St Mirren v Celtic Sportscene


St Mirren v Celtic

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In recent years for both St Mirren and Celtic, the League Cup has

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brought real heartbreak. Since were agonisingly close to glory in 2010.

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I have an unbelievable goal. I and Celtic have been losers in the last

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two finals. Kilmarnock have stunned Celtic and might well have ended

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their treble hopes. They are both back at hand and today, one step

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away from the final and another shot at the All trophy. Kris

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Commons scores again. Celtic are in the semi-final now. It has Kenny

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McLean, a great save by Craig Samson. A wonderful night for St

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Mirren. A Scottish Communities League Cup semi-final took a bit of

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sorting out. Well this one at hand and be a little more

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straightforward? The bookmakers tell you that it will be a Celtic

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to play Hearts and the final. Underdogs St Mirren don't see it

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that way. Were Celtic take another step towards the domestic treble?

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Will St Mirren upset the odds? We will find out shortly. That is live

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on the BBC. And at half-time we will have highlights of that first

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semi-final and SPL highways as well. The Aberdeen hits game is still

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under way, and we will have news from Dens Park of Dundee against

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Kilmarnock. Joining me a Pat Nevin and Owen Coyle. Look ing at the

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statistics, it straight victories for Celtic again St Mirren, is it

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inevitable a repeat of that? It is a tall order to overcome that. When

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you get to the semi-final of the cup competition, it is a one off

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and you have a real chance, but I cannot see that St Mirren will be

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filled with confidence coming into the game knowing they have got such

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a poor record against what is a very good Celtic side. It will be

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difficult for them but the nature of cup competition, anything can

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happen. Particularly coming to the business end, the semi-finals and

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finals. It is an intriguing game but St Mirren are going to have to

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be at their maximum. You look at the likes of what MK Dons did and

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Luton Town did yesterday in England., Mark, of course, was the

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other one. Celtic have to have a very bad day and St Mirren have to

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have a very good one. There is no pressure and expectation on St

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Mirren, and that might help them a little. Without further ado, let's

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get the team news from Craig Paterson and Liam Macleod at

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Hampden. That is going to take some doing to beat the drama of the

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first semi-final yesterday, with Hearts beating Inverness on

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penalties. And the St Mirren fans, the managers and players, could be

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forgiven for rolling their eyes when the draw gave them Celtic in

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the semi-final. It is all Chamakh games since Danny Lennon took over

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at they have not managed a single goal, let alone a victory, against

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Celtic. In the recent SPL game between the teams, Celtic weight

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the floor with them, performance was. And they Avenue signing in the

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shape of Goncalves from Portugal. think of St Mirren are going to do

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anything this afternoon, it is the spine of the team that has got to

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perform. Samson and goals, the centre half's, Paul McGowan off the

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front, and Steven Thompson spearheading it. If these

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experienced guys play well St Mirren have got a chance of making

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the final. Celtic and missing goalkeeper Fraser Forster, still

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out with that neck injury. He is a big miss for them. He has been

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especially good in the Champions League, and Lucasz Zaluska coming

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in for Rhyl. An able deputy, but Celtic a major goal threat. Big

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defenders coming forward for set pieces, Charlie Mulgrew with the

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free kick, Victor Wanyama, who has scored in both games again St

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Mirren this season, and up front, Gary Hooper with five goals in

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three games, that is a side that is designed to attack and go for goals.

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A huge test for St Mirren against Celtic, who are lost the last two

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League Cup finals and the St Mirren can grasp anything it will be that

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Celtic have lost in their last two visits to Hampden Park. Even

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without first-choice goalkeeper Fraser us Forster, that looks like

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a very solid Celtic team. There is a team that is playing full of

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confidence. It is a team, and I said at the Champions League have

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left them for a few months, and they would open a gap of

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domestically, and they have did that. They are full of confidence,

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and then the Champions League, with players giving big performances, to

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get into the team to play Juventus. And the set plea delivery from

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Celtic, they looked as if they could score with a free set play,

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because of the delivery and because they have got a naturally very tall

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team. That set plays St Mirren a going to have to be so focused and

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concentrated and people are going to have to take responsibility in

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their own box. Goncalves has not played yet, Newton has only played

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once. It is stunning to see that. Particularly at Hampden Park, as

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well. They could be lifted, while they could freeze. Literally, as

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well, because it is freezing cold dirt there! You expect more of Gary

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Teale. He has not done so much this season. And David van Zanten,

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players who have been there for a while and to know the game. If you

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were to base your thinking on League placings, you would imagine

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it was a no contest - 24 points between them, top and second-bottom

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in the SPL, but the words from Neil Lennon in the build-up have been

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pretty wary. Maybe he is thinking back to this particular match

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against St Mirren, which signalled the end of Tony Mowbray minus four-

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04 St Mirren, of course. This was the opportunity opening up for Neil

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Lennon. It is strange how football works. I think that was the last

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time St Mirren scored any goals again Celtic. The fact that the

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young ones playing for St Mirren, that might be their best hope,

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because they should be playing without any fear. The seasoned

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professionals, when you have taken a hiding from the same team, it is

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difficult to think, how can we get the better of them? But with the

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young ones playing, that might help the senior players to have a real

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go, and fighter when the semi-final and get to the final. We have

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talked about minuses for St Mirren, but Steven Thompson is a big plus,

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a player that you sign for Burnley. I know him very well. Probably the

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best signing I ever made, and they got him for nothing from Cardiff

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City who wanted half a million at the time, eventually, we got him

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for nothing and what he brought to Burnley, he leads the line so well,

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he brought goals, but he is a real team player, and I know that he is

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loving as they St Mirren. To score 12 goals is a great return at this

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stage. He will be anxious to do well, recognising this stage he is

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that of his career and knowing that at Cup finals do not come around

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very often. Leading the line for Celtic, he isn't bad, either, just

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22 goals so far are for the much wanted Gary Hooper. How much is a

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Celtic forward do you like those? He is always looking to get between

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the centre backs and the goalkeeper. Look at him pointing what he wants

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the ball. His touch was fantastic. Anyone who has seen a Olivier

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Giroud for Arsenal, he shows the exact same qualities. He is not

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necessarily the quickest player you have ever seen, but he is a classic

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centre-forward, moving between the centre-backs and the goalkeeper,

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pointing to where he once ate a lot of the time, a player who not only

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once the ball, but those of us who did not used to be able to do that

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within, how on earth do you do that? Guys like him can do it with

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their eyes shut. He's as good as anybody I have seen recently, doing

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that, and he just looks that little bit sharper. You expect him, if

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there are chances, that he will score. It is Lennon verses Lennon,

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with us hear from two managers' pre-match, with Chris McLoughlin.

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Is all the pressure on Celtic this afternoon? It is certainly a big

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deal, at Glasgow Celtic, you are meant to go out and win every game.

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The players are well schooled in who they want to be played and

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hopefully we can put that to the test against a very good side.

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you say to the players, just go and enjoy it? They have certainly not

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here just to enjoy the occasion. We want to make it an occasion. Some

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players never get to play at the National Stadium in a national

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semi-final. What we want the players to do is relax, have belief

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and enjoy it. You do not have a great record against Celtic. What

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makes you think that today might be different? History has a habit of

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repeating itself. If you look back at 1859, we had a great semi-final

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victory against an, we have beaten them 3-0 at Celtic Park in 1989, so

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hopefully, it is our turn today. You know more than most that been

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at the semi-final does not guarantee success. Well, it doesn't.

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Not just here. Anything can happen on any given day. We're walking a

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bit of a tightrope when it comes to these games and we have to give it

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a go. Does it give you something of a no-win situation? We are expected

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to win. If we do not we get highly criticised. We are expected to win.

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The players are aware of that and that there is the mentality we have.

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Because of the way that that things are in the leak, does the treble

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have extra significance? There is no extra significance to the treble.

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If you can achieve it, then it is a great thing, and that is what we

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are aiming to do. I do not think he enjoyed the mention of the treble,

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Neil Lennon, but there is pressure and expectation this season, with

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the expectation that they will sweep the boards. In any other

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season Celtic have a 50% chance of winning the trophies, in

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competition with Rangers. As it is, now the expectation is 100%,

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because Rangers are down the divisions. There is pressure, in

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that sense. That is why he will probably get a little bit irked by

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the pressure. He does not want it to be taken for granted that Celtic

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have won to win all these jockeys. How much will the history of the

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fixture way in the mind of Danny Lennon? He will be trying not to

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think about it as much as possible. He has been looking on the computer

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at history trying to find some sort of succour! Picture forget

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everything that has gone then that, it certainly will not help not

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winning in the recent past. I listened to our colleagues on

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rigger Scotland talking about the trouble and they talk about it as

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something they want to do. Most managers backed it away, but I was

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taken by the fact that Neil Lennon is up for wanting to do this, and

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it shows you the confidence he has caught and the pressure, good

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pressure, that he wants to put on his players, that is something you

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should have Pat Celtic football club. The big glamour game against

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Juventus, not far over the horizon now, and that might take the focus

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off again like today for Celtic. will be stressing to his players

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that if anybody takes the eye of the ball they will not be in the

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team. From a playing perspective, players have to give a big

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performance, so that when the Juventus game comes about, I do not

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miss out on the opportunity. And when that last 16 Thai comes about,

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who's to say that Celtic cannot progress? You want to be on the top

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of your form individually and collectively to give yourself the

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chance to do that. You want to make sure you are in the final to win

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this trophy and to do that you have A penalty was saved by Aberdeen.

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Niall McGinn had his penalty saved, so it finished goalless. Back to

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the League Cup semi-final, who will play Hearts in the final. How

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crucial to the game might be Celtic old boy Paul McGowan? I would talk

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about McGowan, every one of them has to be 100%. It is not an

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individual one. But he can make things happen for them? Exactly,

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but he will be pushed a little bit back into midfield. He wants to

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attack from the midfield area. He wants to get forward, he has got a

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bit of quality. You've got John Begin, McGowan, going forward, they

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had a bit of quality. But when they are playing against the power that

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they are playing against, I would look at the physique of Brown,

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Wanyama, Medley, even Samaras. They are a big, big physical side. I

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don't know if there is enough physique to hold up against Celtic.

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I'm willing to be proved wrong, but on such a big pitch, up until

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recently, Celtic, and Rangers until recently, rarely lost at Hampden.

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Wide areas, good players make good use of space but also the physical

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access that they have got. There are a couple of players missing

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from St Mirren. It is hard for them. St Mirren have to be very

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respectful of Celtic, they know their quality, but they cannot be

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fearful of them. They have to believe they can come out and play

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their game. Magellan, at the top end of the pitch, he can be a

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match-winner. Those players are going to have to be at their best.

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If they do get possession in Celtic's final third, Celtic can be

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as fragile as anybody else in the final third. McGowan can produce,

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Thomson can produce, Gary Teale will be wanting to show that he is

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still a top player. This is a chance that they have, if they

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believe in themselves. Trust in themselves and give it a real go.

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If they set up defensively and let Celtic come on to them, Celtic will

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score. It might take a few attacks, but I would rather St Mirren have a

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real go and try to win an old- fashioned cup-tie. Joe Ledley,

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Victor Wanyama, he is a big specimen. We talk a lot about

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Hooper. But down south I think they are all talking about Wanyama.

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Talking about them looking for space, that is the man that will

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deny them space. How is Victor Wanyama or regarded down south?

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Very highly. Gary Hooper is a fantastic strike a. -- striker.

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There will be clubs of those statures interested in him. But I

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think Wanyama is capable of playing for any of the top clubs in the

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Premier League, Arsenal, Manchester United, he has the pace, power, the

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ability and he is still a young man. Celtic, they deserve enormous

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credit, �900,000. He comes from a footballing background, his father

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was an international player. He is well-schooled, knows how to play.

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He started to develop, game by game. You have seen the Champions League

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games, he stands tall and he looks a top player in the Champions

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League environment, never mind anywhere else. I think Celtic have

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a very good player. Jim Goodwin, big player? Oh, yes. The centre

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half's will have a lot of work to do. We did talk about Hooper, his

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movement is as good as anybody else in that final third. Samaras,

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coming through the left, every player has to be concentrating all

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the time of St Mirren art have any chance at all. Let's find out who

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will play Hearts. It went all the way yesterday, how will it be

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sorted out today? St Mirren again Celtic, you have seen them already,

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let's hear from Leah Macleod. -- that if you are well organised, the

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underdog can have their day. Those were the words of Danny Lennon, on

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the day of the semi-final draw. It handed them a date they would not

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have wanted before it was made. It could have been Hearts or Inverness

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they faced, teams they have taken points from in the league this

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season. Instead, they take on the favourites, not just for this

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competition but the other two in Scotland as well. A Celtic side,

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they have lost each of their last eight games against, without

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scoring a single-goal. But as The Buddies boss also said, once you

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get to this stage, you've got to beat the best if you are going to

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turning over Celtic this afternoon. A hardy bunch of supporters have

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come through from Paisley. They believe that they do have a chance.

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Danny Lennon will try to guide St Mirren to their first ever league

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cup. They have lost both league finals they have been in. He has

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handed a start to Esmael Goncalves. The onus for goals, as usual, is on

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finals of this competition. Fraser forestay is still out with a neck

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injury. Lukasz Zaluska continues in goal. Top scorer Gary Hooper

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remains a Celtic player, despite two bids. He is a friend with

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actually on loan in France worth Nice. Gary Hooper, 22 goals this

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season. 73 in 160 appearances. That is why he is a wanted man. William

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Collum is the referee. He was in charge of the League Cup final last

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year, won by Kilmarnock. Big shock that day, will we see another one

:22:09.:22:19.
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Bodies. For exactly what they were wanting. -- The Buddies. Show that

:22:36.:22:46.
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Apology for the loss of subtitles for 46 seconds

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tripped by Scott Brown. But not many complaints from the new

:23:33.:23:43.
:23:43.:23:43.

Apology for the loss of subtitles for 46 seconds

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in a Europa League tie against that beat Dundee United 3-0. They

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were sluggish in the opening stages at home, Celtic. They have found

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their shooting boots and they are well in command at the top of the

:25:14.:25:24.
:25:24.:25:37.

from Izaguirre. He does well, I think it is Lassad coming in at the

:25:37.:25:47.
:25:47.:25:47.

Apology for the loss of subtitles for 46 seconds

:25:47.:26:46.

Ledley back in their team, he missed a month and a half because

:26:46.:26:56.
:26:56.:27:19.

first names on Neil Lennon's team sheet, if it's a big match? When

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they get the ball, it's natural to look forward. Rarely defined left-

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footed players down that side, but Celtic have three quality ones.

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Tried to release Teale down the left side. It started with David

:27:36.:27:46.
:27:46.:28:02.

himself and a good area. That's been given for hand ball? It looked

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like it. The ball just dropped. They were taking control in a

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dangerous area, but the referee had a good view of it. Any chance for

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lot of these Celtic players will not have tasted defeat against St

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Mirren and they will have to continue that this afternoon. --

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debut boy! He puts St Mirren into a sensational lead at the National

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Stadium! What a start for the young Portuguese lad. He is involved in a

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move earlier. He does what every good striker should do, he gets

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himself in the danger area. Half a chance coming. When the ball

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eventually comes in, he looks at it here, he finds the space and does

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really well to the fact that on target. Just the start that Danny

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:30:20.:30:22.

Lennon was looking for. Terrific finish by Goncalves. It's the two

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new boys, Conor Newton on loan from Newcastle and Esmael Goncalves.

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They make the same start as Hearts Mirren were needing. You felt he if

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they were to have a chance in this game they had to get the first goal,

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and they it. Yes, the players have got to work so hard. The next five

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or 10 minutes are vital. If you score, make sure you do not give

:31:09.:31:18.
:31:19.:31:42.

Newton on Joe Ledley. That is a yellow card. It is difficult to

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show -- throw yourself into any challenge at all because if you do

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not make decent contact with the ball and clipped a player, you are

:31:51.:31:56.

going to be yellow carded. For a young player in the engine room, he

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is going to have to be walking a tightrope. He clips Joe Ledley,

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studs showing, and referees will book you, now, for that kind of

:32:06.:32:16.
:32:16.:32:32.

well. Got the goal when on top, and when you take on Celtic that is

:32:32.:32:37.

something you have to do, take your chance when it comes. You know you

:32:37.:32:40.

are the underdogs but you have got to show you are ready to play, and

:32:40.:32:45.

when you get the ball, keep it, keep possession, and as the game

:32:45.:32:49.

wears on, one or two players growing confidence and then you

:32:49.:32:57.

start the fancy your chances. Mirren have respect for Celtic, and

:32:57.:33:01.

that respect will be borne out by the fact that they are so former

:33:01.:33:06.

head in the SPL, and the Champions League campaign they have had so

:33:06.:33:12.

far has been superb. But they have problems right now, with St Mirren

:33:12.:33:19.

looking for a second. Great ball from Gary Teale. Kelvin Wilson

:33:19.:33:26.

guess it clear. St Mirren can smell his second goal. And Lucasz Zaluska

:33:26.:33:32.

have to look lively. Absolutely nothing wrong with the confidence

:33:32.:33:38.

and ambition of the St Mirren team, because when they get the ball in

:33:39.:33:48.
:33:49.:34:00.

wide areas, four players of the us eyebrows raised from St Mirren

:34:00.:34:04.

supporters when at Danny Lennon announced his line-up, but it has

:34:04.:34:10.

paid dividends so far. We will look at the replay in the second. Scott

:34:10.:34:20.

Brown. Ended by Jim Goodwin. St Mirren getting the benefit of the

:34:20.:34:27.

doubt. This is Steven Thompson. At the moment Celtic do not know what

:34:27.:34:30.

has hit them. St Mirren were so defensive in the league game

:34:30.:34:37.

between the sides a couple of weeks ago which finished 2-0. St Mirren

:34:37.:34:46.

went there with a very awkward defensive line-up. I thought the

:34:46.:34:50.

linesman might have other better view of that, but the flag did not

:34:50.:35:00.
:35:00.:35:06.

go up, so the referee decided, play behind the two defenders, Jim

:35:06.:35:16.
:35:16.:35:30.

area, as she has done ever since Goncalves scored for St Mirren. He

:35:30.:35:39.

will not be too concerned. thing about losing the early goal

:35:40.:35:43.

is there is plenty of time to get one back. The touch from Joe Ledley

:35:43.:35:53.
:35:53.:36:09.

Collum is going to speak to Victor Wanyama. The referee saw the

:36:09.:36:13.

incident and does not deem it worthy of a booking. But Paul

:36:13.:36:17.

McGowan has gone down holding his face. I'm not sure if it was a

:36:17.:36:22.

flailing arm that caught him. Victor Wanyama leading from the

:36:22.:36:26.

front, thought, we're going to have to mix it year. I don't think that

:36:26.:36:32.

is a booking, but it is certainly a so one for Paul McGowan. He is an

:36:32.:36:42.
:36:42.:36:56.

of the ball. He has been brilliant in recent weeks bombing forward on

:36:56.:36:59.

the right hand side of the park. He does not want to get caught out,

:37:00.:37:09.
:37:10.:37:41.

only losing two of their last 10 and have won four of those. One of

:37:41.:37:51.
:37:51.:37:57.

those defeats was, of course, to if St Mirren will send Jim Goodwin

:37:57.:38:00.

fault for these free kicks. But they will have a good bit of

:38:00.:38:08.

defending to do. In fact they have to say that they and wing to take

:38:08.:38:18.
:38:18.:38:19.

it a shock and try to build the play. -- they are going to take it

:38:19.:38:27.

short and build. Are Celtic rattled? I would not say rattled,

:38:27.:38:34.

but disappointed with the way they have started. They have got leaders

:38:34.:38:39.

on the Park, ready to make things happen. Their current Wanyama and

:38:39.:38:42.

Scott Brown. But St Mirren have to be praised, they have been brave

:38:42.:38:46.

won the ball, taking the game two Celtic at have got their reward,

:38:46.:38:56.
:38:56.:39:14.

and it is up to Celtic and Neil saw his new signing score and his

:39:14.:39:24.
:39:24.:39:26.

team score for the first time against Celtic since he took over.

:39:26.:39:32.

Thomson just pulled over to the right hand side. Emilio Izaguirre

:39:32.:39:42.
:39:42.:40:01.

Trying to test Matthews. What an impact he has made. We saw Michael

:40:01.:40:08.

Ngoo score for Hearts. That is the thing about it was coming from

:40:08.:40:13.

abroad, the Celtic players do not know his strengths or weaknesses,

:40:13.:40:23.
:40:23.:40:37.

but they know now that he is a goal and last at almost got it into the

:40:37.:40:44.

path of Gary Hooper. St Mirren will have a free kick. No, it has not

:40:44.:40:54.
:40:54.:41:22.

Brown tried to go all the way himself. He got the brick of the

:41:22.:41:28.

ball off Jim Goodwin. That was a fantastic nutmeg on Jim Goodwin.

:41:28.:41:32.

Watch this for a touch. That is a great, last ditch tackle, Different

:41:32.:41:37.

Class. Scott Brown is so clever and the ball in these areas, and

:41:37.:41:43.

unlucky not to score. Apologies to Scott Brown, that was a terrific

:41:43.:41:53.
:41:53.:42:03.

nut Meg. I said he got a break of the goalkeeper deals with the first

:42:03.:42:07.

ball, good early shout, and comes and the -- comes and makes the

:42:07.:42:17.
:42:17.:42:56.

between John again and win Keri. -- and St Johnstone 5-0, to reach the

:42:56.:43:06.
:43:06.:43:07.

Apology for the loss of subtitles for 46 seconds

:43:07.:44:07.

and more into the game. Hooper! He hit the would work. -- woodwork.

:44:07.:44:12.

probably believes he should have buried that one. He goes for power,

:44:12.:44:18.

he just does not get over the ball. Jim Goodwin, backtracking, couldn't

:44:18.:44:23.

get enough on it. When Gary Hooper get a sight of goal, you expect him

:44:23.:44:33.
:44:33.:44:38.

to score. 22 times he has found the to him, he turned down a new deal.

:44:39.:44:48.
:44:49.:45:01.

He does have another year after play against Juventus and see if

:45:01.:45:05.

they could carry that dream even further? Well, St Mirren playing

:45:06.:45:09.

the same colours as Juventus and they are giving Celtic's problems

:45:09.:45:19.
:45:19.:45:57.

not got into any passing rhythm so far. They will be hoping that

:45:57.:46:07.
:46:07.:46:44.

there. Sampson looked on and thought, here we go again. This

:46:44.:46:50.

season, so far, Wanyama has scored some duties against it St Mirren.

:46:50.:46:54.

He's more than capable of hitting the back of the net from there.

:46:54.:46:57.

Including this season in Paisley. A wonderful strike in that game.

:46:57.:47:05.

Celtic, winning 5-0 at St Mirren Park. They batted The Buddies in

:47:05.:47:15.
:47:15.:47:15.

Apology for the loss of subtitles for 46 seconds

:47:15.:47:56.

has not had much to do so far, that perhaps the biggest worry for Neil

:47:56.:48:01.

Lennon. His team haven't clicked yet. St Mirren are not passing the

:48:01.:48:05.

ball as well as they were in the first half of the game. They can't

:48:05.:48:10.

seem to get Scott Brown involved. St Mirren need to get him back

:48:10.:48:20.
:48:20.:48:44.

is a corner. It's difficult to tell. I think Samaras was always looking

:48:44.:48:48.

just to knock it off the St Mirren defender, when he realised he could

:48:48.:48:53.

not get a cross in. It does look like that, I think it is a corner.

:48:53.:48:58.

Get yourself back and get defending, this is where Celtic are strong. A

:48:58.:49:08.
:49:08.:49:26.

lot of 6 foot plus players in the soul, but he has taken a ban to the

:49:26.:49:33.

head. He did really well, a ball to the back post, Wanyama might have

:49:33.:49:38.

just beat him to it, but he did well. They miss his drive in

:49:38.:49:41.

midfield, but his organisation at the back could be worth its weight

:49:42.:49:50.

in gold. Samaras! It's the crossbar, this time. The chances are coming.

:49:50.:50:00.
:50:00.:50:01.

Hooper had one, Scott Brown had won. I think Samaras should score.

:50:01.:50:04.

Against Van Zanten, it's a mismatch in terms of height. I think Van

:50:04.:50:07.

Zanten does just enough to get underneath him, to make it

:50:07.:50:11.

difficult for Samaras to get the ball down. Chance gone. But they

:50:11.:50:21.
:50:21.:51:01.

are starting to make chances. Gary Teale has to do better. He has

:51:01.:51:05.

time to look in the middle. Goncalves is there. Stevie Thomson

:51:05.:51:12.

is at the back post. If he gets a good ball in, it's a two on one

:51:12.:51:22.
:51:22.:51:22.

Apology for the loss of subtitles for 46 seconds

:51:22.:52:37.

situation if he can get the ball to want to see his Celtic starting to

:52:37.:52:47.
:52:47.:53:16.

A corner. He is a difficult man to run. But Goncalves is definitely

:53:16.:53:26.
:53:26.:53:43.

asking questions. His ready to go was Joe Ledley that was on the

:53:43.:53:49.

ground. Nothing doing. Another St Mirren goalkicker. I don't think

:53:49.:53:54.

the referee can give a penalty for that. Joe Ledley has gone for the

:53:54.:53:58.

diving header, it's gone underneath him. I'm sure it hits him on the

:53:58.:54:01.

elbow, but to say that was deliberate would be pushing it.

:54:01.:54:11.
:54:11.:54:43.

Now they are on the counter with ball to Gary Teale. I'm not sure if

:54:43.:54:47.

he shouldn't just pulled the trigger. Take it on to his strong

:54:47.:54:57.
:54:57.:55:14.

white hand, -- right hand, and try advantage, given them by Esmael

:55:14.:55:24.
:55:24.:55:26.

now. The link play, between the Celtic midfield and the front,

:55:26.:55:30.

isn't as good as it has been over the last couple of weeks, or

:55:30.:55:35.

against Hearts or Dundee United. You expect them to be flying today,

:55:35.:55:38.

but you have to respect St Mirren for the way they have gone about

:55:38.:55:48.
:55:48.:55:50.

likes of Teale and Magellan, opening things up for them. --

:55:50.:56:00.
:56:00.:56:13.

Graham Carey, again. You go out to beat a full-back or the winner in

:56:13.:56:17.

that area, you've got to get across the Cross, if you like, don't let

:56:17.:56:23.

it fly into the middle. Make sure you are not caught short at the

:56:23.:56:32.

corner in a League Cup semi-final against Aberdeen a couple of

:56:32.:56:42.
:56:42.:56:58.

and that was crucial. There are times when you just get the ball

:56:58.:57:02.

clear, you don't want to be playing clever football around your own 18-

:57:02.:57:12.
:57:12.:57:12.

Apology for the loss of subtitles for 46 seconds

:57:12.:57:55.

was, this time last week. Esmael Goncalves has got the only goal so

:57:55.:58:00.

far. He is on loan from Rio Ave, they are having a decent season as

:58:00.:58:10.
:58:10.:58:15.

well, 5th in the top flight, a his match fitness is like. Is he

:58:15.:58:19.

capable of doing 90 minutes, or 90 minutes plus as may be the case

:58:19.:58:29.
:58:29.:58:40.

today? As we saw yesterday! That corner. Again, the free kick on the

:58:40.:58:44.

right hand side, they are determined to get the game going,

:58:44.:58:54.
:58:54.:59:30.

play it short and work their way We know there is something of

:59:30.:59:38.

Jekyll-and-Hyde about Georgios Samaras's game. Passing is not his

:59:38.:59:43.

strong suit. It is his running with the ball, his strength. Celtic had

:59:43.:59:48.

half a chance there, which is completely gone. The ball comes off

:59:48.:59:53.

his ankle, the ball across the park, and sets St Mirren off on the

:59:53.:00:03.
:00:03.:00:32.

Wilson is there, to be let Charlie Mulgrew. -- Thompson did win it,

:00:32.:00:42.
:00:42.:00:42.

Apology for the loss of subtitles for 46 seconds

:00:42.:01:35.

pull the trigger. We thought initially he might buy offside.

:01:35.:01:40.

Just too many passes for Celtic. The ball was slipped through, and

:01:40.:01:47.

he is onside, that was a great ball. Across the goalkeeper and it take a

:01:47.:01:57.
:01:57.:02:17.

side made that or side Kohl, then signal for Celtic corner kick,

:02:17.:02:26.

which will, as usual, be taken by Charlie Mulgrew. Steven Thompson

:02:26.:02:34.

commanding the six-yard box, but not at the usual end. Celtic love

:02:34.:02:38.

that back Post corner. It has worked a treat for them, but so far,

:02:38.:02:48.
:02:48.:02:49.

no takers. They scored against Barcelona with it through Victor

:02:49.:02:59.
:02:59.:02:59.

Apology for the loss of subtitles for 46 seconds

:02:59.:04:44.

Wanyama, who ghosts in at the back should've been taken further back.

:04:44.:04:54.
:04:54.:05:16.

Good defending by van Zanten. Came back into the team today, and he's

:05:16.:05:26.
:05:26.:05:33.

been terrific. As have most in the black and white of St Mirren. How

:05:33.:05:39.

they'd love a second goal before half time. Goncalves goes for the

:05:39.:05:49.

lob. Terrific half of for St Mirren, who have been strong, committed,

:05:49.:05:56.

and break on the ball. Goncalves goes for the top corner, there, but

:05:56.:06:06.
:06:06.:06:19.

Mirren, but the joy for Celtic, has Gary Hooper slot home the 23rd goal

:06:19.:06:26.

of the season. He is the man of the moment. What a time to score for

:06:26.:06:29.

Celtic and a lot air-quality goal. The ball comes down to Scott Brown.

:06:29.:06:36.

He has still got plenty to do. What about this for all in? So difficult

:06:36.:06:40.

for defenders. The goalkeeper cannot come, because there is so

:06:40.:06:46.

much pace on the ball, and absolutely perfect for Gary Hooper.

:06:46.:06:49.

When a goal like that comes into the penalty area for Celtic, you

:06:49.:06:54.

can pretty much Butcher mortgage on Gary Hooper been there to finish it

:06:54.:06:59.

off, as he has been so often since arriving from Scunthorpe, and that

:06:59.:07:05.

is the last action of the first half. What a moment in this

:07:05.:07:09.

Scottish Communities Cup semi-final this is. St Mirren took the lead

:07:09.:07:15.

through Goncalves. There he is. He is as devastated as his team-mates,

:07:15.:07:22.

after that leveller from Gary Hooper, sickening for St Mirren. It

:07:22.:07:27.

will be a very different team talk for Neil Lennon, now, at half-time

:07:27.:07:34.

at Hampden Park, it is St Mirren 1, Celtic 1. A quick word with your

:07:34.:07:39.

and well be. The man of the moment Gary Hooper has just changed the

:07:39.:07:49.
:07:49.:07:52.

half-time team talk. We have been very poor, not at the races. So, we

:07:52.:07:59.

will give them a rollicking. hasn't it clipped so far? They

:07:59.:08:05.

might have been going on at the counter attack. The passing Minster

:08:05.:08:15.
:08:15.:08:19.

be a much more Chris. But it was a That is what you call a change in

:08:19.:08:25.

complexion. It is 1-1 at half-time. And that is a kick in a painful

:08:25.:08:29.

place for the Paisley team. Particularly the timing of the goal.

:08:29.:08:35.

Right on the stroke of half-time. That will lead to some anxious

:08:35.:08:43.

moments for Celtic. And they will be annoyed they have switched off.

:08:43.:08:47.

Celtic have had a good couple of chances and not taking them, but it

:08:47.:08:52.

has been an intriguing have, with St Mirren starting off ever so well.

:08:52.:08:57.

They have been very attack-minded and because Celtic problems. Scored

:08:57.:09:02.

a good goal. Celtic looked disjointed defensively. And St

:09:02.:09:06.

Mirren have carried a threat all day. It is set up for a terrific

:09:06.:09:12.

second half. When you're on your debut, making to look in impact,

:09:13.:09:19.

Roger Mac minutes into a cup semi- final is not bad. We did not

:09:19.:09:22.

suggest he would be the main man at the start of the game because we

:09:22.:09:27.

knew nothing about him, but he has had a great start. St Mirren have

:09:27.:09:31.

shown a willingness to go forward all the way through the game. He is

:09:31.:09:39.

not lacking in confidence, this lad. It is a lovely ball in. Nice finish.

:09:39.:09:45.

He has had a very good start. But, look at that the 18-yard line, the

:09:45.:09:50.

defence is all over the place. Nobody is talking to each other, no

:09:50.:10:00.

communication. One is long, one shot. Not as a compact back four.

:10:00.:10:04.

Charlie Mulgrew is Mears, the full backs are advancing. And to be fair

:10:04.:10:08.

to Goncalves, he started the move and he was on the end of it.

:10:09.:10:13.

this is the last kick of the first half. We talked about Gary Hooper

:10:13.:10:19.

before the game. No surprise is therefore stop he plays it some

:10:19.:10:23.

blankets in the box. We have been talking of their centre-forwards

:10:23.:10:28.

who do that, who hold it up, played simple, then get in between the

:10:28.:10:36.

sticks. I think he is onside, there. That is perfectly timed. It was

:10:36.:10:40.

borderline, but his movement is great. He goes to a goal in front

:10:40.:10:46.

of the lad, then checks back. The number of goals he scores from that

:10:46.:10:49.

movement, that is what strikers do best, and it is a gift he has

:10:49.:10:55.

caught, to be in the right place at the right time. Getting between the

:10:55.:10:58.

goalkeeper and the silk -- centre halves when the ball is in the box.

:10:58.:11:03.

I do not know of anyone better than him. He is brilliant at it. 20 to a

:11:03.:11:07.

goal of the season for Gary Hooper puts Celtic on level terms. We will

:11:08.:11:13.

talk more about that in a moment. Two SPL games being played today.

:11:13.:11:19.

One is being played already. And that is the latest score from then

:11:19.:11:24.

Park -- from Dens Park, and the against Kilmarnock, the bottom club

:11:24.:11:32.

looking to get some points from that if they can. Looking at the

:11:32.:11:35.

first of the Scottish Communities Cup semi-finals. It was a dramatic

:11:35.:11:39.

90 minutes, then extra-time and penalties between Inverness and

:11:39.:11:49.
:11:49.:12:10.

attack. Mackay... MacDonald does well to gather it. Mackay didn't

:12:10.:12:20.
:12:20.:12:25.

catch it as he'd have liked. Brilliant pass by Shinnie. You'd

:12:25.:12:32.

have put your mortgage on Mackay slotting that away. Free kick for

:12:32.:12:42.
:12:42.:12:48.

Hearts. Going to be a yellow card for Foran. Not much doubt it's a

:12:48.:12:58.
:12:58.:13:08.

free kic. -- kick. Wilson looking for it. Glancing header off the

:13:08.:13:18.
:13:18.:13:22.

post by Ngoo. Endearing himself to the Hearts fans. The cross perfect,

:13:22.:13:32.
:13:32.:13:34.

the header almost so. Foran could be in trouble. Euan Norris has a

:13:34.:13:44.
:13:44.:13:54.

big decision to make. Foran is a lucky man. Already on a yellow.

:13:54.:14:03.

Andrew Shinnie shapes to shoot, Webster blocks. Andrew Shinnie

:14:03.:14:13.
:14:13.:14:18.

takes advantage. Inside three minutes of the restart. Driver has

:14:18.:14:22.

his head in his hands. His loss of possession gifted the ball to

:14:22.:14:28.

Andrew Shinnie, and Andrew Shinnie, with his 13th goal of the season,

:14:28.:14:38.
:14:38.:14:53.

putting it past Jamie MacDonald. level. The decision to put him

:14:53.:15:01.

straight into the starting line-up pays off. Danny Wilson did

:15:01.:15:06.

brilliantly to get that back across goal. What a good finish from

:15:06.:15:16.
:15:16.:15:30.

a straight red card for the Hearts midfielder. He certainly flew into

:15:30.:15:34.

the challenge. You can see why that has been given as a straight red

:15:34.:15:44.
:15:44.:15:57.

Surely? Andrew Shinnie cannot get it goalwards. Somehow, Hearts

:15:57.:16:04.

survive. He asks, why did you not whack that into the net? Billy

:16:04.:16:12.

Mackay, somehow, failed to convert when it looked simple to score. The

:16:12.:16:20.

man that has scored 20 goals this season looked utterly short of

:16:20.:16:26.

confidence. Why did he not hit that first time? Great save from

:16:26.:16:36.
:16:36.:16:56.

McDonald, but the ball should have as Roberts stepped up. Pat to score

:16:56.:17:00.

to keep Hearts in, but it was over the top. Lots of talking points,

:17:00.:17:05.

but the most important one is that an incredible, young Hearts team

:17:05.:17:09.

are through to the final. And not the first time they have done it

:17:10.:17:14.

with ten men, they did it against Dundee United. No doubt that there

:17:14.:17:19.

was plenty of spirit in that team. We will have them looking on this

:17:19.:17:27.

The second half is coming up, we have seen that Goncalves goal

:17:27.:17:31.

already. This was an effort from young John Wiggins, who has been

:17:31.:17:36.

really impressive in the first half. It may be sums up the quality of

:17:36.:17:40.

football that they have come up with? Absolutely, it's been

:17:40.:17:44.

refreshing, the young players coming through, given the poor form

:17:44.:17:54.
:17:54.:18:04.

bobbling about. They are there, on the edge of the box. Good save the.

:18:04.:18:07.

But the confidence they had, kicking the ball round the edge of

:18:07.:18:11.

the box, when it did come out, they kept it alive, they were on the

:18:11.:18:15.

second ball. That always goes well for any team, if they are picking

:18:15.:18:25.
:18:25.:18:30.

up the second ball. They did that sickener, but it was coming?

:18:30.:18:40.
:18:40.:18:49.

little nutmeg, top-quality from is going to get a rollicking, but

:18:49.:18:55.

they are always creating chances. Taking it over his shoulder, as

:18:55.:18:59.

good as anybody in the game. They are creating chances, we knew that

:18:59.:19:02.

would happen and that St Mirren would ride it. The they managed to

:19:02.:19:08.

do it most of the time. The best Celtic each chances have come from

:19:08.:19:14.

their right side. Samaras is always good to be a threat. Hooper has

:19:14.:19:19.

been a lively player. A similar goal at Dundee, from a wider

:19:19.:19:22.

position. He has that quality. If you give him room around the edge

:19:23.:19:28.

of the box, he's deadly. You don't score the amount of goals that he

:19:28.:19:31.

has caught by accident, you do it because you are a terrific finisher

:19:31.:19:39.

What psychological impact to do you think that Hooper goal might have

:19:39.:19:42.

in the game? They haven't been great, but they have something to

:19:42.:19:46.

build on? The word devastating comes to mind. He works so hard,

:19:46.:19:53.

you feel you are there, you have got to half-time and you regroup.

:19:53.:19:59.

Celtic have not been at their best, and yet they are level. They

:19:59.:20:04.

suspect that St Mirren will tire a little bit. I think Newton has been

:20:04.:20:13.

very good, I thought he was the one that got in and tackled Wanyama.

:20:13.:20:17.

But will they be match fit? We will see what they can do between now

:20:17.:20:22.

and the end of the game. For me, I think there has been some

:20:22.:20:25.

inconsistency with some of the refereeing decisions, picking up

:20:25.:20:29.

bookings. I think that Wanyama should have been booked for that

:20:29.:20:34.

blatant body-check. They will feel aggrieved about that. At the start

:20:34.:20:36.

of the second half, they have to come out believing, as they did at

:20:37.:20:41.

the start of the first half. Who is to say they can achieve an

:20:41.:20:46.

unbelievable result? predictable goalscorer, one a

:20:46.:20:56.
:20:56.:20:57.

surprise. Best male consultants. -- Goncalves. St Mirren were in

:20:57.:21:01.

dreamland. They were deserving of their one-goal advantage, and told

:21:01.:21:08.

this moment right before half-time. Scott Brown set up Garry Cook

:21:08.:21:13.

before his 23rd of the season. 1-1 halfway through, in the second of

:21:13.:21:23.

the League Cup semi-finals. What will they be saying? Same again?

:21:23.:21:27.

Same again, and don't lose heart. There will be disheartened to some

:21:27.:21:33.

degree. They stayed with Celtic, hands up, unexpectedly for most of

:21:33.:21:38.

us. This does not look anything like the St Mirren side. They have

:21:38.:21:41.

played nice football at times this season, but they are fighting their

:21:41.:21:45.

battles. It's got to do with some of the players they have added.

:21:45.:21:50.

Newton has given some steel in the midfield as well. But they must

:21:50.:21:53.

keep the tempo as much as they can and realise that Celtic are not at

:21:53.:21:56.

their best today. If you get a chance, take it, because there will

:21:56.:22:01.

not be many. Is that freshness about the St Mirren side

:22:01.:22:04.

significant? Players not weighed down by the history of the fixture?

:22:04.:22:09.

I think that has helped. That is their first goal in nine attempts

:22:09.:22:15.

against Celtic. They will take heart, and you are right, the young

:22:15.:22:19.

players coming in, they don't have the history of playing as previous

:22:19.:22:22.

games and losing all of those goals. They were more direct at times,

:22:22.:22:26.

Stevie Thomson brought it up the pitch, trying to pass through

:22:26.:22:30.

Celtic. I think that has brought them some jury in the final third.

:22:30.:22:34.

How significant world last kick of the first half proved to be, I

:22:34.:22:40.

wonder? Gary Hooper, scoring, cancelling out the Goncalves opener

:22:40.:22:47.

for St Mirren. 1-1 it is, halfway through the second Scottish

:22:47.:22:51.

communities and the Cup semi-final as we return to Craig Paterson and

:22:51.:23:01.
:23:01.:23:11.

and Celtic. Saints have won just nine of the last matches. The last

:23:11.:23:21.
:23:21.:23:31.

meeting in the League Cup ended 1 win in the Lee Cup in 1981. That

:23:31.:23:35.

was a real sickener, a kick in the guts for St Mirren, right at half-

:23:35.:23:45.
:23:45.:24:17.

goal, but managed to scrape it clear. Danny, a horrible time to

:24:17.:24:22.

concede an equaliser. What will that change in terms of what you

:24:22.:24:26.

save to the boys? We have belief, we have shown we can score. Thank

:24:26.:24:36.
:24:36.:24:40.

Celtic. Almost a perfect start to the second half of Celtic. Lassad,

:24:40.:24:44.

knocking the ball back. Brown misses by a yard. St Mirren have to

:24:44.:24:48.

come out and show, at the start of the second half, exactly what they

:24:48.:24:51.

did at the start of the game. That they are up for it, they are

:24:51.:24:55.

confident, they will get the ball down and play. They can't afford to

:24:55.:25:02.

keep giving the ball back to Celtic, invite a team of that quality on,

:25:02.:25:12.
:25:12.:25:15.

spirit out of St Mirren? certainly hurts. You have put

:25:15.:25:18.

yourself in a great position, to lose a goal with seconds to go

:25:18.:25:22.

until half-time, it does get you down. But you have 15 minutes to

:25:22.:25:26.

sit there, the manager will be saying how well they did, how

:25:26.:25:30.

important it is to get YOUR opposite number, go again, show him

:25:30.:25:36.

you are here for 90 minutes of 90 minutes plus. The first nine or 10

:25:36.:25:39.

minutes for a second half might tell the story, it's important that

:25:39.:25:49.
:25:49.:25:49.

Apology for the loss of subtitles for 46 seconds

:25:49.:26:41.

St Mirren get back to doing what players combined for the equaliser,

:26:41.:26:51.
:26:51.:26:56.

given against Goodwin. And the referee is going to take action

:26:56.:27:00.

against the St Mirren as good as well. Yellow card. Celtic have a

:27:00.:27:03.

penalty and a chance to turn this game around. There's nothing else

:27:03.:27:10.

he can do. He wins the initial header. Lassad is going to pull the

:27:10.:27:17.

trigger, he throws himself in. I'm not sure what he is supposed to do.

:27:17.:27:22.

It hit him on the chest and then on the arm, a tough one for St Mirren.

:27:22.:27:31.

A really tough one. Charlie Mulgrew, entrusted with this task of putting

:27:31.:27:41.
:27:41.:27:46.

Brilliant, from the goalkeeper. You can complain about the penalty all

:27:46.:27:50.

you like, Mulgrew, what a chance he had. But the goalkeeper guessed

:27:50.:27:54.

right and he got a really strong hand on it. A real chance gone for

:27:54.:28:01.

Celtic. What a lift that is going to give St Mirren. We were talking

:28:01.:28:04.

about spirit sapping for St Mirren, a equaliser just before the break.

:28:04.:28:08.

Had that gone in, you can imagine the hurt that they would feel. That

:28:08.:28:18.
:28:18.:28:25.

might galvanise them now. Craig couple of times and had a penalty

:28:25.:28:32.

saved. You know they will get more chances in this game. It's been

:28:32.:28:42.
:28:42.:28:42.

Apology for the loss of subtitles for 46 seconds

:28:42.:29:23.

pretty much all Celtic in the delighted to have a him back. Has

:29:23.:29:30.

been out for a couple of months with injury. Former Celtic player.

:29:30.:29:38.

He played for Celtic in that 4-0 defeat in Paisley, one of his last

:29:38.:29:48.
:29:48.:30:09.

against a team like Celtic, who are favourites for the treble, and then

:30:09.:30:15.

the last 16 of the Champions League, you need luck, and a penalty miss,

:30:15.:30:18.

despite it being a good save from Craig Samson, will go down as

:30:18.:30:23.

something like that. They picked the worst thing to lose a goal

:30:23.:30:26.

before half-time, but the Celtic scored within minutes of the

:30:26.:30:31.

restart there was no way back for St Mirren, but that saved could

:30:31.:30:40.

make such a difference at the end of the 90 minutes. Offside flag up

:30:40.:30:48.

against Steven Thompson. He is not happy with it. I tell you what, he

:30:48.:30:54.

might just have been level. But it is impossible to get them all right

:30:54.:31:04.
:31:04.:31:10.

He was one of the St Mirren he was in the last round against Aberdeen

:31:10.:31:16.

at Pittodrie. St Mirren went through on penalties after at 2-2

:31:16.:31:26.
:31:26.:31:42.

grapes -- Craig Samson was beaten by that. He had no chance of

:31:42.:31:46.

getting there. Joe Ledley holding the ball just dips quickly. You

:31:47.:31:51.

cannot allow him that sort of space to get bored shots at goal.

:31:51.:31:55.

Somebody has got to be closing him down quicker. That could easily

:31:55.:32:05.
:32:05.:32:09.

have nestled in the top corner. in the second half than they were

:32:09.:32:16.

in the first. That was strong from Steven Thompson. He does not agree

:32:16.:32:21.

with it. St Mirren assistant manager Tommy Craig does not agree

:32:21.:32:31.
:32:31.:32:33.

with it, I do. -- either. He's just trying to move the man out of the

:32:33.:32:43.
:32:43.:32:47.

of it to the defender. And McAusland has taken us so 1 in the

:32:47.:32:57.
:32:57.:32:57.

Apology for the loss of subtitles for 46 seconds

:32:57.:33:41.

Emilia is a idea. -- is it Dury -- got injured. Just caught below the

:33:41.:33:47.

knee, there. It is a so one. On a day like this, is set of studs down

:33:47.:33:57.
:33:57.:33:59.

your leg is not going to be comfortable. We are not sure what

:33:59.:34:03.

they did from Norwich was were Gary Hooper, but we know from Neil

:34:03.:34:10.

Lennon that it was less than 6 million. It could take at least 8

:34:10.:34:14.

million for him to get to speak to a club. He has at least one year

:34:14.:34:19.

left on his contract. Celtic will be determined to hold on to him as

:34:19.:34:29.
:34:29.:34:44.

ball. And McAusland had to deal with that because Lassad was behind

:34:44.:34:53.

him. Celtic realise if they can score than the next five or 10

:34:53.:34:56.

minutes they put themselves in the box seat, and they are not giving

:34:56.:35:06.
:35:06.:35:27.

himself right now, after that swinging corner. Free kick to St

:35:27.:35:37.
:35:37.:35:41.

Mirren. McGinn the meat in the sandwich. From the referee's angle

:35:41.:35:49.

it looked like to on one. And he has decided to give a free kick. --

:35:49.:35:56.

two on one. That is an intriguing Scottish Communities Cup semi-final.

:35:56.:36:01.

As it was yesterday with Hearts beating Inverness Caley Thistle on

:36:01.:36:11.
:36:11.:36:30.

worked to great effect just before with Garry Parker andMel day. --

:36:30.:36:37.

Johan Mjallby. Neil Lennon was in Italy last night watching Juventus

:36:37.:36:45.

draw at home to Genoa. Not a vintage performance from the Old

:36:45.:36:55.
:36:55.:37:22.

Haven't seen much of Goncalves in the second half. A foul by the

:37:22.:37:28.

Portuguese on the Welshman. He is allowing his team to push up and

:37:28.:37:34.

spend a little bit of time on the Celtic half. It is changed days. It

:37:34.:37:44.
:37:44.:37:49.

Gary Hooper got some swerve in that. Which she didn't want, what

:37:49.:37:54.

Georgios Samaras coming in at the back post. It would have been a

:37:54.:37:59.

chance for Samaras, but the ball just sliced across. If that had

:37:59.:38:09.
:38:09.:38:46.

gone in, he would have said that he Mirren have a free kic. -- kick.

:38:46.:38:49.

This is one of the situation is what you fancy a right-footed

:38:49.:38:53.

player to bend it towards the far post. Scott Brown just coming in at

:38:53.:38:59.

the back, there, the referee says free kick, but not a lot in it. A

:38:59.:39:04.

chance for St Mirren to put the Celtic defence under pressure.

:39:05.:39:09.

last cup tie between these two sides in Paisley, St Mirren won, 1-

:39:09.:39:19.
:39:19.:39:20.

0. It might have been maul grew who got the final touch on that. --

:39:20.:39:30.
:39:30.:39:41.

a sudden. That was an important intervention by Graham Carey.

:39:41.:39:45.

timing was absolutely perfect. That touch from Gary Hooper was not the

:39:45.:39:49.

best, but it just gave Graham Carey the chance to come in and make a

:39:49.:39:55.

vital tackle. If Gary Hooper gets through, he is through on the

:39:55.:40:03.

goalkeeper. So it took about to bring on Kris Commons. -- Celtic

:40:03.:40:13.
:40:13.:40:32.

Kelvin Wilson was therefore stop -- Was there. The two oldies, Thompson

:40:32.:40:40.

to Teale. Both St Mirren fans in the twilight of their careers and

:40:40.:40:50.
:40:50.:40:54.

have a penalty kick. Almost identical to the one on the

:40:54.:41:00.

opposite side. When the referee sees Charlie Mulgrew's hands go up,

:41:00.:41:04.

he has no option but to give the penalty kick. Having seen the

:41:04.:41:11.

goalkeeper saved one, can St Mirren know how home one of their own?

:41:11.:41:17.

Well, well, well, Charlie Mulgrew missed his penalty for Celtic. It

:41:17.:41:25.

was saved by Craig Samson. Paul McGowan, the former Celtic player,

:41:25.:41:32.

not given the chance under Neil Lennon, and scores! Paul McGowan

:41:32.:41:37.

sense St Mirren into League Cup dreamland with as cool a penalty as

:41:37.:41:43.

you will see. Perfect response. Just have will look. Check where

:41:43.:41:48.

the goalkeeper is going to go and knock it into the other corner. A

:41:48.:41:53.

fabulous composure from the Celtic midfielder. Lucasz Zaluska goes

:41:53.:41:59.

right, the ball was left. Paul McGowan, who was in the Celtic side

:41:59.:42:05.

that lost 2 St Mirren 4-0 in the game that cost Tony Mowbray his job,

:42:05.:42:10.

the last time St Mirren beat Celtic. They are back in the box seat at

:42:10.:42:16.

the National Stadium. And, Danny Lennon who had his own League Cup

:42:16.:42:20.

heartache once upon a time against Celtic. He missed out as part of

:42:20.:42:26.

the Raith Rovers squad in 1994, he was injured. And you come Celtic

:42:26.:42:32.

again. Celtic have make the change in the middle of that, Kris Commons

:42:32.:42:42.
:42:42.:42:47.

on form -- for Lassad. With Goncalves pickpockets small group.

:42:47.:42:55.

-- Mulgrew. Celtic come away, and the first touch of the match for

:42:55.:43:02.

Kris Commons, just on as a substitute. Kris Commons made his

:43:02.:43:06.

debut at this stage of the competition against Aberdeen two

:43:06.:43:16.

years ago. He had a major say in that game, he scored one and made

:43:16.:43:26.
:43:26.:43:26.

Apology for the loss of subtitles for 46 seconds

:43:26.:44:22.

think that he was going to get there. A really poor ball in from

:44:22.:44:26.

Kris Commons. Come on, because of the delivery, you are looking to

:44:26.:44:30.

present the ball for the players in the middle. It was a really poor

:44:30.:44:40.
:44:40.:44:47.

one. It was overhit and behind for worth Samaras, not happy with

:44:47.:44:55.

something he had to save. -- a word with Samaras, not happy with

:44:55.:45:05.
:45:05.:45:09.

today, in the League Cup final on 7th March. We are approaching the

:45:09.:45:19.
:45:19.:45:25.

Cup final twice, they have lost both of those. Goodwin, actress and

:45:25.:45:31.

son. They lost to Aberdeen in 1955/56. Then they lost that one

:45:31.:45:36.

against Rangers in 2010, playing against nine men for much of the

:45:36.:45:46.
:45:46.:45:55.

second half, certainly ten men for when they lost that late on against

:45:55.:46:04.

Rangers. They have a free kick here, in a reasonable area. Plenty of

:46:04.:46:09.

time to go, is it put this one straight in the box again or take

:46:09.:46:19.
:46:19.:46:25.

it short? Put it into the wide silence, watching and hoping that

:46:25.:46:35.
:46:35.:46:42.

the damage doesn't get worse from Absolutely stunning at Hampden

:46:42.:46:47.

Park! It is Stephen Thoms and he has caused his 13th goal of the

:46:47.:46:52.

season. That might just be the goal that takes St Mirren into the

:46:52.:46:58.

League Cup final! Sensational! is the word for it, a sensational

:46:58.:47:03.

strike. The ball is coming away from goal. What a crisp,

:47:03.:47:13.
:47:13.:47:19.

work to do. That is an absolute peach. Look at Zaluska, I don't

:47:19.:47:29.
:47:29.:47:35.

think he will be happy. -- Steven the semi-final of the League Cup

:47:35.:47:45.
:47:45.:47:48.

the League Cup was a 3-1 victory. And its former Scotland

:47:48.:47:58.

something for them to get back into it? They still have enough time and

:47:58.:48:02.

they will still have belief, what they need is a little bit of magic

:48:02.:48:07.

in that 4 would third. Look at Anthony Stokes warming up, you need

:48:07.:48:12.

goals now and he is the obvious replacement. I would bring on

:48:12.:48:15.

another striker to add to that attacking force. Neil Lennon might

:48:15.:48:18.

be looking for the next four or five minutes, see if they can get

:48:18.:48:22.

another goal and get back into the game. But what a chance for St

:48:22.:48:28.

Mirren, 3-1 ahead, not long to go, they have to hold their nerve and

:48:28.:48:38.
:48:38.:48:59.

bigger and bigger. It could be the defining moment of the game. If

:48:59.:49:02.

Celtic had scored, I could not see a way back for St Mirren, having

:49:03.:49:12.
:49:13.:49:24.

move, you keep going forward, getting yourself into the box. A

:49:24.:49:29.

decent header, but it's just wide of the goalkeeper's right-hand post.

:49:29.:49:39.
:49:39.:49:39.

I think Craig Sansom had it covered anyway. A great header from Mulgrew.

:49:39.:49:49.
:49:49.:49:56.

Celtic are about to bring on Thompson. The ball was behind him

:49:56.:50:02.

when he hit it. It was a hook to folly. To get the power and keep

:50:02.:50:06.

the ball down, or you can ask his may be that the goalkeeper did

:50:06.:50:11.

better. All you can ask of Steven Thompson is to hit the target. He

:50:11.:50:21.
:50:21.:50:52.

extra time, the way that this game is panning out. Slightly too much

:50:52.:50:59.

juice on the final ball. Too much on it for Cary Hooper to get a

:50:59.:51:09.
:51:09.:51:09.

Apology for the loss of subtitles for 46 seconds

:51:09.:51:53.

reasonably happy if they can keep Celtic two efforts from that kind

:51:53.:51:58.

of distance. There is no doubt that from their Joe Ledley is capable of

:51:58.:52:05.

scoring, but the odds are against it. They might be annoyed they did

:52:05.:52:11.

not close him down quicker, but he is unlikely to score from 35 yards.

:52:11.:52:15.

Anthony Stokes has not scored this season, but he has been out for

:52:15.:52:22.

most of it. Just recently back from injury. Victor Wanyama will be

:52:22.:52:32.
:52:32.:52:41.

going to be pushed forward into the writer, Lustig and then Anthony

:52:41.:52:51.
:52:51.:53:10.

at Kilmarnock last season. He scored a couple. He was wide that

:53:10.:53:15.

time. He does the right thing, he's always going to try to drag it on

:53:15.:53:25.
:53:25.:53:53.

a Hearts or St Mirren final, but they prevailed on penalties, Hearts.

:53:53.:54:03.
:54:03.:54:23.

And there were even longer odds on in terms of getting behind the ball,

:54:23.:54:33.
:54:33.:54:36.

the minute they lose possession. what did you make of him? -- John

:54:36.:54:42.

Wiggins. Similar to the young Hearts players, they went out to do

:54:42.:54:49.

a job, they stuck to their task. Despite the lack of experience,

:54:49.:54:55.

they have had terrific games. defensive minded, David Barron. He

:54:55.:55:05.
:55:05.:55:16.

made all three changes. There is not much else he can do, Neil

:55:16.:55:26.
:55:26.:55:26.

Apology for the loss of subtitles for 46 seconds

:55:26.:57:06.

hopes of a domestic treble slip the shoulder that the referee sees.

:57:06.:57:12.

That is why he is penalised. Is this too far-out for a shot? I know

:57:12.:57:16.

that Charlie Mulgrew would like to get involved, but I think it would

:57:16.:57:26.
:57:26.:57:40.

take something special to beat from there, but not when he bangs

:57:40.:57:50.
:57:50.:57:53.

Time is running out for Celtic. Any time they get into the wide areas,

:57:53.:57:57.

they have to get the ball into the box. Plenty of balls in there, but

:57:58.:58:03.

that final pass was never going to come to anything. Gordon Strachan,

:58:03.:58:06.

the new Scotland boss, will name their squad on Thursday for the

:58:06.:58:16.
:58:16.:58:16.

Apology for the loss of subtitles for 46 seconds

:58:16.:59:00.

10 minutes of this league Cup semi- frustrated. You are bound to. They

:59:00.:59:04.

can see the big clock, on the scoreboard behind each goal. They

:59:04.:59:10.

know they have 10 minutes to rescue this. Everybody is trying to play

:59:10.:59:14.

the killer ball. It's hard to calm down and find the right angle, you

:59:14.:59:24.
:59:24.:59:34.

have to get it in the box as quick but he could not shrug off Mikael

:59:34.:59:41.

Lustig. That is beaten away by Lucasz Zaluska and it almost fell

:59:41.:59:51.
:59:51.:59:52.

to Steven Thompson. He not great goalkeeping again. You have got to

:59:52.:59:56.

Paris that away from the goal. Steven Thompson almost there to

:59:56.:00:06.
:00:06.:00:36.

for that challenge. Paul McGowan, magnificent. Trying to get himself

:00:36.:00:41.

on the ball. He has won a free kick allowing them to take another

:00:41.:00:48.

minute or so off the clock. I would suggest at this stage you are

:00:48.:00:52.

looking to get the ball in wide areas and keep it there. You know

:00:52.:00:56.

that with eight minutes plus stoppage time to go, it is very

:00:56.:01:06.
:01:06.:01:21.

close to being a huge result for St bothered about that. He could have

:01:21.:01:25.

used it better but if you're going to miss, make sure that it is

:01:25.:01:32.

behind the goal, I suppose. The air are lots of balls around the pitch,

:01:32.:01:37.

so Celtic added back very quickly. Seven minutes left, plus injury

:01:37.:01:45.

time. Celtic need to find inspiration from somewhere. Paul

:01:45.:01:53.

McGowan in releasing Gary Teale, on the counter. Cannot score a 4th

:01:53.:02:03.
:02:03.:02:27.

little over-keen to score the goal instead of looking for a pass or a

:02:27.:02:33.

team-mate, it is a quick touch, go for glory, but Kris Commons since

:02:33.:02:43.
:02:43.:03:05.

coming on as substitute has not Goodwin. The fresh air swipe from

:03:05.:03:15.
:03:15.:03:16.

the lender likes the St Mirren fans. -- Neil Lennon delights the St

:03:16.:03:26.
:03:26.:03:46.

Mirren defence. The final five minutes. The corner kick from Kris

:03:46.:03:56.
:03:56.:04:16.

Commons is clear. -- cleared. Barron. He's going to get the

:04:16.:04:22.

booking. He has caught the Celtic player, but he was trying to thump

:04:22.:04:26.

the ball clear. He will claim he had eyes for the ball, just trying

:04:26.:04:36.
:04:36.:04:50.

sweep of trophies this season. That is evaporating. Anthony Stokes with

:04:50.:05:00.
:05:00.:05:01.

the free kick, again, off the wall. Kris Commons, and a thunderous

:05:01.:05:11.
:05:11.:05:20.

Commons, not agree clearing header, Samson comes again. - not a great

:05:20.:05:30.
:05:30.:05:30.

Apology for the loss of subtitles for 46 seconds

:05:30.:06:10.

as that is hoisted as far away as good ball, and it is headed over

:06:10.:06:15.

the bar by Joe Ledley. That might have been the chance that God

:06:15.:06:19.

Celtic back into the game. Twisting and turning from Kris Commons, a

:06:19.:06:27.

great ball in, he cannot get the header down and it is over the bar.

:06:27.:06:33.

St Mirren about to bring Lee Mair on for the final couple of minutes.

:06:33.:06:39.

Since they last beat Celtic 1 24th March 2010, St Mirren have lost

:06:39.:06:49.
:06:49.:06:53.

every single encounter against Celtic under Danny Lennon and

:06:53.:06:57.

Pascoe three today and or on the brink of a place in a national cup

:06:57.:07:07.
:07:07.:07:31.

but Craig Samson que Mansiz area, as she has done all afternoon.

:07:31.:07:35.

Another top performer for St Mirren. We spoke before the game about the

:07:35.:07:43.

spine of the team, and it has been great, Samson, McAusland, Jim

:07:44.:07:49.

Goodwin, Paul McGowan. No passengers at all. It's he has done

:07:50.:07:57.

himself no harm its for getting into the Scotland squad, Greg

:07:57.:08:00.

Samson. St Mirren making this change in the final minute of the

:08:00.:08:05.

90. They are going to replace Paul McGowan who scored the second goal

:08:05.:08:13.

from the penalty spot. It was vital that he kept his cool. Up he has

:08:13.:08:18.

had a terrific 90 minutes and a terrific and well-earned standing

:08:18.:08:24.

ovation from the St Mirren fans. will find out how long is being

:08:24.:08:29.

added they injury-time. Celtic would do well to score twice. Three

:08:29.:08:35.

minutes added on, it has been confirmed. And we are about to move

:08:35.:08:41.

into the first of those three minutes. The Celtic supporters

:08:41.:08:48.

heading for the exits, many of them. St Mirren R three minutes away from

:08:48.:08:58.
:08:58.:09:05.

her place in the League Cup final. -- are three minutes away. Stephen

:09:05.:09:09.

Thomson's scored the third goal, he is a St Mirren fan, a Paisley boy,

:09:09.:09:15.

and that will mean a lot about his goal has sealed a place in a

:09:15.:09:25.
:09:25.:09:32.

national cup final for his team. park that, if you are winning a

:09:32.:09:38.

semi-final with a two-goal cushion, that you want it to be in, down by

:09:38.:09:43.

the corner flag. Celtic have to go all the way up the park, needing

:09:43.:09:49.

two goals in two minutes. That will be a free kick, and yet more

:09:49.:09:59.
:09:59.:10:00.

seconds used up, and surely St Mirren other. -- are there. Just

:10:00.:10:03.

running down the clock towards the end of the game. Celtic have got to

:10:03.:10:09.

try and win the ball. St Mirren win themselves a corner kick and Danny

:10:09.:10:16.

Lennon has the luxury of allowing himself another substitution. Lewis

:10:16.:10:26.
:10:26.:10:30.

Guy coming on. As the rain pelts down in mind Florida. -- Mount

:10:30.:10:40.
:10:40.:10:41.

Florida. And that just about sums it up for Celtic today. They will

:10:42.:10:45.

the other of all was a crossfield ball to Anthony Stokes. That

:10:45.:10:55.
:10:55.:10:58.

certainly was not the auction they were looking for. -- the option.

:10:58.:11:06.

Craig Samson gets rid of it. Scott Brown takes it down. St Mirren are

:11:06.:11:13.

so close, now, they can just about touch their place in the League Cup

:11:13.:11:21.

final. That change is going to be made now, at they are going to

:11:21.:11:27.

bring off the man who got the party started for St Mirren, Esmael

:11:27.:11:32.

Goncalves, who gave them the lead in the first half. When you come to

:11:32.:11:36.

a new club you want to get off to a good start and it does not get much

:11:36.:11:46.
:11:46.:11:51.

better than that. The Portuguese, on loan from Rio Ave, is replaced

:11:51.:12:00.

by Lewis Guy. Anything Celtic get there will be a consolation. They

:12:00.:12:06.

have got one back. Charlie Mulgrew. But surely that has come too late.

:12:06.:12:14.

It has done. St Mirren are coming back to Hampden Park. They will

:12:14.:12:20.

come back to the final to play Hearts on March 17th. And Danny

:12:20.:12:26.

Lennon has the chance to write himself into St Mirren for war.

:12:26.:12:32.

They have deserved this victory. Craig Samson, and that was such a

:12:32.:12:37.

pivotal moment in the semi-final. Saving the penalty kick from

:12:37.:12:41.

Charlie Mulgrew at the start of the second half. It could have gone the

:12:41.:12:47.

other way if that had found the net. His mild Goncalves gave them the

:12:47.:12:51.

lead early corner in the first half, then that dispiriting equaliser

:12:51.:12:56.

from Gary Hooper just before half- time. That could have put their

:12:56.:13:02.

heads down and sat the spirits or St Mirren, but it didn't. Celtic

:13:02.:13:09.

hit the woodwork twice in the first half. Then came that Craig Samson

:13:09.:13:12.

save from the Charlie Mulgrew spot kick. Then St Mirren took over with

:13:12.:13:17.

a penalty of their own, which Paul McGowan converted after it struck

:13:17.:13:22.

the armour Charlie Mulgrew from a Gary Teale effort. Paul McGowan

:13:22.:13:28.

sent Lucasz Zaluska the wrong way, making it 2-1, then Steven Thompson,

:13:28.:13:32.

one of the most experienced campaigners in Scottish football

:13:32.:13:38.

slammed home an outstanding Borley to add the gloss to the St Mirren

:13:38.:13:48.

scoreline -- outstanding volley. Charlie Mulgrew pulled one back

:13:48.:13:52.

with the last kick of the ball but that will not matter to Danny

:13:52.:13:57.

Lennon, who missed out as part of the Raith Rovers side when they

:13:57.:14:03.

beat Celtic in the League Cup in 1994. The St Mirren manager has

:14:03.:14:08.

played his part today and he has been awarded for putting out what

:14:08.:14:14.

was, compared to teams they put out against Celtic in recent times, and

:14:14.:14:19.

adventurous line-up, and it has paid dividends, it really has. It

:14:19.:14:23.

finishes at Hampden Park with St Mirren coming back to face Hearts

:14:23.:14:33.
:14:33.:14:37.

in the final in March, St Mirren What a result and what a

:14:37.:14:42.

performance by the Paisley team. 3- 2 is the final score. They will

:14:42.:14:45.

play Hearts and the final. Well, St Mirren fans would always have gone

:14:45.:14:50.

into that hopeful and optimistic, as club supporters do. I don't

:14:50.:14:55.

think many neutrals would have seen that coming? We'll said before the

:14:55.:14:58.

game it would have to be a special team performance, and that is what

:14:58.:15:01.

we got. There were so many incidents in the game. Sitting here,

:15:01.:15:07.

a fascinating game to watch. A lot of good quality on display. St

:15:07.:15:12.

Mirren, great individual performances but a great team

:15:12.:15:15.

performance. And I think goals change games as well. The penalty,

:15:15.:15:19.

I think it was harshly given, I think Goodwin was unfortunate. It

:15:20.:15:28.

hit his chest and came off his arm. But Samson made a great save. Then

:15:28.:15:30.

they scored great goals and you can't deny they were deserving

:15:30.:15:37.

winners. Steven Thompson got the third goal. It proved to be

:15:37.:15:41.

decisive, in the end. Congratulations, I'm thinking it

:15:41.:15:46.

will take a long time for this smile to come off your face? It's

:15:46.:15:49.

only just happened, I guess it will sink in tonight and over the next

:15:49.:15:54.

few days. What a monumental effort from all of the players. When they

:15:54.:15:58.

scored just before half-time, I thought it was a terrible time to

:15:58.:16:01.

lose a goal. At half-time we spoke about how well we had done in the

:16:01.:16:06.

first half, if we took the same spirit in, the quality of our play

:16:06.:16:10.

into the second half, we could cause Celtic problems. And we did.

:16:10.:16:17.

It's a magnificent feeling. However, it's a semi-final. If it had

:16:17.:16:21.

happened in the final I would be even happier, I guess. But it's

:16:21.:16:26.

fantastic to be in a final again. Hopefully, this time we can make

:16:26.:16:29.

the 25 year wait goal a. The a stunning victory, a stunning

:16:29.:16:33.

performance, was their real belief beforehand that you could upset the

:16:33.:16:38.

odds? I think there was, I felt that this morning, on the bus, in

:16:38.:16:42.

the changing room. I think in the first 10 minutes it gave us a lot

:16:42.:16:49.

of belief. We kept possession really well, obviously we scored

:16:49.:16:54.

the goal, these tiny things give you the belief. We carried belief

:16:54.:16:59.

through the match. It had been so long since we had scored again

:16:59.:17:04.

Celtic, to get the goal, it gave us the opportunity to say, we can do

:17:04.:17:08.

this, we can get another. Everybody was outstanding, I don't want to

:17:08.:17:12.

pick out individuals, they were all superb. It's a shame we have to do

:17:12.:17:16.

it again on Wednesday, against Inverness, that we have to prepare

:17:16.:17:26.
:17:26.:17:29.

for. But I guess we can have a week -- a little glass or two. A lot

:17:29.:17:33.

will be said about Celtic, but what we are not losing sight of is how

:17:33.:17:40.

good St Mirren where? Teale had a great game, Thomson was fantastic.

:17:40.:17:44.

Right from the start of the game he was lively. When he did get that

:17:44.:17:49.

goal, suddenly, exactly what he said there, that gave them the

:17:49.:17:54.

belief. That gave them that lift. Just the fact they were on top of

:17:54.:17:59.

Celtic, the entirety of the time. Keep an eye on each of these goals,

:17:59.:18:09.
:18:09.:18:11.

what Wanyama is doing, precisely Precisely. This is the heartbreak

:18:11.:18:18.

for them, Hooper did what he does best. Great movement. It says any

:18:18.:18:23.

argument of people debating if he was onside or not, clearly onside,

:18:23.:18:27.

great finish. But St Mirren had the belief to carried out on in the

:18:27.:18:31.

second half. A great save from the penalty, they took more belief from

:18:31.:18:41.
:18:41.:18:41.

that. They knocked the ball around We wondered about the psychology of

:18:41.:18:45.

that Hooper goal, what it would do to both teams. And that second half

:18:45.:18:55.
:18:55.:18:58.

incredibly harsh. If you have to give it, it is because it hit his

:18:58.:19:04.

hand. Why you get a yellow card, forget that, you have to be able to

:19:04.:19:09.

cope with it. It has hit his hand, you have to get on with it. It's up

:19:09.:19:13.

to the goalkeeper. You have to have everything going your way at this

:19:13.:19:19.

point in time. I'm not saying Celtic after the poor and St Mirren

:19:19.:19:24.

have to be brilliant, there are times when you get, as soon as he

:19:24.:19:29.

saved that, I thought this is not going to be Celtic's day. You get a

:19:29.:19:33.

feeling in football. That is how it transpired. A great save, strong

:19:33.:19:38.

hand to push it away so that there is no rebound. They took strength

:19:38.:19:43.

from that. The actual build-up to the penalty, the move that they had

:19:43.:19:49.

prior to lead to the corner, it was fantastic place. Thomson and Teale,

:19:49.:19:59.

eventually it comes in, the penalty kick, the composure that the young

:19:59.:20:09.
:20:09.:20:10.

for me, that a clear penalty. There is no reason why he has his hands

:20:10.:20:16.

up there. Brilliant from Gary Teale. If it gets through, it's going to

:20:16.:20:21.

cause problems, as it happened he gets a penalty. Again, I'm asking

:20:21.:20:27.

why he is being booked. He's not done it did pretty. -- done it

:20:27.:20:32.

deliberately. I wouldn't be booking the die for it, but a penalty kick.

:20:32.:20:37.

It's not important, but it's the confidence and composure. For a

:20:37.:20:42.

young lad, in that arena, confidently struck into the corner.

:20:42.:20:45.

2-1, a lot of people would have felt they would sit back and hold

:20:46.:20:50.

on 42-One, they continued to pass and move the ball well. The finish

:20:50.:20:54.

for the third goal, I know what he is capable of and I'm delighted for

:20:54.:21:01.

him, an outstanding lad, great professional. A chance of winning

:21:01.:21:10.

the trophy against Hearts, all Congratulations, will that take a

:21:10.:21:14.

while to sink in? I think so, we put so much into the game, when

:21:14.:21:20.

they got the penalty we thought, not again. All credit to the boys,

:21:20.:21:24.

great character, a great day for the club and supporters. Steven

:21:24.:21:28.

Thompson said he had a feeling something was in the water, did you

:21:28.:21:32.

share his optimism? I did, we have not played well against Celtic

:21:32.:21:36.

every game. We haven't scored since I have been here against them. That

:21:36.:21:41.

was another plus. You just know it is a cup game, anything can happen

:21:41.:21:47.

and it did. If you play like that, can you go and win it? Of course.

:21:47.:21:51.

We don't fear anybody. We know how good we can be. We are not always

:21:51.:21:55.

consistent enough, but if we can take that into the final, I'm

:21:55.:22:04.

pretty sure we can come away with So, Paul Mark Allen with gold

:22:04.:22:08.

number two for St Mirren. -- Paul McGowan. They needed the third as

:22:08.:22:13.

well, as it turned out. Steven Thompson, we picked him out before

:22:13.:22:23.
:22:23.:22:24.

the match. His 13th goal of the changed at the end and they put him

:22:24.:22:29.

on the left wing. He has not dived in, he has waited out. He realises

:22:29.:22:33.

there is a bit more of Celtic defenders and you're probably not

:22:33.:22:37.

going to get the ball if it is played into that classic area. No

:22:37.:22:41.

problems of offside or anything like that. From the manager's point

:22:41.:22:45.

of view, what is really annoying is when the ball is brought out to the

:22:45.:22:49.

edge of the box, Victor Wanyama, if he went to the edge of the boxy

:22:49.:22:53.

would have stopped the cross coming in to Thompson. That goal was

:22:53.:23:00.

easily avoidable, to a manager. He is a ladder to have come behind him

:23:00.:23:10.
:23:10.:23:19.

and an easy finish. -- he has a finish. We asked about Paul

:23:19.:23:27.

McGowan going forwards. Wanyama, all through the game he made

:23:27.:23:31.

mistakes like that. The poorest game I've seen have by 1 million

:23:31.:23:37.

miles. You can't play with ten men against a team that up for it. Guys

:23:37.:23:41.

like Thomson are thinking, this is one of the great opportunities of

:23:41.:23:45.

my career and when I get it, I will take it. A lot of his goals have

:23:45.:23:53.

been quality goals. Attitude plays a big part. St Mirren got it spot

:23:53.:23:59.

on and Celtic's must be questioned? St Mirren had conceded 22 in eight

:23:59.:24:02.

games and not scored in Celtic. They know it was a big occasion,

:24:02.:24:07.

fired up to be at their best and show people that we are good

:24:07.:24:10.

players individually, we are a good team, we have not shown it again

:24:10.:24:15.

Celtic but we are going to do that. Celtic had a slow start, but goals

:24:15.:24:20.

change games. If Celtic scored the penalty, I've no doubt they would

:24:20.:24:24.

win something like 4-1. But they didn't. The balance was perfect

:24:24.:24:28.

between the young lads, the new players coming in and the senior

:24:28.:24:33.

pros. They have all played in big games. It's nothing new to Stevie

:24:33.:24:36.

Thomson or Gary Teale. And don't forget the goalkeeper. He was

:24:37.:24:42.

fantastic. Lots of stars and stripes, and one in a yellow jersey,

:24:42.:24:49.

We've spoken to a couple of the goalscorers, but you certainly

:24:49.:24:56.

played your part? Always go to make a penalty save, at a vital part of

:24:56.:25:00.

the game. But the boys had to get the goals to turn that around.

:25:00.:25:03.

Going down to the final, we have to remember this is just the semi-

:25:03.:25:08.

final. Talk us through the save, was it just a good guess? I decided

:25:08.:25:13.

I was going to go to my right. He hit it quite well that I was lucky

:25:13.:25:18.

enough to go to my right and touch it past the post. Stephen and Paul

:25:18.:25:23.

both said that they believed. Did you? Yes, we believed, and that is

:25:23.:25:28.

what happened. Great for us and the fans, delighted. Can you win it?

:25:29.:25:34.

course we can, we have just beaten Celtic. We are going to have a

:25:34.:25:43.

difficult game against Hearts that Sometimes, a goal like this can be

:25:43.:25:46.

described as a consolation goal. As far as Celtic are concerned, I

:25:46.:25:56.
:25:56.:25:57.

don't think it will give them much force an equaliser. There will be

:25:57.:26:07.
:26:07.:26:14.

Just an unbelievable day for St Mirren. They are right what they

:26:14.:26:17.

have said, it is a semi-final and they have to come back with that

:26:17.:26:22.

level of performance in the final. If they do, it will take him close

:26:22.:26:27.

to winning the final. Suffering so much, so many defeats at the hands

:26:27.:26:31.

of Celtic, how sweet does that taste? They will be feeling so

:26:31.:26:36.

sweet about it. But you also look at that team and think, actually,

:26:36.:26:44.

they've got a bit of a core now. You begin to see the best of other

:26:44.:26:49.

players. Teale, Thomson up front, he gets a little bit more support.

:26:49.:26:53.

They left they would get from that, we did talk about confidence, but

:26:53.:26:57.

they will not only look forward to the Cup final, they will look

:26:57.:27:01.

forward to the season. I have no doubt that Denni Lennon will look

:27:01.:27:05.

at these players and think, hold on a minute, with that level of

:27:05.:27:09.

performance, we should not be where we are in the Premier League. Let's

:27:09.:27:14.

use that as a catalyst to move forward with a strong end to the

:27:14.:27:20.

season, get better from that. Celtic were not at their maximum

:27:20.:27:25.

level, but you cannot take anything away from how well St Mirren played.

:27:25.:27:29.

Their passing was pleasing to the eye, I think it was an outstanding

:27:29.:27:34.

display from start to finish. hear from the victorious manager

:27:34.:27:42.

Very well done, can you put that into words? We are delighted, the

:27:42.:27:46.

dressing room is buzzing as we speak. It was a fantastic effort

:27:46.:27:51.

from the backroom staff, in the preparation going into the game.

:27:51.:27:58.

The tactics, what the players have brought in, what we certainly had

:27:58.:28:02.

through the working week was inspiration from past Celtic and St

:28:02.:28:06.

Mirren games. That was our message, fuelled the players with that

:28:06.:28:10.

belief that it can be achievable. We work with them on a daily basis.

:28:10.:28:16.

When they have belief like that, and show their true potential, they

:28:16.:28:23.

can bring that best to any game. It's a fantastic achievement to

:28:23.:28:30.

reach that. It's a fantastic result. More importantly, the manner that

:28:30.:28:35.

we got the result. That's for all of our fans that have stuck by us,

:28:35.:28:38.

thick and thin. Hopefully we have given them something to look

:28:38.:28:43.

forward curve. As I say, we're just absolutely delighted. -- something

:28:43.:28:47.

to look forward to. We are chasing another Lennon

:28:47.:28:51.

interview as well. We might have to wait for that one, Neil Lennon

:28:51.:28:56.

obviously distraught about how things have gone for Celtic. Hearts

:28:56.:29:04.

against St Mirren in the final of the Scottish communities to kneecap.

:29:04.:29:14.
:29:14.:29:19.

At Pittodrie, it was Aberdeen against Hibs. Highlights from that

:29:19.:29:29.
:29:29.:29:44.

Craig Thomson is going to book Peter Pawlett. He throws himself.

:29:44.:29:50.

Peter Pawlett seeing plenty of the ball in the opening stages. He

:29:50.:29:58.

finds Johnny Hayes. This time, it is a penalty. Craig Thomson pointed

:29:58.:30:06.

to the spot. Johnny Hayes just checked his run, waited for the

:30:06.:30:11.

challenge. And Craig Thomson decides that is a spot kick to be

:30:11.:30:21.

taken by Niall McGinn. Saved by Graham Williams. And clear it.

:30:21.:30:27.

Williams can afford to grin, no. Really good save. Perhaps Niall

:30:27.:30:37.
:30:37.:30:52.

McGinn's not best streak of the their attacking play. Gavin Rae

:30:52.:31:02.

forced a further wide and he would have liked. And Peter Pawlett, he

:31:02.:31:07.

met that well, but he couldn't direct it down much to test

:31:07.:31:17.
:31:17.:31:17.

Williams. Craig Brown, looking to turn dominance into goals. And mile

:31:17.:31:25.

McGinn did his best to make up for the missed penalty. -- Niall McGinn.

:31:25.:31:30.

Osborne fancies his chances from distance. Williams happy to see it

:31:30.:31:40.

drift wide. Aberdeen still the dominant force. Pat Fenlon will

:31:40.:31:47.

want his side to start imposing themselves on the match. Again,

:31:47.:31:54.

Aberdeen going for it, from distance. Williams, getting

:31:54.:32:04.
:32:04.:32:12.

in there causing trouble. Aberdeen tried to keep the pressure on.

:32:12.:32:16.

Johnny Hayes works it on to his right foot. That is a wonderful

:32:16.:32:23.

effort. Just could not whip this clear, and eventually, Johnny's

:32:23.:32:33.
:32:33.:32:39.

found room to shoot. He wasn't far This is Dorrell. Leigh Griffiths

:32:39.:32:47.

trying to get there, he does, but he can't force it. Junior Langfield

:32:47.:32:55.

happy to see that squirming past the post. Two League games this

:32:55.:33:03.

weekend because of the League Cup finals. This was Dundee United

:33:03.:33:06.

against Ross County at Tannadice yesterday, the best of whip from

:33:06.:33:16.
:33:16.:33:35.

Gary Mackay-Steven was a bit games this season, having gone nine

:33:35.:33:42.

games without a win. That was Gary Mackay-Steven, turned away by Boyd.

:33:42.:33:52.
:33:52.:33:55.

And that was knocked out of play. Gary Mackay Stephen set up well.

:33:55.:34:05.
:34:05.:34:06.

Peter Houston explaining what he wants. And Gary Mackay-Steven again,

:34:06.:34:11.

desperate to add to his three goals this season. He has got the power

:34:11.:34:21.
:34:21.:34:29.

goalkeeper. He will be delighted to see that going behind. -- closes

:34:29.:34:35.

down the goalkeeper. Mark Brown put in a difficult position by Scott

:34:35.:34:45.
:34:45.:34:59.

Boyd. And Johnny Russell closes him shoot. And the Dundee United

:34:59.:35:05.

magician conjures up something special again. You just cannot give

:35:05.:35:11.

him space. Johnny Russell work hard. Gary Mackay-Steven was not closed

:35:11.:35:17.

down by Grant Munro, and the goalkeeper simply had no chance.

:35:17.:35:24.

Seven minutes gone in the second half, and Johnny Russell and Gary

:35:24.:35:34.
:35:34.:35:46.

He had such a good debut against St Mirren last weekend. Almost on the

:35:46.:35:56.
:35:56.:36:19.

goalkeeper. He gathered it at the what an equaliser from Richard

:36:19.:36:26.

written. It has been a game graced by two great goals. Gary Mackay-

:36:26.:36:31.

Steven with that finish into the top corner, and Richie Britain

:36:31.:36:40.

taking the more direct route. Eight minutes to go. And as two goals,

:36:40.:36:50.
:36:50.:37:07.

Two great goals and that game, no abbot -- no SPL goals at all, 05-0

:37:07.:37:14.

at Pittodrie, and the latest score from Dens Park is the Dundee nil,

:37:14.:37:19.

Kilmarnock nil, but let's head back to Hampton, the losing manager,

:37:19.:37:24.

Neil Lennon, joins Chris. -- hand in. You will be bitterly

:37:24.:37:29.

disappointed. What went wrong? There was a lack of intensity in

:37:29.:37:37.

the play in the first half. There was a lack of hunger. That was a

:37:37.:37:42.

soulless performance from us. There was a lack leadership, lack of

:37:42.:37:50.

intensity. I don't know where that performance came from. After 15

:37:50.:37:54.

minutes we looked a little bit better, we hit the crossbar twice,

:37:55.:38:00.

second half, we came out much better. I didn't think either of

:38:00.:38:05.

the penalties was a penalty but St Mirren scored from theirs, we

:38:05.:38:12.

didn't. And we never really had quality in the final third.

:38:12.:38:21.

Defensively we were awful. Apart from Gary Hooper. Without him we

:38:21.:38:24.

would have been in trouble. There was no sign from previous results

:38:25.:38:29.

that this was coming. What do you put it down from? Their attitude

:38:30.:38:39.
:38:40.:38:40.

has been very good this season, so I don't know. There was a lack of

:38:40.:38:44.

discipline in shape, we did not play like a team. We played like

:38:44.:38:48.

individuals. You always worry before the game, semi-finals, it

:38:48.:38:56.

has not been a happy hunting ground for us. And we need to rectify that

:38:57.:39:02.

if we are going to progress. Complacency is a strong word, but

:39:02.:39:08.

was it a problem? I am not going to hide from criticism. The first and

:39:08.:39:14.

then the team. I am not going to hide from that. There was no

:39:15.:39:18.

contribution -- complacency in the contribution but the lack of

:39:18.:39:24.

intensity concerned me. How much of the concern is it with the cup game

:39:24.:39:28.

coming up and then the game against Juventus? We have a league game

:39:28.:39:33.

first. You would think about that on Wednesday and see what type of

:39:33.:39:42.

Fair play to Neil Lennon. A brutally honest assessment of what

:39:42.:39:46.

happened or did not happen for Celtic at Hampden today. You have

:39:46.:39:51.

got to admire it alight. You can see how much it is hurting them. He

:39:51.:39:56.

was not expecting that level of performance. The preparation has

:39:56.:40:01.

been buying on. The players sometimes have got to look at

:40:01.:40:07.

themselves. The manager puts the players out there expecting them to

:40:07.:40:10.

live up to the standards Celtic's set and they have not done that

:40:11.:40:15.

today.And was very honest and very frank and sometimes that is what

:40:15.:40:22.

you have to be. It is a desperate statistic, five defeats at Hampden

:40:22.:40:29.

under his management. But lets not lose sight of the positives, a

:40:29.:40:33.

fantastic result for St Mirren. There is a temptation to talk about

:40:33.:40:37.

what is going on the Celtic there, I did not see this coming at all,

:40:37.:40:41.

but you have to say, St Mirren played incredibly well. Danny

:40:41.:40:46.

Lennon had to change a lot of things. He was brave enough to

:40:46.:40:49.

bring those players into his group, and to get the best out of them

:40:49.:40:55.

very quickly, but also to prepare his team to make sure they peaked

:40:55.:40:59.

for the Right game. I thought Conor Newton made a massive difference to

:41:00.:41:04.

them. And you have to applaud the efforts of Paul McGowan. But

:41:04.:41:11.

throughout the entire team from one to 11, you have to upload them. The

:41:11.:41:15.

best performance from St Mirren, and a poor performance from Celtic,

:41:15.:41:25.
:41:25.:41:26.

that happened -- applaud them. the latest from Dens Park, still

:41:27.:41:32.

Siro IV 0. You will be able to see highlights later on, on the BBC

:41:32.:41:38.

website. Next weekend, it is all about the Scottish Cup, down to the

:41:38.:41:45.

last 16. We have extensive coverage on BBC Radio Scotland. Highlights

:41:45.:41:51.

of those five cup ties on Saturday night at 10:30pm. The live match

:41:51.:41:59.

from the 5th round, it is Raith Rovers against Celtic at Kirkcaldy.

:42:00.:42:05.

And highlights of the Sunday cup ties at 10 twenty-five pm on Sunday.

:42:05.:42:09.

The Scottish Cup will have to go some to match the drama of the

:42:09.:42:13.

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