2018-04-08: Hamitlon 1-2 Celtic, SP

Match Pictures | Matches: 2017 – 2018 | 2017-18 Pictures

Trivia

• Leigh Griffiths has revealed negotiations have begun on a new contract with Celtic which he hopes could see him go on to earn a testimonial at the club.
• Celtic v Sevco in the cup next week.
• Hacking galore on Tierney.
• Darts legend Eric Bristow passed away at 60 (treble 20!); could be a divisive character (with some very old school opinions) but seemed to be a loveable rogue to many. RIP
• Celtic's Brendan Rodgers thinks the Scottish Professional Football League should embrace rather than avoid a possible title decider against Rangers.
  The governing body is mulling over the last round of Premiership fixtures as the top flight splits into two.
  But it will look to avoid a potentially troublesome Glasgow derby when Celtic can secure a seventh consecutive title.

Review

(LGB of KDS)
Performance was to pedestrian and mundane. 10 man accies should be shooty in. Passes sideways as per our ROE the now. Roberts was a bright spot and good to griff scoring. Dont know about next week now but gaffer any time questioned domestically swats them away no matter what last 2 years so that gives me the confidence we will do them.

(BMH of KDS)
BR’s comments after the game we’re interesting

Talked a lot about ‘controlling the game’ especially if ye can’t score

This to me anyway made sense in that the players pass the ball back and retain possession so frequently that they spent so much time focusing on ‘co yroling’ The game today and not enough on scoring more goals

It’s finenof it works and you get the points like we did today but we’ve also been ‘in control’ of a few games and shipped 2 points

Musonda today ran twenty yards forward – looked up then passed it 25 yards back

Teams

Hamilton

Goals

• Bingham (18' minutes),

Celtic

Substitutes

• 9Griffiths
• 14Armstrong
• 22Edouard
• 23Lustig
• 24de Vries
• 49Forrest
• 67Musonda

Goals

• McGregor (3' minutes),
Griffiths (46' minutes)

Articles

• Match Report (see end of page below)

Pictures

• Match Pictures

Forum

• Pre-match http://kerrydalestreet.co.uk/topic/11068469/
• Match http://kerrydalestreet.co.uk/topic/11068905/
• Post Match http://kerrydalestreet.co.uk/topic/11068909/

MOTM

• Voting Thread http://kerrydalestreet.co.uk/topic/11068910/
• Result Thread
• Winner –

Stats

PossessionHome24%Away76%ShotsHome3Away20Shots on TargetHome1Away6CornersHome2Away7FoulsHome10Away9

Articles

Hamilton 1 – 2 Celtic: Griffiths fires champions 13 points clear
https://www.scotsman.com/sport/football/competitions/premiership/hamilton-1-2-celtic-griffiths-fires-champions-13-points-clear-1-4720729By Stephen Halliday
Published: 18:28
Sunday 08 April 2018

It is unlikely to take up much space on Celtic’s commemorative ‘Seven in a Row’ DVD at the end of the season but the Scottish champions did just what was needed and no more to leave themselves just one more victory away from retaining their Premiership crown.

Substitute Leigh Griffiths scored the goal which took Brendan Rodgers’ side 13 points clear at the top of the table with the five post-split fixtures remaining.

Hamilton Accies remain firmly embroiled in the relegation tussle, just four points ahead of the play-off spot, although with a game in hand on their rivals. Their hopes of enhancing their survival prospects with a surprise result here were undermined by Darren Lyon’s dismissal for two rapid-fire bookings just before half-time.

It came at a stage of the game when Hamilton were very much in contention for a precious point, Rakish Bingham having cancelled out Callum McGregor’s early opener for Celtic. Holding out with 10 men after the break proved beyond the hosts as Griffiths, with his first meaningful touch of the ball, grabbed the winner. Following last Wednesday’s goalless draw at home to Dundee, it was another largely underwhelming display from Celtic but they nonetheless fully merited the result which puts them within touching distance of their priority piece of silverware for the season.

Accies paid the price for a slumbering start to the match with the concession of McGregor’s opener in the third minute but they should have been behind even earlier.

There were just eight seconds on the clock when, after the home side had kicked off, a slack back pass from Shaun Want allowed Moussa Dembele to gather possession and stride into the penalty area.

It should have been a straightforward finish for the French striker but his shot lacked sufficient power or placement, leaving Accies ‘keeper Ryan Fulton able to make a comfortable save.

But Scotland under-21 international Fulton, deputising for the injured Gary Woods, was soon retrieving the ball from the back of his net. Patrick Roberts, preferred to James Forrest on the right of midfield for Celtic linked up cleverly with McGregor to create the opening amid some flat-footed defending by Accies.

McGregor’s low right foot shot from around 16 yards flew through a ruck of bodies, possibly blocking the view of Fulton who was beaten via the inside of his left hand post.

The early signs were ominous for Martin Canning’s side but they roused themselves sufficiently to ensure Celtic found themselves in a genuine contest. Bingham lead the line diligently for Accies, causing more than occasional discomfort for the Celtic central defenders.

The big striker created a decent opening for Danny Redmond but the midfielder’s first touch was poor and the chance slipped by. But there was no mistake from Bingham himself when he drew Accies level in the 18th minute.

Ali Crawford, making his first start since December following his return from injury, displayed the kind of craft and imagination his side have been missing with a lofted through pass which caught Kristoffer Ajer on his heels. Bingham muscled his way ahead of the young Norwegian and dispatched a cool finish beyond Scott Bain from around 14 yards.

Celtic, not looking particularly comfortable on the artificial playing surface, tried to step up the tempo in response and Scott Sinclair was denied by a good block from Xavier Tomas after he had collected a Kieran Tierney cutback.

The visitors continued to dominate possession but without finding any significant degree of penetration in the final third of the pitch. Dembele curled a couple of free-kicks well off target, either side of a McGregor shot from distance forcing a smart save from Fulton, but Accies were fairly comfortable with the pattern of play until Lyon’s dismissal.

He was booked in the 40th minute for a foul on Tierney, a decision he could have little complaint with, to make his involvement with the same player just a minute later all the more inexplicable.

Responding to what appeared a retaliatory challenge from Tierney, Lyon threw the Celtic man to the ground. It was enough for Dallas to produce a second yellow for Lyon, albeit Tierney was perhaps fortunate to escape any punishment for his part in the incident.

Both teams made a change at the start of the second half, Celtic replacing defender Jack Hendry with Griffiths, while Accies sacrificed Crawford for the introduction of Georgios Sarris in a bid to shore up their now short-handed side.

There was no time for the hosts to settle into their new formation, however, as Griffiths made his telling impact less than 60 seconds after the restart. Sinclair did well to create time and space for himself on the left to whip over a perfect cross to the near post where Griffiths gave Fulton no chance with a firm header.

Much of the rest of the second half resembled an attack versus defence training session but with Celtic lacking the impetus required to add to their lead. They almost paid the price when, in a rare counter, Accies forced a corner which saw Redmond’s delivery pick out Sarris who scorned a simple opportunity from close range as he headed wide.

Substitute Charly Musonda missed a good chance to add some late gloss to the scoreline for Celtic but the three points were all that mattered as they close in on the finishing line.

BBC
By Chris McLaughlin
BBC Scotland at Superseal Stadium

Leigh Griffiths nodded home Scott Sinclair's cross within a minute of the restart as Celtic strolled to victory.

The result took the champions 13 points clear of second-placed Rangers with five games left, as all Scottish Premiership teams now await their post-split fixtures.
Accies – who have a game outstanding against Kilmarnock next Saturday – remain four points above Ross County in the relegation play-off spot, and five clear of bottom side Partick Thistle.
Celtic boss Brendan Rodgers said before the game he wanted a performance and a tempo from his players to build towards next week's Scottish Cup semi-final against their Old Firm rivals.
With that in mind, he decided to leave recently-returned goalkeeper Craig Gordon out of the squad because of the artificial surface.
The home side also made a change in goal. With Gary Woods picking up a knock during the week, manager Martin Canning favoured Ryan Fulton.
Six seconds after kick-off, Fulton was forced to block a shot from Dembele after his defence completely switched off to allow the Frenchman through on goal. It was a warning the Hamilton back-line failed to take heed of.
Minutes later, Patrick Roberts, starting for the first time since November after recovering from a hamstring injury, twisted and turned on the right before finding McGregor, who fired low off the post and into the net from 16 yards.
With dominance in possession, a second Celtic goal should have followed, but they huffed and puffed and after 18 minutes the home side were level, completely against the run of play.
Bingham raced onto a high ball over the Celtic back three, outmuscled a hesitant Ajer and lashed it past Bain. It was simple but effective stuff.
Celtic shifted gears again and piled the pressure back on. Five minutes before the break, Accies were reduced to 10 men after Lyon was booked twice in the space of two minutes.
Card number one came after a late challenge on Kieran Tierney, and the second again involved the Celtic full-back. This time Lyon pushed him to the ground and referee Andrew Dallas pointed him towards the tunnel. It appeared harsh but was probably the correct call.
With Ben Nevis now turning into Everest, Accies boss Canning shuffled his pack for the mountain climb ahead.
But directly after the break, Celtic regained the lead through interval substitute Griffiths and it was demoralisingly simple from a Hamilton point of view.
Scott Sinclair picked the ball up on the left-hand side and his cross was met by the head of Griffiths, who nodded home his 13th of the season – plus two for Scotland – from six yards out.
The match quickly settled into what looked like an attack versus defence training ground exercise.
Hamilton packed their 18-yard box and Celtic continued to pour forward looking for ways to penetrate.
In an extremely rare foray forward, Georgios Sarris almost headed Accies level from a Danny Redmond corner, but it was no more than a brief respite from Celtic dominance.
In the end, despite the late introduction of Charly Musonda, the champions simply ambled their way to another win, but one that takes them a step closer to a seventh consecutive title.