:00:42. > :00:47.Good evening and welcome to Sportscene. We have highlights from
:00:48. > :00:53.the weekend's three Premiership games, and reaction from today's Old
:00:54. > :00:58.Firm League Cup final today. In the company of Steven Thompson and Scott
:00:59. > :00:59.McDonald. We begin in Perth for the Tayside derby between St Johnstone
:01:00. > :01:10.and Dundee. COMMENTATOR: Sam Johnstone looking
:01:11. > :01:15.to bounce back from defeat against Kilmarnock last weekend. David
:01:16. > :01:31.Wotherspoon starting in preference to Blair Alston.
:01:32. > :01:39.Lovely flick, great touch and a chance for McGowan to create for
:01:40. > :01:44.Teijsse. What a chance, what a mess. Paul Hartley is jumping around in
:01:45. > :01:47.the technical area in frustration. You don't get opportunities to much
:01:48. > :01:55.better than this to open the scoring. But 1- to between
:01:56. > :02:03.Wotherspoon and Foster. Hope made the challenge. Still alive for
:02:04. > :02:10.Davidson. Skewing that across goal. Just behind Chris Cain. There looked
:02:11. > :02:14.to be a bit of contact there in the box between Holt and Maclean. The
:02:15. > :02:16.pair got tangled up. Steven MacLean didn't make a great deal of fuss
:02:17. > :02:27.about it. This looks promising. Down goes
:02:28. > :02:32.Murray Davidson with little contact involved. That is how it seemed from
:02:33. > :02:41.here. Yellow forcing elation is the charge against Davidson. There did
:02:42. > :02:42.not seem an awful lot of reason for Murray Davidson for hitting the deck
:02:43. > :02:58.here. No way past Hateley. St Johnstone do
:02:59. > :03:05.have the ball now. Great skill from Swanson, lovely nutmeg, and plenty
:03:06. > :03:14.behind the strike. There is the nutmeg of McGowan. The shot,
:03:15. > :03:21.although well struck, straight at Bain. Diving header from Foster.
:03:22. > :03:23.Wotherspoon looking for the 1-2. Davidson, and a free kick will be
:03:24. > :03:35.given for the late challenge on Murray Davidson.
:03:36. > :03:49.Swirling in at the back post, Steven Anderson strikes for St Johnstone!
:03:50. > :03:55.In the 62nd minute, it is his third goal of the campaign. Following in
:03:56. > :03:58.the free kick from Craig. It was delivered into a good area. Steven
:03:59. > :04:15.Anderson was completely unmarked. Chris Cain. Foster, good ball in.
:04:16. > :04:22.Down goes Steven MacLean, penalty. It is a yellow card for Kevin Gomis.
:04:23. > :04:26.It is a chance for the Perth team, you would imagine at this stage, to
:04:27. > :04:36.make the points safe. It was all a bit obvious. It is Danny Swanson,
:04:37. > :04:42.and it is half a dozen successful penalties for him this season. His
:04:43. > :04:46.ninth goal of the campaign. And that could be the goal, you would
:04:47. > :04:50.imagine, that means there is no way back for Dundee, the goal which will
:04:51. > :04:55.keep the dark Blues at the bottom of the Premiership, and hoist St
:04:56. > :05:00.Johnstone up to a share of third place.
:05:01. > :05:14.Steven MacLean, and now Swanson. This looks threatening. Lovely ball
:05:15. > :05:20.in. Back off the bar from Michael Coulson. Delicious go from Danny
:05:21. > :05:31.Swanson. The looping header bounces back off the bar.
:05:32. > :05:38.Teijsse, was there a push? Yes, there was. Penalty given. A chance
:05:39. > :05:46.for Dundee to at least get a goal back. It was fairly obvious, wasn't
:05:47. > :05:57.it, from Steven Anderson. It is Rory Loy, and it is 2-1. A fourth goal of
:05:58. > :06:05.the campaign for Rory Loy. Injecting late hoping to this for Dundee. I am
:06:06. > :06:09.really pleased with how we played and moved the ball. We worked all
:06:10. > :06:12.week on it. Moving the ball quick, getting the full-backs involved in
:06:13. > :06:19.the game, getting them high up the pitch. Delighted to win, but I
:06:20. > :06:22.wouldn't like to have the last 2-3 minutes again, because we put
:06:23. > :06:26.ourselves in a position that we shouldn't have been in. We are in
:06:27. > :06:30.the position where we are having a fight right now. We haven't got
:06:31. > :06:33.enough points. It is not good enough. We had to take
:06:34. > :06:41.responsibility, and do our talking on the pitch. STUDIO: Sam Johnstone
:06:42. > :06:49.back to winning ways at another defeat. Did the referee get this
:06:50. > :06:57.right? He got one right and got one wrong. I don't think there is an
:06:58. > :07:03.awful lot of content between Gomis and Steven MacLean. The goalkeeper
:07:04. > :07:12.is cited. A note in the back? It is soft. I'd like one of those every
:07:13. > :07:16.week. This one is slightly more obvious. Steven Anderson here, two
:07:17. > :07:24.armed push in the back. Clearly a penalty kick. It is a blatant push.
:07:25. > :07:28.Just the two hands. The referee is in a perfect position to see that
:07:29. > :07:32.one as well. It will be a good win in the end forcing Johnstone, but
:07:33. > :07:39.how big are the defensive problems for Dundee? St Johnstone played very
:07:40. > :07:46.well, but Dundee did not defend well. They are trying to hold the
:07:47. > :07:51.line. Darren O'Dea drops, and for a player of his experience, he will be
:07:52. > :07:59.disappointed. Darren O'Dea knows how to defend. You can see Michael
:08:00. > :08:06.Coulson makes a run into the box. Unbelievable skill from Swanson, and
:08:07. > :08:09.a header coming back. Problems for Dundee defensively. Here again,
:08:10. > :08:14.Gomis is deeper than the rest of the players. When the ball is played in,
:08:15. > :08:20.he goes to sleep. Watch this. If Steven MacLean headed back across
:08:21. > :08:24.goal, it is a tap in. There are problems defensively. Paul Hartley
:08:25. > :08:27.admits there is a fight on their hands, bottom of the table, five
:08:28. > :08:33.straight defeats, how much pressure is he under? Massive pressure. Five
:08:34. > :08:38.straight defeats, no wins in nine, three points from 27. Massive
:08:39. > :08:41.pressure. The game on Wednesday becomes a huge game against Partick
:08:42. > :08:44.Thistle. If they can win, it could be a catalyst for them. Good three
:08:45. > :08:51.points for St Johnstone. They churn them out. That is them up to third.
:08:52. > :08:56.Level on points with Hearts. Was Murray Davidson lucky to stay on the
:08:57. > :09:01.pitch? I think he was. He was booked for a dive here. He is arguing with
:09:02. > :09:10.a couple of Dundee players that he accidentally fell over. As we see
:09:11. > :09:16.here, it is probably a nine. He gets booked for that one. He is on a
:09:17. > :09:19.booking. In this challenge. You can see it is definitely dangerous play.
:09:20. > :09:29.The referee lets get away with this one. Ouch. Not where you want to get
:09:30. > :09:33.kicked. Definite yellow, maybe even a read. He was lucky Tuesday on.
:09:34. > :09:36.Neither Partick this'll all Ross County have managed a win in their
:09:37. > :09:48.last 13 league matches combined. Yesterday provided a fresh start.
:09:49. > :09:55.Not the best start to the season. We need goals. We are lacking
:09:56. > :10:00.confidence. We will finish sixth or seventh. Fifth, maybe. Top ten if we
:10:01. > :10:18.are lucky. This'll change shape. A couple of
:10:19. > :10:27.changes for Ross County after heavy defeat from Aberdeen.
:10:28. > :10:36.This all doing all the early pressing in this match. This is as
:10:37. > :10:38.these against Andrew Davies. Davies sticking to his task. Giving away a
:10:39. > :10:51.corner kick. Sean Welsh's one. Down goes Kris
:10:52. > :10:59.Doolan and a penalty has been awarded. The referee spotted
:11:00. > :11:03.something amiss. He had no hesitation as the corner was swung
:11:04. > :11:08.in. The ball flicked on there and Doolan goes down under the tackle of
:11:09. > :11:27.Ryan Dow. Sean Welsh, coolly taken. The dominance of the match so far
:11:28. > :11:33.has merited this. Welsh with a third goal of the season to give his side
:11:34. > :11:35.the advantage. County will be looking to do much better in the
:11:36. > :11:44.second period. They haven't been at the races so
:11:45. > :11:49.far. A chance here. There is current. So close to the equaliser.
:11:50. > :11:57.The chance might still be on. Into the arms of the grateful Ryan
:11:58. > :12:03.Scully. Curran coming closest. Partick this'll will want to add to
:12:04. > :12:11.their lead. They are always susceptible to that kind of mood.
:12:12. > :12:24.The challenge from Osman. A free kick goes Thistle's way. Into the
:12:25. > :12:30.feet of Azeez. He goes down looking for the penalty kick. The referee,
:12:31. > :12:35.in fact, has awarded a free kick against him. It will be a booking
:12:36. > :12:41.for Azeez. Paul Quinn not happy with Aziz going to ground. They yellow
:12:42. > :12:50.card shown to the Thistle striker forcing elation. He rather frozen
:12:51. > :12:56.self to the ground -- for simulation. Can Ross County create
:12:57. > :13:02.something here? The ball comes all the way through to the certitude. --
:13:03. > :13:15.to the substitute. Here goes Azeez. He is through on
:13:16. > :13:23.goal and is clipped. Just a yellow card. County not happy at all that
:13:24. > :13:33.they were denied a penalty. The cross came in from van der Weg. It
:13:34. > :13:40.is a clumsy challenge. A let off for Thistle.
:13:41. > :13:50.Ziggy Gordon backing, allowing but a shot at goal. An injury time
:13:51. > :13:56.equaliser for Ross County. They had barely been in the game until the
:13:57. > :14:00.last few minutes. Again, Partick Thistle have conceded late. They did
:14:01. > :14:03.so last week against Hamilton Accies, and they were punished
:14:04. > :14:13.thereby Chris Burke. His first goal for Ross County. A late leveller
:14:14. > :14:16.from Chris Burke. Is there time for a Ross County winner? The visiting
:14:17. > :14:20.fans in the main stand will be hoping so.
:14:21. > :14:33.A fine save by Ryan Scully from Ryan Dow. That could so easily have been
:14:34. > :14:37.the three points for the visitors. I can't keep feeling sorry for
:14:38. > :14:40.ourselves. We drew the match, which feels like a defeat. We have to
:14:41. > :14:46.stand up and be counted, no one else will help. We have been in this
:14:47. > :14:50.position before a number of times. I feel Partick Thistle dominated the
:14:51. > :14:56.first half. They came out of the traps far better than us. So we
:14:57. > :14:59.changed things in the second half. I thought we were far better in the
:15:00. > :15:04.second half and finished the game really strong. After eight hours of
:15:05. > :15:10.golf free football, Ross County finally find the back of the net --
:15:11. > :15:15.gold free football. Lacking cohesion in the final third. They are playing
:15:16. > :15:21.well, but in the final third, they are making poor choices. Azeez
:15:22. > :15:25.should give them something. Maybe make a run across the defenders, but
:15:26. > :15:28.does neither. It has to come out wide. Ross County are getting
:15:29. > :15:30.numbers back and the attack fizzles out. It was indicative of how
:15:31. > :15:46.Partick played yesterday. Azeez makes this run well, but they
:15:47. > :15:54.do not give it to him. He has options, decides to shoot, poor
:15:55. > :15:58.choices. We see Elliot breaking down the right-hand side. Azeez just
:15:59. > :16:05.rocks, does not really make a run. Perfect opportunity to play it on
:16:06. > :16:11.the inside. They will be screaming, saying, get out the box.
:16:12. > :16:18.The poor referees are under the microscope tonight. In this match,
:16:19. > :16:25.did he get it right? For the first one, definitely. In my eyes, it is a
:16:26. > :16:30.complete penalty. He gets the to the ball, did not see too many
:16:31. > :16:34.complaints from the players. I can see why this one was not given, it
:16:35. > :16:41.could easily have been given as well. But this one here, the context
:16:42. > :16:48.mac contact is made. But he takes another touch and then tumbles. It
:16:49. > :16:52.is a definite penalty. It is more a penalty than it is not, but I can
:16:53. > :16:57.see why the referee has chosen not to give it.
:16:58. > :17:03.I cannot believe there were not more clubs interested in him.
:17:04. > :17:05.Inverness and Kilmarnock began the weekend level
:17:06. > :17:07.on points as they met at the Tulloch Caledonian Stadium.
:17:08. > :17:09.Kilmarnock aiming to build on that away victory
:17:10. > :17:13.Caley Thistle hoping to pick themselves back up after that
:17:14. > :17:35.Inverness bring back Meekings to central defence. Jonathan Byrne was
:17:36. > :17:43.injured early in the win overseen Johnson.
:17:44. > :17:57.Anderson knocking it high. Here is McKenzie.
:17:58. > :18:18.He is looking for Kula Bali -- Coulibaly. It's Coulibaly himself.
:18:19. > :18:28.And he picked it home. Williams seemed to get a hand to it but could
:18:29. > :18:39.not keep it out. McKay, cotton possession nearby Jones. No Tyson.
:18:40. > :18:43.Jones continues his run. It was Coulibaly beer, and he should have
:18:44. > :18:50.done better, and he knows it. It was good play in the flank from Tyson.
:18:51. > :18:56.But it came off the side of Coulibaly and into the keeper.
:18:57. > :19:14.McKay. Anderson's header, going the wrong way. In towards Doumbouya.
:19:15. > :19:18.Inverness trying to maintain a good run of home form. They have only
:19:19. > :19:29.suffered one defeat in the last four, and that was to last weekend.
:19:30. > :19:33.-- to Rangers last weekend. Here is Jones, he is giving McKay a hard
:19:34. > :19:42.time of it so far in this first half. It's Coulibaly's shot blocked
:19:43. > :19:53.the. It looked like Meekings was the man who made the stop. Kilmarnock
:19:54. > :20:04.have not had a win in their last nine visits here.
:20:05. > :20:10.That was creeping in at the post, but for the arrival of Jamie
:20:11. > :20:36.McDonald. -- MacDonald. And it is off the post. Kris Boyd,
:20:37. > :20:46.whose old me on the park for a couple of minutes as a substitute,
:20:47. > :21:00.takes a deflection. -- who is only on the park.
:21:01. > :21:11.And that is the equaliser. Four minutes from the end. And it is
:21:12. > :21:20.Doumbouya with a second goal for Inverness. And he may well have
:21:21. > :21:26.denied Kilmarnock the three points. Kilmarnock could not get it clearer
:21:27. > :21:36.and the striker took full advantage. Is there still time for a
:21:37. > :21:43.Kilmarnock? Here is Taylor. McKenzie was thinking about the short, it
:21:44. > :21:50.came off the post. It just will not go for the visitors. One piece is
:21:51. > :21:59.how this might finish. It can be tough to get the players
:22:00. > :22:05.going again, but I have to ask whether my passion and the team talk
:22:06. > :22:08.was good enough. Have a look at yourself before you look to blame
:22:09. > :22:12.other people. A disappointed dressing room, we will dust
:22:13. > :22:21.ourselves down. It is an indication to people that we are strong team.
:22:22. > :22:27.We have got quality we can battle. The points are shared between them.
:22:28. > :22:31.We have seen doom and gloom for a Kilmarnock so far this season.
:22:32. > :22:37.Things look more likely, Jones, someone that you knew at
:22:38. > :22:42.Middlesbrough. Another hot prospect from the Middlesbrough Academy. He
:22:43. > :22:47.has always been seen as somebody with something different, that
:22:48. > :22:51.little bit of talent. He was more of a central player, but he seems to
:22:52. > :22:55.have found his position for him. He loves being direct, beating players,
:22:56. > :22:59.he goes on to get into the box to try to get on the end of things. I
:23:00. > :23:12.think Coulibaly should do better there. A lovely little trickier. --
:23:13. > :23:19.trick. It Israeli exciting for Kilmarnock to have a player like
:23:20. > :23:24.that. He really quick. He has got pace to burn. He is a player that
:23:25. > :23:29.gets fans after seats. It has come together. At the back,
:23:30. > :23:46.was Addison competent? They do not know. He should have
:23:47. > :23:53.been giving depth, but he goes and gets in a bit of a mess. When you
:23:54. > :23:57.tried to recover, he comes into the picture, slips, tries to defend with
:23:58. > :24:05.his head. I think John Terry did that a few years ago. He's in good
:24:06. > :24:11.company. , And it will be disappointed, it is far too easy. A
:24:12. > :24:17.ball into the box that is not dealt with immediately. Addison tries to
:24:18. > :24:19.use his head to clear the ball. He would be better to get his body in
:24:20. > :24:33.front of it. Strange defending. Kilmarnock and Inverness on the same
:24:34. > :24:36.points. This league is crazy at the moment. We have talked about Paul
:24:37. > :24:38.Hartley been under pressure, but there is only a few points between
:24:39. > :24:44.him and the other teams. And after all that,
:24:45. > :24:46.the Ladbrokes Premiership No change in the top three,
:24:47. > :24:51.but St Johnstone now level Dundee bottom of the
:24:52. > :24:56.table on six points. It's been huge weekend
:24:57. > :24:58.of semi-finals in the Yesterday Aberdeen reached the final
:24:59. > :25:02.after they beat Morton 2-0. Today it was all about
:25:03. > :25:04.the Old Firm derby. Rangers and Celtic vying for a place
:25:05. > :25:07.in the final. A showdown at Hampden
:25:08. > :25:23.Park this afternoon. An absolutely fantastic semifinal
:25:24. > :25:29.here which finishes with Celtic taking on Aberdeen next month. A
:25:30. > :25:38.very clever late finish from Dembele, a man in serious form. Pat,
:25:39. > :25:43.Celtic were superb on the day. The only difference between this game
:25:44. > :25:49.and a 5-1 defeat in the league last month was the fact he did not take
:25:50. > :25:54.all of their chances. They had their chances, in the last third day could
:25:55. > :25:58.have done better on your decision-making. He will be
:25:59. > :26:03.delighted to be in the final. It was a great game, I really enjoyed it.
:26:04. > :26:09.Celtic had the class, Dembele's finish was superb. They had the
:26:10. > :26:16.opportunity to bring on quality players who also created something
:26:17. > :26:26.for Celtic. Brendan Rodgers was powering about his team after words
:26:27. > :26:30.-- air. I think Rangers did their job tactically. I think if they had
:26:31. > :26:36.gone with Wallace high and wide on one side and Leicester centre has
:26:37. > :26:46.exposed, they could have been in trouble. -- and left the centre has
:26:47. > :26:51.to fix posed. Tactically, nearly spot on for a Rangers but Celtic
:26:52. > :26:56.have moved on to another level. They were fantastic today, they hit the
:26:57. > :27:01.crossbar, perhaps one wrongly ruled out as well. Aberdeen beat Martin
:27:02. > :27:05.2-0 yesterday in the League Cup final for the chance to lift the
:27:06. > :27:15.first over where of the Scottish football season -- beat Greenock
:27:16. > :27:20.Morton. Were Celtic deserved winners today?
:27:21. > :27:24.Had you not think anyone could argue that they were not deserved winners
:27:25. > :27:29.today. Had they taken their chances earlier on in the game, it could
:27:30. > :27:32.have been a few more. Rangers, to their credit, stayed in the game. He
:27:33. > :27:42.thought that the longer that it went on, they kid get it. Overall, Celtic
:27:43. > :27:44.finally got that goal. It was absorbing stuff. Mark Warburton
:27:45. > :27:50.suggesting afterwards that the gap had shrunk between Rangers and
:27:51. > :27:56.Celtic, would you go on with that? No, the gap is still there.
:27:57. > :27:59.Rangers's performances in recent weeks have improved. Tactically they
:28:00. > :28:04.got it right today, but the gap remains. In terms of the final, what
:28:05. > :28:12.would you see about that? Aberdeen against Celtic, mouthwatering.
:28:13. > :28:22.Aberdeen are capable of getting a result against in the body. Yes,
:28:23. > :28:28.Celtic could get the double, it would be great if Brendan Rodgers
:28:29. > :28:36.could do it. And abridged Sportscene for you
:28:37. > :28:40.tonight. We are back to the full hour next weekend. Until then, good