Celtic 2 Hamilton 1 – A Scott Brown Won The League Moment

PROBABLY no Celtic goal against Hamilton was celebrated as wildly as the goal Scott Brown scored in stoppage time tonight at a tense and bitterly cold Celtic Park.

Ryan Christie has given Celtic an early advantage but try as they might a second goal eluded the Champions against a competent Accies side who sensed that they were in with a shout as the game entered its latter stages.

The second half started with the good news spilling from the stands onto the park that Aberdeen had levelled the scores at Pittodrie and the frozen support tried their best to urge the team on.

Neil Lennon brought on Mikey Johnston for Ntcham, Griffiths for Morgan and even tried throwing on Frimpong for Forrest as a right winger as the elusive second goal was sought to put the game to bed.

Johnston hit the post, Griffiths after fine play from Christie rolled the ball across the goal line but no Celtic boot to take the tap in and Hamilton hung on.

The visitors made three substitutions themselves and as Celtic got deeper and deeper their chance came when Scott Brown did well to clear up for his defence to concede a throw in deep inside the Celtic half. The skipper was even telling the crowd to take their time returning the ball but that request was not heeded and from a long throw in Hamilton equalised to shock Celtic Park.

Quite a few had left and the crowd was probably no more than 40,000 so it was a half empty Celtic Park that witnessed this shock. The fourth official put up the board to indicate three minutes of stoppage time as the Accies players ran to their “support” to celebrate their goal. There were probably more players than away fans involved in that celebration but with their entire team off the park, no cards were shown.

Mikey Johnston must have wondered why after his momentum took him off the park while scoring at Dingwall.

Eventually the Hamilton players made their way back to their own half and play resumed. The noise levels had gone through the roof. We knew the score at Pittodrie and realised the massive boost us dropping points would give to the Rangers.

We did what Celtic supporters always do, we roared on the team. It wasn’t a great game, it was bitterly cold. Had we won 1-0 few would have remembered this match yet what happened next was one of the iconic moments of the season. Scott Brown gathering the ball at the edge of the area, taking his time and as cool as you like he stepped to his left, gathered his thoughts then with desperate defenders everywhere the Celtic captain coolly place the ball into the far corner and ‘did a Hamilton’ by running into celebrate with the fans in the Jock Stein Stand.

Big Fraser Forster has probably never ran so far and so fast in all his life as he sprinted the entire length of Celtic Park to join in the celebrations. And having failed to book any of the visitors when they scored Broony avoided a card himself – or at least I think he did. You see like everyone else still in Paradise we were going absolutely crazy.

It was this season’s first “Scott Brown Won the League” moment. Advantage Celtic so lets ram it home on Sunday. And talking of rams, well done Aberdeen!

Man of the Match went to Ryan Christie and he even got his own song, actually the Green Brigade recycled the old Kieran Tierney Song for the Highlander. But our man of the Match is Scott Brown, Captain, Leader, Legend and Winner.

About Author

The Celtic Star founder and editor, who has edited numerous Celtic books over the past decade or so including several from Lisbon Lions, Willie Wallace, Tommy Gemmell and Jim Craig. Earliest Celtic memories include a win over East Fife at Celtic Park and the 4-1 League Cup loss to Partick Thistle as a 6 year old. Best game? Easy 4-2, 1979 when Ten Men Won the League. Email editor@thecelticstar.co.uk

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