2000-12-23. St. Mirren 0-2 Celtic. Premier League.

Scotland on Sunday
December24, 2000, Sunday
CRUISINGCELTICDO BUSINESS AS USUAL

BYLINE:By Martin Hannan At Love Street

IT has not been a good week for Paisley. Not only did Scotland's largest town lose out on city status to Inverness, but the Buddies' football team similarly failed to live up to their ambitions.
It will be even more galling toSt Mirrenfans that they saw their team of honest journeymen lose to what could only be considered a workmanlike performance byCeltic'srecent standards.
Yet, their application to the job must be considered an improvement for the Parkhead men. For unlike previous erratic incarnations, this Cetlic squad have learned to grind out results even when not playing particularly well – the mark of champions.

Martin O'Neill said as much afterwards, though you will not heard the words "league" and "won" from the Irishman until the arithmetic is certain. He had told his players to expect plenty of effort fromSt Mirren: "I was naturally pleased to win the game because we knew it was going to be difficult. We have won the game without being absolutely outstanding and we have ground out another result away from home which is vital."In truth,Celticwere always in cruise control and were never extended in beating aSt Mirrenteam for whom the description "tried hard, must do better" would be the only apt comment on the half-term report card. Their manager, Tom Hendrie, had said beforehand that his men would need to be heroes to matchCeltic. They were undoubtedly brave, but it was courage of the infantryman variety, while the league leaders were hussars who deigned to give us only occasional glimpes of their superiority to the pedestrians facing them.
St Mirrensimply did not have the skill or the pace ofCeltic. The most telling example of that disparity was the opening goal by Didier Agathe.
St Mirrenhad opened the match in lively fashion, butCelticmoved up a gear after the first 12 minutes. Ramon Vega should have concentrated on his volley rather than posing for pictures when presented with a golden opportunity from a corner, but it only required a further few seconds for Agathe to intervene tellingly.
The ball went to him from Stilian Petrov on the edge of the centre circle, and, with that deceptive, almost languid, loping stride of his, Agathe burst unchallenged across the field in a diagonal run to the penalty box before stroking the ball past the exposed Ian McCaldon with the outside of his right boot.
Agathe was to make several similarly speedy dashes throughout the match, and, if his final passes had been accurate, he would have lifted the man-of-the -match contest. Instead, that award went to Petrov, whose tenacious efforts in the midfield inspiredCelticto retain dominance.
The back-three ofSt Mirrendealt well with the threat of Henrik Larsson and Chris Sutton, who understandably lacked sharpness on his restoration to the team, though his physical presence was a menace toSt Mirrenfor the whole 90 minutes.
Celtic'sback-three, by comparison, had a stroll in the park, encouraged by the growing confidence of Rab Douglas, who never missed a cross. The only irritation to theCelticdefence was the diminutive Tom Brown snapping at their heels until he tired and was substituted.
In a first half largely devoid of goalmouth action, the best of the rest of the chances fell toCeltic. On the half-hour, Neil Lennon struck a cross low and hard across the front of goal which somehow slipped between the inrushing Petrov and McCaldon. The goal-keeper was injured in the ensuing clash but recovered to play a fine game.
Agathe hit a similar cross straight at the feet of Alan Thompson shortly afterwards, but the ball went to his wrong foot and the midfielder could only scoop his effort over the crossbar from eight yards. It was looking ominous forSt Mirrenat this point, but the home side responded with plenty of industry, although the main failing was obvious – they had no direct shots on target in the entire match.
The second half started explosively, withCelticpressing and Barry McLaughlin clearing off the line before the previously sportsmanlike atmosphere turned nasty. After Miakel Renfurm went down injured, theSt Mirrenplayers looked to Petrov to turn the ball out of play, but the Bulgarian international saw that Renfurm had regained his feet and carried on playing, only to be clattered by Ricky Gillies and receive a dose of the verbals from Scott Walker.
BothSt Mirrenplayers were booked before Petrov himself joined their names in over-fussy referee Stuart Dougal's book soon afterwards for what appeared to be a revenge foul on Gillies.
Bobby Petta, looking menacing again but later replaced by Jackie McNamara to protect his injured hamstring, was also booked for a foul on Hugh Murray.
Celticsealed the points just after the hour. Sutton held off challenges and played a neat pass to Petrov on the right wing.
Murray appeared to have the danger covered, but Petrov somehow screwed the ball back for Larsson to tap in his 27th goal of the season, and none will be easier.
St Mirrenput on substitutes Stephen McGarry and Jose Quitongo, but the latter's main contribution was to spurn his side's best opportunity of the match.
Celticcould have gone further ahead, but McCaldon twice saved well from Petrov before a superb instinctive save from Sutton kept the scoreline respectable, though he would have had no chance with Lennon's follow-up blockbuster if Petrov had not got in the way.
Hendrie said afterwards: "We put so much effort into the game and have got nothing to show for it." As so often happens when mere townsmen go up against city slickers.

The Sunday Herald
December24, 2000
No sweat asCelticincrease their lead

BYLINE:Alan Campbell At Love Street

THE lead is now 10 points, but still don't ask Martin O'Neill about winning the SPL. TheCelticmanager had just seen his side coast past a battlingSt Mirrenoutfit, but he brushed aside the inevitable question.

"Tempt me with that one when we've got one match to go," he responded predictably. But whether this particular race goes right down to the wire is open to question.

Celticjust keep winning, even in games, such as this one in Paisley, when they don't look particularly convincing. It is a knack which wins prizes, but they will have to raise their game when the winning line is in sight.O'Neill acknowledged that it had not been a vintage performance, but said: "I am naturally pleased to have won the game because we knew it was going to be difficult here today. It was a tough test.St Mirrenare fighting for their lives."
The home manager, Tom Hendrie, said before the match that he would require 11 heroes out on the pitch if his side were to get a positive result. He had no complaints whatsoever about his men's commitment, but even so, it wasn't enough.
"We have worked hard today, but it is another game where we haven't scored any goals. We played well again at the back and in midfield," Hendrie said. "There was no lack of effort but their goalkeeper, Robert Douglas, didn't have a lot to do."
That succinctly summed upSt Mirren'safternoon, and unless the Paisley side can somehow find the wherewithal to sign a goal scorer they are likely to continue to struggle all season.
Saints have been plagued by injuries to their already small squad, but got a major boost when defensive midfielder Chris Kerr, returning from serious knee damage, was cleared to play his first game for 15 months.
Hendrie opted for an attacking formation, playing three up front and in so doing leavingCelticwith an extra man in midfield. The home side started confidently, but were completely exposed when Didier Agathe opened the scoring in the 13th minute.
They had almost gone behind 60 seconds earlier whenCeltic'slatest signing, Ramon Vega, collected a Bobby Petta corner at the far post, but the central defender pummelled the ball into the ground and it bounced harmlessly over the bar.
Almost from the goal kick Kerr, playing on the left side of midfield, won a tackle but fell, allowing Petta to take possession and pass to the unmarked Agathe who set off on a run through the middle. Ahead of him Chris Sutton and Henrik Larsson were making clever decoy runs to the right, pulling theSt Mirrencentral defence with them, and the route to goal opened up obligingly for Agathe who took the ball into the box before casually dispatching it past Ian McCaldon to putCelticahead.
The goal didn't deflate the home side, who continued to tackle tenaciously and forced a number of free kicks and corners, but too often the ball was floated in the direction of Robert Douglas, whose handling couldn't be faulted despite the doubts of his critics.
Nor was there much of a threat to Vega, about whom Spurs fans have been queueing up on radio phone-in programmes to ridicule his defensive abilities. His physique is certainly imposing, but judgement will be reserved until he comes up against a striker with genuine pace.
Yet again Saints lacked a forward who can cause damage in the penalty box, and their powder-puff probings were often the springboard for surgingCelticcounter-attacks.
The league leaders very nearly went two up in the 30th minute when Neil Lennon sent the ball into the box for Stilian Petrov. The midfielder got a touch but McCaldon, preferred ahead of first choice keeper Ludo Roy, made a brave stop at Petrov's feet, requiring treatment for his trouble.
Despite taking advantage of their extra man in midfieldCelticwere not at their sharpest, Alan Thompson's clumsy miss from 10 yards illustrating the point.
TheSt Mirrengoal had a remarkable escape just after the interval when Sutton had two chances to score from Petrov's corner, his second poke at the ball appearing unmissable but somehow the ball went past the post.
Celticwere stepping up the pressure and there were good chances for Petta and Sutton before Henrik Larsson put his side two ahead with his 27th goal of the season. The spadework was done by Petrov and Sutton, and their Swedish teammate duly converted from close in.
Saints kept battling away, but the best chances continued to fall toCeltic,Larsson setting Sutton up and although his effort was blocked, the ball arrived at the feet of Lennon 20 yards out. The former Leicester player sent in a scorching shot but unfortunately for his side it scored a bullseye on Petrov, whose pain could be felt in the back rows of the stands.
St Mirren'sindecision in front of goal was demonstrated by substitute Jose Quitongo who was dispossessed when given a shooting opportunity in the box, but if the home supporters didn't appreciate that, they were admiring the unstinting efforts of their side to get themselves back in the match.
The difference in class was all too apparent, however, and Sutton, not for the first time, should have done better when Lennon slipped him the ball on the edge of the box. Sutton tried to direct the ball past McCaldon, but only succeeded in curling it directly into the goalkeeper's arms.
"Celticdidn't play as well as they can do," said Hendrie, "but the main thing is getting three points and they have done that again.
"Martin O'Neill will be relieved his team won without getting anywhere near top gear."