Footballers often play two games a week but their peak fitness levels are achieved when the play once a week. More often than that and the muscles don’t recover quickly enough. Top players’ muscles are finely tuned to deliver 90 minutes of exertion. To reach this peak, they NEED games as well as training. It appears to be beyond the ken of sports scientists to create a training routine which matches actual matches.
Apart from a 25 minute run-out against Hearts two weeks ago, newco’s players will not have played a football game in 22 days when they line-up against the champions on Sunday. If the boot was on the other foot, I would be concerned.
Celtic watchers will note that they score more goals late in games than early. Ronny’s team try to win the battle for territory, the ball and energy before running over the top of opponents. Whatever happens in the opening 20 minutes on Sunday I would expect Celtic to be far more effective in the final 20 minutes of the game, when their superiority will be most effective. There’s a chance newco will crumble early on, but I don’t expect many chances at either end until later in the first half.
While we all know how Celtic will play, it’s harder to figure out how Kenny McDowell will line-up tactically. If he was Ross County manager he would defend his 18 yard line for 90 minutes and hope for a breakaway, but I’m not sure that’s a viable strategy for Sunday. Lose an early goal and he would be caught between damage limitation and attempting to get back into the game. It could get very messy.
My hunch is that he’ll play a conventional 4-5-1 and attempt to find space out wide behind Celtic’s full-backs for Kenny Miller to run into. The full-backs will play forward, there will be space, we’ve just got to be faster than the 35-year-old ex-Celt now plying his trade in the lower leagues.
Despite their form against Hibs and Hearts this season, newco have an excellent record against Premiership competition in the cups. Three wins, against Inverness (only one point behind Aberdeen on same games played), St Johnstone and Kilmarnock, without a goal conceded, is a measure of what they are capable of, when they put their minds to it.
The wins against Kilmarnock and Inverness are particularly noteworthy, as both Premiership clubs enjoyed the majority of possession, but were frustrated in attack and hit with sucker-punches. This is what McDowell will seek to do at Hampden.
Ronny, get the job done. Very, very, very, thoroughly.
A reminder for North American readers that the Annual Celtic Supporter’s Féile is on in Philadelphia this weekend. The events include live music each day, the US premier of The Asterisk Years, with a Q&A with Paul Larkin and Graham Wilson of Beyond the Waves podcast, as well as live coverage the semi-final. You can find out more, including how to book, here.
Have you booked for the CQN11 Str Patrick’s Dinner on Friday, 13 March? We’re hoping to raise enough money to build Mary’s Meals a school kitchen in Malawi. Mary’s meals emailed an hour ago with a report on one of the kitchens we built last year, in Kholoni, where they are now feeding 1245 children each day, a considerable increase in the roll-call since the availability of kitchen facilities, see the photo above.
Email me for tickets, celticquicknews@gmail.com (to the Dinner, not Malawi).
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tomcourtney
15:26 on
30 January, 2015
Burgas Hoops
“Unusual first name” I’m intrigued.
There was an Agnew family from Ardrossan, think they had a grocery business…
Am I close?
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Think he worked on the rigs Tom, but could be wrong with the timescale.
How about the 1st name though’Hawthorn’.
Bobbio
I’ve not heard from Weefra.
Weefra
I’ve not heard from you. Let us know you’re okay. ‘One ping only’
Hunt4RedOctoberCSC
HH jamesgang
West End of East End
nctim’s likely to know – he lives in Winston Salem
Haw nctim ur ye there?
For some reason I have been thinking about this goal this afternoon:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fiYt3iNWau0
See if Sunday’s game was just a scrappy, boring game with a goal like this from Kris Commons to win it in the last minute, I think that would be ok…
Robin Bhoy and BMCUW thanks to you both only problem may be that it only being shown on BBC Scotland not nationwide – as I understand it. Any techies put me right on this? Hail Hail Hebcelt
It’s Friday, it’s 5 to 5, it’s ………………..
No signing of Kris as hoped for…
I suspect PL is awaiting outcome of AFC v DUFC…
If DUFC get pumped then GMS comes early – Kris can be dispatched
bsr
“It’s Friday, it’s 5 to 5, it’s ………………..”
Someone who forgot to put the clocks back???
We should be far too good for sevco on Sunday. Still have concerns, should we have an off day and they manage to kick and cheat their way to a lucky result.
I would hate to think its the end for Ronny. He would be in for a lot of criticism but i still think he needs the full season.
setting free the bears for Res. 12 & Oscar Knox
15:56 on 30 January, 2015
bsr
“It’s Friday, it’s 5 to 5, it’s ………………..”
Someone who forgot to put the clocks back???
————————————-
All depends on where you are, innit?!
sftb
You would have been my last suspect :-)
Natinow
Never fails
When I was a wean, a long time ago, us urchins used to own ‘hand me down’ Diana .177 air pistols no regulations then shoot each other in mock/real battles, we did, whilst humming the ‘Combat’ ( starring Vic Morrow ) theme tune. So much so, our parents questioned the ‘pepper’ bruising on our bodies at bath time. How no one was ever seriously hurt I’ll never know.
I remember pinging a ‘mate’ smack in the buttocks, and he squealed so loud, I ran home and hid in the garden shed for three hours, waiting for the Rozzers at my front door. He was making faces and sticking his bottom out from behind his Maws living room carpet, which was hung over the clothes line, waiting to be beaten.
Nobody cared, my parents, along with all the others in our scheme, never seemed to worry what we got up to so long as we were home in time for dinner. Summer holidays, were endless, we spent our time playing soccer in the mornings, the afternoons, and nights, all together, no animosity, no angst.
Soadies, best man falls, kerbie, tennis (with no net), beds, KDRF, bawry, three n in, finals, mouldmasters, (from school) hampden fridos, wembley regulations, catching sticklebacks and minnows from the clyde,
Nostalgia makes everything seem better, but life was simpler back then because no-one told us we were poor and deprived etc. as everyone we knew was the same.
westies
13:23 on 30 January, 2015
Unfortunately Sunday’s game will define Ronny’s time with Celtic. Lose and he is finished with the majority of fans. Win, things continue as is. Win by a large margin….he will become a legend !
Just my opinion.
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Those are exactly my thoughts too.
HH
oh Hampden in the cold
we`re playing a team thats 3 years old
celtic won and the huns got told
you`ve got f… all cos its all been sold
Speaking of Dads ,today would’ve been my late father’s 95th
La breithe shona duit Jimmy
hebcelt
On a laptop or ipad go to iplayer.
There is an option on the home page of iplayer to ‘Change Location’ and Scotland is an option (just above the Englandshires).
BBC Scotland is then the default with the game live…
a backstop for me if I cant get to a celtic bar..
Burgas Hoops
Doesn’t ring a bell but I’ll be talking to my stepfather tonight, another Garryowen stalwart.
He was on the rigs 80’s and 90’s. I’ll ask him.
Games live on Setanta Ireland too if that helps
HH
Anyone watching the game on iPlayer or tvcatchup and who think they may struggle regarding location can download a free program called hola, which allows you to ‘jump’ to a UK location or any other location you may wish. Available on android and iThings.
ncmjc
Got to be Martin then :<)
BSR,
I had a Diana .177 pop out myself, yep it would leave a wee mark, whereas the .22 rifle left an almighty bruise.
I kept that for hunting stuckies and blackbirds though.
Well, maybe the odd hun aswel. :))
BSR
Great post!
We did all of that but in the summer holidays we would go “bird nesting”.
You left the house at 9 in the morning and walked for miles into the countryside looking for nests.
On the way home, if you were starving, which we usually were, you’d steal a turnip out of a farmers field and chew it raw. Mibbe some wild blackberries for dessert.
Home for 10pm.
Nobody worried either.
Those were the days……
RWE,
I’m here :<)
Maybe he should try Duckwoth's if they have one in Raleigh?
Don't know too much about the Capitol area :<(
bournesouprecipe .
Your long time ago sounds much like mine.
Vic Morrow.Died when he was decapitated by a helicopter rotor whilst filming The Twilight Zone.
I was told this morning that when Police Scotland visited Lennoxtown earlier in the week, as well as reminding the players of their responsibilities in front of a volatile atmosphere, Ronny Deila was pulled aside and asked if he would consider ordering his players to take it easy if Celtic find themselves well ahead – 2-0 or 3-0 perhaps – with the game all but won, rather than go all out for a 5, 6 or 7 goal humiliation, and thereby avoiding a humiliation which could send the Gers fans over the edge.
I laughed when I was told this, but the more I think about it, knowing how things work in this country, is it really so hard to believe that such a request could be made?
I am assured that Ronny laughed even louder than I did.
Nat Know
I know for a fact that Burnside is not one hour forward in time from the rest of Greater Glasgow.
300 years behind maybe :-)
kevin hughes
16:01 on 30 January, 2015
oh Hampden in the cold
we`re playing a team thats 3 years old
celtic won and the huns got told
you`ve got f… all cos its all been sold
__________
I could see your ditty catching on. Nice one. HH
Tom
That could be called match fixing.
Surely not.
Thanks for all the techie – and other help re watching the game on Sunday. Think we got all bases covered now. Hail Hail Hebcelt
philbhoy .
Raw turnips – Yes .Brambles – Yes .No ” birdnesting” I dealt with that by beating the shit out of anybody I caught doing it.
Scoring goals all season all has been the main issue so as long as we win that’s all that matters. They will raise their game, they’ll need too, I’m sure they will.
No point building up fans hopes of a big score.
RWE,
Mind you, since the game is at 8:30 am local time, might be a problem finding a place open at that time, unless he feels like an early morning trip to Charlotte to the CSC down there?
SoT
Sounds like you enjoyed it.
RWE,
Aff oot — taking she who must be obeyed for her doctor follow-up. Talk to you later :<)
nctim
Good luck to your good lady!
Philbhoy –
I know Big Jock used to tell his players to take the foot off the gas in the second half where the team were a few goals up against a small club from a lower division and it was a cup tie with no goal average/difference involved.
In one Glasgow Cup tie against Queen’s Park at Hampden in 1965, Celtic were 5-0 up at half-time and in the second half, they just passed the ball around and didn’t even try to score. It finished 5-0.
That happened a few times back then.
tomcourtney
16:10 on
30 January, 2015
Burgas Hoops
Doesn’t ring a bell but I’ll be talking to my stepfather tonight, another Garryowen stalwart.
He was on the rigs 80′s and 90′s. I’ll ask him.
I will look out for your reply Tom.