| Match Pictures | Matches: 1997 – 1998 | 1997-1998 Pictures |
Trivia
- Stuart Gray and Andy McCondichie had gone out on loan. Gray had joined Billy Stark on loan at Morton initially on a 3 month loan. Andy McCondichie had extended his loan to Hamilton Academicals for a further month
- Only Darren Jackson (still recovering fitness after hydrocephalus), Brian McLaughlin (ankle ligament strain) were missing due to injury.
- Of the Hearts team, David Weir would go on to play for Everton and Rangers, Paul Ritchie would join Rangers but not play a single game, Neil McCann also ended up at Ibrox, and Stevie Fulton was a great Celtic hope under Billy McNeill's second spell as manager
Review
A hard fought win with Stubbs and Rieper in particular having outstanding games.
Teams
Hearts (4-3-3):
Rousset; McManus (Locke, 55), Weir, Ritchie, Pointon; Salvatori, Fulton, Cameron; McCann (Flogel, 71), Adam, Hamilton (Robertson, 61).
Scorers: Cameron (65) 1-2.
Yellow cards: Larsson, Burley, Boyd, Weighorst (Celtic); Adam, Locke, Salvatori (Hearts).
Celtic (4-4-1-1):
Gould; Boyd, Rieper, Stubbs, Mahe; McNamara, Burley, Wieghorst, Blinker (Thom, 81); Donnelly (Hannah, 88), Larsson.
Non Used Sub: O'Donnell
Scorers: Rieper (16) 0-1; Larsson (21) 0-2;
Yellow cards: Larsson, Burley, Boyd, Weighorst (Celtic);
Referee: J Rowbotham (Kirkcaldy).
Attendance: 16,977.
Articles
- Match Report (see below)
Pictures
Stats
| Hearts | Celtic | |
| Fouls | 16 | 12 |
| Corners | 2 | 3 |
| Shots on Target | 4 | 3 |
| Offside | 4 | 0 |
Rieper scythes Hearts
Scotland on Sunday 19/10/1997
Hearts 1 Celtic 2
THIS exciting but error-strewn match created a jangling atmosphere inside the impressively refurbished Tynecastle. In the way of it, when football abandons its pre-match planning, the upshot is often beguiling. Celtic stripped Hearts bare, then allowed their hosts to tear back at them, and towards the end there was so much bickering and feuding that heaven knows what had taken possession of these players. Morten Wieghorst, who had taken an almighty whack up the backside from Steve Fulton, traipsed from the field in a foul rage.
In the thick of it all, we had a match referee, John Rowbotham, who made some critical interceptions. For Celtic's second goal, which came within the opening half hour, he played a controversial but astute advantage rule which allowed Celtic to romp through Hearts. In the second half, Rowbotham also refused to book Gilles Rousset after he reached to clasp David Weir's harshly-struck pass back with his hands, a decision that, if it truly adhered to a vague law, only highlighted the inconsistencies which still prevail. The pass from Weir certainly looked destined for the net.
Celtic's coach, Wim Jansen, was grinning with delight at the finish, although in truth, his side had lapsed alarmingly and allowed Hearts to claw back into the match. On the basis of their first-half performance, Celtic should have been indulging their effortless authority, but for the final third of the game they were in danger of being noised up badly. Even then, they still squandered some glaring openings at the other end.
In defence, however, Jansen may have found a pair to stop his side's trembles. Marc Rieper and Alan Stubbs, individually and as a unit, performed an impressive 90 minutes, Rieper even scoring, and Stubbs suffering and enduring his usual amount of shellfire. Twice this big Englishman departed for treatment and twice he returned to an ovation from supporters increasingly appreciating his presence.
For fully an hour, Hearts were quite lame. For a side supposedly with the impetus of a cradle at the top of the league, they toiled to find one another and scarcely enjoyed a flutter around Jonathan Gould's goal. Jim Jefferies, their manager, had rather a red face at this, and even more so near the finish when Paul Ritchie's header fell harmlessly for Gould.
Poor Jefferies can hardly have known what had hit him. Assaulting the radio-waves before the game with no end of breathy optimism, his team was having the limbs torn from it before they could work up a head of steam. The Hearts manager sat there perfecting his own picture of glumness while, just along from him, Jansen looked about as smug as most international Dutchmen are entitled to be.
It is hard to over-estimate the influence Craig Burley has on this Celtic team, bringing a crisp touch, a vision, and also a hardness when it is needed, to the heart of the side. Towards the end of the first half, when Stubbs required yet more attention off the park, Burley was even recast as a defender and immediately became an intimidating presence to poor Colin Cameron trying to flee him. So impressive is Burley becoming, especially in his orchestrator's role in the centre of midfield, that he will surely pose Gary McAllister a threat for that position in France next summer.
Burley and Wieghorst were already asserting their grip before Celtic took the lead amid a flurry of yellow cards and some crunching incidents in the 16th minute. The Hearts defence may have seemed shoddy in trying to close down space but Rieper still claimed the goal excellently: Regi Blinker's corner fell to him, he chested the ball down, and kept his shot low and hard beyond the sprawling Rousset.
Hearts often looked a side without the slightest confidence or arrogance. It took them fully an hour before they braced themselves to begin hurting Celtic and, when they did, even their goal, which started sweetly enough, required a botched defence to secure its passage. By the time of this second-half rally, however, Hearts had already conceded their second.
It was here that the referee, Rowbotham, not always the happiest of officials, played a perfectly legitimate role. Encouraging the advantage to Celtic after Stefano Salvatori's clumsy foul on Burley, it allowed Blinker to sprint on and whack the ball across the Hearts six-yard line. The ball evaded Simon Donnelly, but not Henrik Larsson, who stole in to shoot home.
When Hearts did score in the 65th minute, Celtic's rear guard for once was caught. Stephane Adam's chip was lost by Tom Boyd and also by Stubbs, which allowed Colin Cameron to find a yard and hit a deflected shot past Gould. There was a bare moment then when you thought Hearts might revive themselves.
But it never materialised. Cameron let fly a volley which Gould coped with comfortably, and a header from Adam seemed to sail on forever before bouncing up and finding a safe clutch in the Celtic goalkeeper. After all the pre-match hype and billing, this was a wan Hearts performance which must have disappointed their fans dreadfully.
- Manager Interview
"We were physical when we needed to be and I knew that was a requirement after my first game in Scotland.
"Some of the players seemed a little tired towards the end but that is normal after our midweek game.
"The early goals gave us great confidence and the defense looked very solid.
"We showed we can rollour sleeves up and play."
Jansen reserved praise for Alan Stubbs and Marc Reiper but insisyed it was a team effort that carried the day.
"Stubbs and Rieper understand each other and that contributes to the good play the defense has shown.
"The whole team is working well together however, and that is important.
"It was a tough, tough match but tackling is a part of the gameand we knew it would be hard, but we survived it and that is what pleases me the most."