     

    Man City are at home to Southampton who got clattered 9 nil last week, what odds they would be leading City at the break.

  12. After another defeat for Man Utd, how much longer will they stick with Ole? And would BR move there and let down Leicester so soon? As he is a narcissist of the highest order, I don’t think he could resist going to Old Trafford, his most favourite team of all time who he grew up supporting when he wasn’t supporting Celtic and Liverpool.

     

    Or will Pochettino be the favourite?

  13. Today’s official starting line up v Hibs ……

     

     

    Forster; Frimpong ,Ajer, Jullien, Bolingoli ; Brown, McGregor ; Forrest, Rogic, Elyounoussi, Edouard

     

    Subs: Gordon, ElHamed, Ntcham , Bitton, Christie Hayes, Johnston,

  14. What?…no Ryan Christie?

     

    Can not believe that is a good idea under any circumstances.

     

    Scott Brown is a hero but surely today would have been a good day to give him a rest

  15. mild mannered Pedro delgado on

    CAn only imagine that they’re saving pt.ryan for Lazio

     

     

    Saying that tommybhoy was my man b4 I switched to Ryan

     

    Hope Lenny,s got it right

  16. FAVOURITE UNCLE on

    man utd lose as do barca, bayern munich, liverpool,last night paris san g,

     

    so sunday could we add the huns to that illustrious list.

  17. TEST – IGNORE

     

     

    Odsonne Edouard 283

     

    Scott Brown 280

     

    Ryan Christie 236

     

    Christopher Jullien 226

     

    James Forrest 205

     

    Mohamed Elyounoussi 176

     

    Calum McGregor 147

     

    Boli Bolingoli-Mbombo 139

     

    Jeremie Frimpong 136

     

    Hatem Abd Elhamed 76

     

    Moritz Bauer 64

     

    Kristoffer Ajer 62

     

    Fraser Forster 59

     

    Olivier Ntcham 43

     

    Nir Bitton 41

     

    Vakoun Bayo 30

     

    Jonny Hayes 24

     

    Greg Taylor 19

     

    Tom Rogic 16

     

    Mikey Johnston 11

     

    Craig Gordon 1

     

    Scott Sinclair 1

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