As the time slipped by in the League Cup Semi-final today, and if you were ever a fan of the American TV series the Wire, as the clock ticked down, you would have felt a little of how Avon Barksdale did when he uttered the immortal line “I’m just a gangster, I suppose … And I want my corners.”
In that scene Idris Elba as Stringer Bell, gives Avon a long and persuasive argument why money, power and business are far more important than how you are perceived and the territory you gain. Avon however is having none of it!
Perhaps the link to Baltimore drug gangs and Scottish football silverware is a stretch, but just prior to James Forrest grabbing the goal that sent Celtic into a Cup Final and a chance to win back the first of three trophies we surrendered last season, I was very much in support of Avon Barksdale’s viewpoint. By hook or by crook, I just wanted our corners back.
Last season a domestically dominant Celtic gave up three trophies in one season, two of them to today’s opponents, having owned all three for four consecutive years. That they were sacrificed as the powers that be looked to protect the bank balance and certain players looked to protect their limbs, with a view to accessing new ventures, was a shameful relinquishing of what we’d fought so hard to hold so dear.
And today we saw a side of Celtic that showed there is a willingness to scrap in this Postecoglou inspired team that was evidently missing last year. Up against an opponent who sat deep, closed lines and when breeched was more than willing to resort to the dark arts, this Celtic side showed a willingness to keep on keeping on, willing to take the hits and stick to their gameplan, whilst looking out for each other and scrapping to get back to Hampden next month and look to start the process of taking back our corners.
This wasn’t pretty, but when it comes to regaining pride and restoring Celtic’s claim to silverware I didn’t much care how we did it today. League campaigns will take more style and panache to win over 38 games, however as today’s opponents showed cup competitions have to be won by hard graft, a willingness to take the hits and a determination to emerge from your battles before eventually imposing your game. Celtic did just that today and it showed the attractive football we’ve been promised and witnessed under Ange Postecoglou will also, when necessary, be matched by no little bottle.
Credit has to go to Callum Davidson and his team. Arguably weaker than last year after the loss of Captain Jason Kerr to Wigan and midfield lynchpin Ali McCann to Preston, still his side with a League Cup and Scottish Cup to protect, were back in a semi-final and in a position to defend the first of those trophies. They did so tooth and nail.
There were times today St Johnstone chased shadows and the defending of territory occurred almost exclusively in their own half, but still they didn’t give up. There were times they blurred the lines of legality as Shaun Rooney will know and Stephen Welsh will have felt, but in the main, they defended their trophy by teamwork and endeavour and that should be recognised. But this Celtic team matched up, showed patience and believed in the manager’s message to stick to and believe in the process. They took the hits and despite a referee in Nick Walsh with a Napoleon syndrome didn’t rise to the bait of the opposition or the adjudicator.
Eventually James Forrest came off the bench, Jota cut a ball back -something we’d needed to turn the St Johnstone defence and make them face their own goal – and with the experience of previous campaigns the much-missed Forrest ensured the sheer persistence of Celtic defeated the resistance of Scotland’s team and manager of last season.
I love football played the Celtic way, but in truth that is not always possible. And in a week where the Celtic family paid tribute to a legend in Bertie Auld who could paint pictures as well as mixing it with the toughest of them, so Celtic showed as a team they could too, as they took the first step on the way to taking back their corners. The first of three.
Niall J
I can definitely say that Nick Walsh is definitely not a decent human being.
You cannot respect someone who has no respect for others.
Fantastically written piece with inventiveness and passion that had me totally engaged from start to finish.