| Match Pictures | Matches: 1971 – 1972 | 1971-1972 Pictures |
Trivia
- Aberdeen, who had a first choice goalkeeper crisis, tempted Gordon Marshall Snr north.
- An unchanged side for Celtic.
- Hibs falter when flu-victim Edwards is withdrawn at half-time.
- Linesman upsets Celtic and Hibs with off-side calls.
- Ujpest Dosza manager Imre Kovacs watches Celtic from the main stand.
- On the same day Celtic drew 3-3 in Reserve League match at Easter Road. The Celtic team was Connaghan, McGrain, Quinn, Murdoch, Lapinski, McCluskey, Hancock, V. Davidson, Macari, White, Wilson. Sub J. Davidson. The Celtic scorers were V. Davidson 2 and Hancock.
- Next day: Bloody Sunday, demonstration in Derry, Northern Ireland, on Sunday, January 30, 1972, by civil rights supporters that turned violent when British paratroopers opened fire, killing 13 and injuring 14 others (one of the injured later died). RIP
[further discussion on related issues are left for a more appropriate forum than this site]
Review
Dixie Deans scored his 11th goal in 11 appearances. He was there at the right time to side foot home a cross from Jim Craig.
This was a tough game and looked evens for much of it. Stanton put Hibs ahead in the first half and they held that lead into the second. Harry Hood equalised for Celtic from a low cross from David Hay. Both teams went at it and Deans got what proved to be the winner despite Hibs fighting right to the end.
At the end of January Celtic stood four points in front of Aberdeen
| Team | P | W | D | L | F | A | Pts |
| Celtic | 23 | 20 | 2 | 1 | 72 | 18 | 42 |
| Aberdeen | 23 | 17 | 4 | 2 | 64 | 17 | 38 |
| Rangers | 23 | 16 | 1 | 6 | 53 | 22 | 33 |
| Dundee | 23 | 10 | 9 | 4 | 43 | 25 | 29 |
| Hibernian | 23 | 12 | 4 | 7 | 38 | 21 | 28 |
| Partick Thistle | 23 | 10 | 7 | 6 | 44 | 36 | 27 |
| Hearts | 23 | 10 | 7 | 6 | 44 | 36 | 27 |
Teams
Celtic :
Williams, Craig, Brogan, Hay, McNeill, Connelly, Johnstone, Dalglish, Deans, Lennox, Hood. Substitute: Callaghan
Scorers: Hood (54), Deans (74).
Hibernian
Herriot, Brownlie, Schaedler, Stanton, Black, Blackley, Edwards (Hazel 45), Hamilton, Gordon, Cropley, Duncan.
Scorers: Stanton (23).
Referee:–R. C. Greenlees (Lochgelly).
Attendance:– 38,500
Articles
- Match Report (see end of page below)
Pictures
Articles
The Sunday Post, January 30, 1972
JIM REGAINS HIS HAPPY SMILE
CELTIC 2, HIBS 1.
Half-time –0-1. Scorers—Celtic –Hood (54 mins), Deans (74). Hibs – Stanton (22).
Jim Craig has made many extractions as a dentist, but he will long remember the operation he performed to pull this game Celtic’s way.
It was all the more pleasant for the full-back after the first 45 of torture at the hands of Hibs tormentor Arthur Duncan (writes BILL McFARLANE).
At the end of this amazing game of contrast, “Cairney” emerged the key character in both halves. No mean achievement, for the big crowd were treated to a suspiciously offside goal by the visitors, one apiece chalked off for the same reason, a clear-cut penalty claim turned down by Hibs, and some outstanding saves by Jim Herriot.
Throughout, too, there was a veritable feast of very good, very imaginative football from both sides.
ON THE RACK
Let’s consider first that first half, when Celtic, in general, and Craig in particular were on the rack.
Hibs were midfield masters, with Edwards doing an excellent job on the right flank and Pat Stanton rivalling Barry Bucknell as a do-it-yourself man roving here, there and everywhere, with a couple of Celtic players invariably in his wake.
It soon became obvious that thanks to the prompting of these two, Hibs weren’t to settle for putting up the shutters.
Before long, they started throwing a left hook which threatened to bring Celtic to their knees. Duncan ran riot up the touchline every time he got the ball, and Craig was turned inside-out as the jet-propelled Hibs’ winger got in the mood.
After a Lennox score had been chalked off for offside and a Hood rocket went narrowly past, Hibs took control, with most of their attacks stemming from the devastation Duncan was causing on the left.
I wasn’t all that surprised when the Easter Road side took the lead and – you’ve guessed it – it came from the left flank.
Cropley and Stanton combined to let Pat send Gordon away. He looked offside, but neither the referee nor the far-side linesman thought so. The big fellow crossed from the left for Stanton to come in sledge-fashion and squeeze the ball past Williams.
Herriot hardly had a save to make in the first period, although he did give us all a laugh by heading clear outside his box from Dalglish.
Celtic were lucky not to be further behind before the interval when Connelly made a hash of a pass-back and Williams pulled Gordon down in the box, but there was no spot award given by the ref.
TRANSFORMATION
What a transformation after the turn-over. Hibs fell right out of it, mainly because Edwards didn’t reappear and Hazel never contributed as much.
But there was another very good reason. Jim Craig finally put the shackles on Duncan to the extent that Hay and Dalglish found more room to get going in the middle.
The homesters got back on an even keel when Hay crossed from the left and Harry Hood raced in to bang home his shot in-off Blackley.
Hibs were pushed back into their corner. Herriot again brought roars of astonishment from the crowd when he kneed away a McNeill lob while standing five yards outside his box!
But now it was time for Jim Craig’s star to really come out.
Dispossessing Duncan deep in his own half, he galloped up the right wing with two Hibs players in hot pursuit.
Without stopping to ask the time, he smashed over a low dangerous cross which Lennox cutely dummied and Deans tidily despatched behind Herriot.
That was that. Hibs put in a late flurry, but I felt the one big mistake they had made was not pacing their game properly.
They were peeved right on the bell when the ref chalked off an Arthur Duncan goal for offside, but the stand-side linesman had raised his flag immediately the winger shot.
Hibs had tremendous service from Herriot, Schaedler, the whole half-back line, Edwards and Duncan. While Celtic had steady men throughout in Williams, McNeill and Hood.
I’ll still pick Jim Craig though, as my “man of the match.”
Crowd—38,500
Celtic — Williams; Craig, Brogan, Hay, McNeill, Connolly; Johnstone, Dalglish, Deans, Lennox, Hood.
Hibernian — Herriot; Brownlie, Schaedler, Stanton, Black, Blackley, Edwards (Hazel), Hamilton, Gordon, Cropley, Duncan.
Referee—R. C. Greenlees, Lochgelly.
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Sunday Mail, January 30, 1972
HIBS WITHER UNDER CELTS FIRE, FURY
By ALLAN HERRON
CELTIC ……………………………..2 HIBS ………………………………………1 (H.T. 0-1)
Scorers: Celtic –Hood (54), Deans (74). Hibs – Stanton (23).
Hibs dominated the first half. Celtic dynamited the second ! And no one was asking for their money back after this gem of a match.
It had controversy aplenty, some remarkable antics from Hibs keeper, Jim Herriot, and a first-half in which Hibs were way ahead of the Celts in skill, thought and entertainment value.
Whipped on by skipper Stanton, some delightful touches from Alex Cropley and the blistering speed of Arthur Duncan, Hibs had Celtic constantly on the turn throughout the early stages of the game.
It is a long time since Celtic have had it so hard. And it was no real surprise when Hibs scored in 23 minutes – but Celtic were far from pleased by it.
A forward lob from Stanton had caught Alan Gordon remarkably in the clear, so much so, that the Celtic defence hesitated, convinced he was off-side.
Gordon himself paused until he realised there was no flag up.
Then he raced to the goal, drew Williams to the near post and whipped the ball away from his reach.
Stanton got to the ball before Hay and thumped it high into the net.
Two minutes later, Dalglish hit Herriot with a shot after a Johnstone corner, but really it was Hibs who carried the danger.
In 26 minutes for instance, Cropley and Duncan carved up the unhappy Celtic defence to leave Cropley with a chance, but the slender forward fired the ball straight at Williams.
Different Celts
There was an Edwards drive which Williams held on the deck and a Connelly pass-back which didn’t quite make it.
Gordon collided with Williams in trying to flick the ball into the net, and although there were claims for a penalty referee Bob Greenlees ignored them.
We saw a different Celtic in part two ! They moved faster and they chased and harried Hibs.
Hibs with Hazel on for Edwards didn’t get the time or space to work the ball.
Hibs finally lost a goal in 54 minutes. A cross from Hay was missed by Deans, but in charged Hood and his swerving shot hit a defender on its way past Herriot into the net.
Herriot was a busy keeper now, and with so many players around him for so much of the second half he repeatedly punched the ball out.
In the first half he had run from his goal to head the ball away. In 65 minutes he dribbled the ball across his goal chased by Deans before throwing himself on it at the far post.
Minutes later Herriot gave the crowd another giggle when he raced out of the 18-yard box and kneed the ball clear.
Light moments in a hectic second half for Hibs.
Celtic drove themselves at Hibs with a force that couldn’t be denied.
In 74 minutes Deans who hadn’t done too much, got the winner.
Craig won the ball on the right, worked a one-two with Johnstone then hit a low hard ball across the goal. Deans fairly zipped it low past Herriot.
Chalked off
The final moment of controversy came in the final minute when Duncan hammered the ball low past Williams.
As the Hibs player jumped with delight, the referee turned the “goal” down pointing to a linesman with a flag up.
The whole Hibs team argued with the linesman and the referee but got nowhere… … … and finished with no points.
Connelly—lucky to get away with two crunching tackles on Cropley – Hay, Hood and Dalglish were Celtic’s best players because of their overall work. Johnstone had a quiet day.
Hibs who lost their rhythm in the second half, had their best men in Brownlie, Stanton, Cropley and Duncan.
Celtic — Williams; Craig and Brogan; Hay, McNeill, and Connolly; Johnstone, Dalglish, Deans and Lennox. Substitute—Callaghan, not used.
Hibernian — Herriot; Brownlie and Schaedler; Stanton, Black, and Blackley; Edwards, Hamilton, Gordon, Cropley and Duncan. Substitute — Hazel for Edwards in 45 minutes.
Referee—R. C. Greenlees (Lochgelly).
Attendance – 38,500
The Scotsman Monday 31st January , 1972
Soon Hibs could be title challengers
Hibs, until Edwards was overcome by the depredations of flu and had to be substituted, played some of the best football they have conjured up in recent years. That is what must be remembered from a wonderfully satisfying game at Celtic Park, a game or excitement and controversy. That they were able to play such modern and speedy football should be of more concern to a club seeking status than a referee’s decisions or even two points.
It was a pity that there should have been two offside decisions to detract from the appreciation of the play. One went in Hibs’ favour when Gordon himself seemed to suggest with hesitation that he thought he was off before he made the pass from which Stanton scored.
