1974-01-19: Celtic 3-0 St Johnstone, League Division 1

Match Pictures | Matches: 19731974 | 1973-1974 Pictures

Trivia

  • Plans moved ahead for the restructuring of the game in Scotland to a 3 League set up consisting of a ten-team Premier League, ten team First and 18 team Second divisions. This came about with the decrease in game attendance and the subsequent decline in club revenues and the knock-on effects from that. The SFA went ahead and commissioned a study by an outside group of market analysts.
  • The government lifted its ban on generators for floodlights during the state of emergency period.
  • Celtic had been due to play Morton away on the previous weekend but the game was called off with a waterlogged pitch. A number of games were also postponed with atrocious weather that weekend.
  • Celtic drew Basle away in the next round of the European Cup
  • Dixie Deans fails a fitness test for a foot injury which had been troubling him since the game at the start of January against Clyde.
  • Steve Murray's goal was Celtic's 100th of the season.
  • The game was played in a continuation of the atrocious weather conditions that had hit Scotland all week with snow, sleet and rain and howling gales.
  • The Reservesd played out a 0-0 draw up at Perth with a team of Williams, Quinn, McAleer, McNamara, MacDonald, Connelly, Johnstone, Ritchie, Wilson, O'Hara, McCool, subs Newman, Junior

With increasing industrial unrest, power outages and the pound at it's lowest level since the war and rampant inflation, Edward Heath called a General Election.

Review

Saints made a game of it but Celtic eventually won well. If Deans was fit Celtic could have had a barrel load.

Dalglish did everything apart from score. He continuously found space and his passing, touch and movement was truly exceptional.

Dreadful weather keeps the crowd down to 19,000.

Teams

Celtic:
Hunter, McGrain, Brogan, McCluskey, McNeill, Hay, Hood, Murray, Davidson, Dalglish, Lennox (Lynch) Substitutes: Callaghan
Scorers: Argue (OG 33), Murray (77), Lennox (pen 79)

St Johnstone:
Donaldson, Ritchie, Argue, Rennie, MacDonald, Cramond, Muir, Smith, Pearson, Hall, Hotson. Subs: McQuade, Kinnell
Scorers:

Referee: A J F Webster (Falkirk)
Attendance: 19,000

Articles

  • Match Report (see end of page below)

Pictures

Articles

Celtic v St Johnstone, League, 19/1/74