Match Pictures | Matches: 2025 – 2026
Trivia
- KO: 14:00, Premier Sports, Sunday
- Scottish Cup, semi-finals; 2-2 FT, 6-2 AET
- Celtic squander 2-0 lead at HT, to end the game 2-2 but then scored 4 in a 4 minute spell in Extra Time to reach the final!
- Both sides played each other last weekend in the league with Celtic 1-0 victors at Celtic Park.
- Ex-Celtic player & manager Neill Lennon creates shock by managing Dunfermline to the final in the other match (won on penalties v Falkirk).
- St Mirren made a howler that let Celtic score after one minute, then came off for a 17 year old! Sinisalo had some howlers too during the the first half.
- St Mirren defender Alex Gogic criticised the “disgraceful” and “disgusting” abuse goalkeeper Ryan Mullen received from his own fans after the 6-2 Scottish Cup semi-final defeat by Celtic. A mistake by Mullen, who was starting after first-choice Shamal George was injured in training, handed Celtic a first-minute opening goal at Hampden on Sunday – and the 24-year-old then went off injured after 15 minutes. It left interim manager Craig McLeish having to throw 17-year-old Grant Tamosevicius into the action for his first-team debut. “I have seen some disgraceful tweets about Ryan Mullen after the game yesterday,” 32-year-old Cyprus international Gogic said on X, external. “Ryan is a top goalkeeper and gives everything on and off the pitch and by no means did he want to leave the pitch yesterday. Every player makes mistakes. It comes with the job and I’ve made plenty.”
- Chris Sutton ruled Celtic out of the title race and said his former side made St Mirren “look like Brazil” at the weekend.
- Sevco reportedly set to host a meeting over refereeing standards in Scotland
- Celtic announced that non exec director Tom Allison has retired from the Board.
- Celtic’s B team expected to play their final Lowland League fixture this weekend, according to one report, bringing an end to a five-year spell in the fifth tier of Scottish football. The move could mark a change in how the club develop young players.
- Former Scotland midfielder Michael Stewart has accused the SFA of “trying to silence voices of dissent” after the now media pundit was banned from Hampden Park for his criticism of referees! He commentated on the match in a van outside the ground!
- Aiden McGeady would love to return to Celtic and work with the next wave of talent coming through the club’s academy.
- Callum McGregor should be at the forefront of the summer rebuild despite criticism of his recent performances and speculation over his future, acc to Martin O’Neill.
- Former Celtic left-back Matthew Anderson still dreams of a return after helping Kortrijk win promotion to Belgium’s Jupiler Pro League.
- Reports:
- Hannover 96, who are currently sitting third in Bundesliga 2, will find it difficult to persuade Celtic centre-half Maik Nawrocki to accept their option to buy if they fail to win promotion, with several top-flight rivals and other European clubs having the 25-year-old on their radar. (Bild)
- Sevilla reportedly after Luis Palma
- Celtic could face competition from a number of clubs for Hibs midfielder Miguel Chaiwa this summer.
Summary
BBC: FULL-TIME – Celtic 6-2 St Mirrenpublished at 16:35 BST 19 April 16:35 BST 19 April Celtic will play Neil Lennon’s Dunfermline Athletic in the Scottish Cup final on 23 May. One of the strangest and compelling games of football this season comes to an end. Four – yes four – goals in six minutes in the first period of extra-time have clinched it for Martin O’Neill’s side. Nobody saw that coming after St Mirren roared back from 2-0 down in the second half of normal time, thanks to great goals from Mikael Mandron. At that stage, the Buddies looked like the team who would go on and win it. But substitutes James Forrest and Kelechi Iheanacho, who scored two of those four extra-time goals, changed the game for them.
“Callum will be fine, we only thought he’d get to 65-70 minutes again. He’s fine, absolutely fine. Kelechi [Iheanacho] has had a great career. He has had injury problems. But he looks good and he wants to do really well. I’ve praised him enough in the dressing room – I think he was quite surprised!
“Sometimes you question yourself when you don’t get the result. Other than Tannadice, I’ve not had to question the spirit of the side. ”
And on facing his former player in the final, O’Neill said: “Neil [Lennon] was a major player for us and his record in management is second to none.”
Martin O’Neill
Tom English BBC Scotland chief sports writer on Sportsound It’s a great thrill. The game is amazing. I give enormous credit to St Mirren, not just for their hunger but for their mental strength to come back into this game from 2-0 down, having lost their goalkeeper. They’ve turned the tables and Celtic look a bag of nerves. They look a beaten docket.
That was thunderously impressive from Celtic, incredibly ruthless. In those six minutes, it looked like peak Celtic. Unerring finishes, great energy. James Forrest sparked it all. He’s got an insatiable desire for trophies, despite having more than any Celtic player in history. Forrest, again. What a player he is and has been for Celtic.
Credit to Celtic, they were in a pretty dark place at the end of the 90 minutes and the momentum was with St Mirren. But they found something. That bit of class. Aggression, belief. The desire to take the game by the scruff of the neck. James Forrest created the goal for 3-2, and for 4-2, and he elevated those around him. That goal blitz was extraordinary.
Iheanacho the key?published at 16:46 BST 19 April 16:46 BST 19 April FT: Celtic 6-2 St Mirren (AET) Celtic striker Kelechi Iheanacho tells Premier Sports it would “mean a whole lot” to end the season with some silverware. If he stays fit, could he help Celtic run down Hearts and Rangers? Striker has been a problem position all season for Celtic.
Harry Brady of CU:
It’s been an incredible season. The stats tell you. Your eyes tell you…we’re rubbish and yet we are just a handful of wins away from securing a double. Equally I doubt anyone looking for a sure fire bet would squander more than £5 of their hard earned cash on that possibility.
This game was yet another that encapsulated our season. We go 1 up inside a minute and play really well for the next 15 mins, then were revert to safety first passes across the back line and backward passes when in promising positions in forward areas – except they weren’t safe passes across the backline because St Mirren’s only opportunities in that first half came from a combination of Trusty and Sinasalo.
Onto the 2nd half and our midfield disappaears then we manage to blow the lead in injury time. With that boot in the balls, we go up the park and score 4 goals in almost the same number of extra time minutes to secure a place in the final.
CM1975 of KDS:
Everything that’s good and bad about every player in 120 mins. “Extraordinary” to quote a legend. Meada’s effort was back to his peak. Tounekti proved he shouldn’t be anywhere near the team. He’ll only ever work as a late sub imo, and even then it is only as a last throw of the dice. Ralstons metamorphosis into an actual player after his goal goes to show how important confidence is. Really pleased for him. Forrest has the brains to really make a difference and he’s coming alive at just the right time. He will be pivotal in any success we enjoy in the league I’d wager. Midfield is the area we need to crack but Engels needs to stay on for the whole game if possible. He’s the only athlete we have in that department.
JimmyMac of KDS:
If you are going to paper over the cracks, doing it with the best of gear is the way to go. The first half of extra time was the first time in what seems a long time where we looked a Celtic team. Outstanding 15 minutes of football. I didn’t see that coming as the momentum was all with St Mirren and even at the start of ET, they were the ones pushing.
We were the better team first half, although we did the same as last week, play well first 20 minutes, get in front then bottle it once their keeper went off. I thought St Mirren could feel hard done by at half time being 2-0 down but looking at the highlights, we created the clearer chances.
The second half was another abomination, especially when we took Engels and McGregor off and lost the midfield completely. The subs in general didn’t work in the second half and we got what we deserved by playing with fear and not passing forward.
Extra time, well those subs turned up and we had the Maeda of old to boot. On to the final we go.
HC of KDS:
I have no idea what our team is doing. Pure chaos and carnage.
1st Half: 2 nil up and hit the bar and and the post. A bit chaotic at the back but overall no complaints.
2nd Half: Abomination of desolation. I mean WTAF is going on. McGregor, Tierney and others zero out of ten performances. Dog shampoo.
Extra Time 1st Half: Most efficient and effective we have been all season. Appeared out of nowhere.
Extra Time 2nd Half: Satisfactorily boring and seen it out.
This team is pure mental, fluctuation between decent and efficient and rotten and mental. No idea how this season plays out.
Teams
Celtic
Manager: Martin O’Neill
Formation: 4 – 2 – 3 – 1
Starting lineup
12, V. Sinisalo
63, K. Tierney, subbed for M. Saracchi at 83 mins
06, A. Trusty
43, B. Arthur, subbed for D. Murray at 90 mins
56, A. Ralston
27, A. Engels,34′, Yellow Card at 34 mins, subbed for L. McCowan at 73 mins
42, C. McGregor (c), Captain, subbed for A. Oxlade-Chamberlain at 73 mins
23, S. Tounekti, subbed for J. Forrest at 61 mins
08, B. Nygren
13, Yang Hyun-Jun, subbed for K. Ịheanachọ at 83 mins
38, D. Maeda
Subs:
09, J. Adamu
31, R. Doohan
49, J. Forrest
41, R. Hatate
14, L. McCowan,103′ ET, Yellow Card at 103 mins extra time
47, D. Murray
21, A. Oxlade-Chamberlain
36, M. Saracchi
17, K. Ịheanachọ
Goals:
- D. Maeda (1′)
A. Ralston (45’+3)
K. Ịheanachọ (96′ ET, 100′ ET)
L. McCowan (98′ ET)
B. Nygren (102′ ET)
Assists:
Yang Hyun-Jun (45’+3)
J. Forrest (96′ ET)
L. McCowan (100′ ET)
D. Maeda (102′ ET)
St. Mirren
Manager: Craig McLeish
Formation: 3 – 4 – 1 – 2
Starting lineup
31, R. Mullen, subbed for G. Tamosevicius at 15 mins
21, M. Freckleton
13, A. Gogić,90’+2, Yellow Card at 90 mins plus 2
04, L. Donnelly, subbed for C. McMenamin at 82 mins
24, D. John, subbed for S. Tanser at 105 mins
16, A. Campbell,57′, Yellow Card at 57 mins, subbed for J. Richardson at 74 mins
08, J. Devaney
06, M. O’Hara (c), Captain,95′ ET, Yellow Card at 95 mins extra time
88, K. Phillips, subbed for R. Idowu at 74 mins
11, J. Ayunga, subbed for J. Young at 74 mins
09, M. Mandron
…
Subs:
17, J. Calvin
32, L. Douglas
29, K. Etete
07, R. Idowu
10, C. McMenamin
02, J. Richardson
35, G. Tamosevicius
03, S. Tanser
20, J. Young
Goals:
- M. Mandron (53′, 90’+1)
Assists:
D. John (53′), J. Young (90’+1)
Match Officials
Referee: Matthew MacDermid
Video Assistant Referee: Kevin Clancy
Assistant Referee 1: Calum Spence
Assistant Referee 2: David Roome
Fourth Official: Ryan Lee
Assistant VAR Official: Chris Graham
Att:
Articles
- Match Report (see below)
Pictures
Match Links
Stats
Basic Stats
Overall possession
Celtic 54%
St. Mirren 46%
Shots
Celtic 20
St. Mirren 12
Shots on target
Celtic 10
St. Mirren 5
Total touches inside the opposition box
Celtic 40
St. Mirren 24
CEL
STM
Goalkeeper saves
Celtic 3
St. Mirren 4
Aerial duels won
Celtic 25
St. Mirren 21
Fouls committed
Celtic 11
St. Mirren 15
Corners
Celtic 6
St. Mirren 11
In-depth match stats
Attack
Shots
Celtic 20
St. Mirren 12
Shots on target
Celtic 10
St. Mirren 5
Shots off target
Celtic 6
St. Mirren 2
Attempts out of box
Celtic 4
St. Mirren 3
Hit woodwork
Celtic 2
St. Mirren 0
One-on-one attempts
Celtic 1
St. Mirren 0
Total offsides
Celtic 2
St. Mirren 4
Distribution
Total passes
Celtic 642
St. Mirren 535
Pass accuracy %
Celtic 79.3
St. Mirren 75
Backward passes
Celtic 127
St. Mirren 84
Forward passes
Celtic 207
St. Mirren 213
Total long balls
Celtic 74
St. Mirren 91
Successful final third passes
Celtic 126
St. Mirren 67
Total crosses
Celtic 13
St. Mirren 24
Defence
Total tackles
Celtic 27
St. Mirren 18
Won tackle %
Celtic 77.8
St. Mirren 72.2
Fouls committed
Celtic 11
St. Mirren 15
Total yellow cards
Celtic 2
St. Mirren 3
Total clearances
Celtic 35
St. Mirren 18
Pre match
- This is the third time in four seasons Celtic and St Mirren have met in the Scottish Cup. Celtic have won the past four meetings between the clubs in this competition.
- St Mirren’s last Scottish Cup win over Celtic was in the 2009 quarter-finals when Billy Mehmet’s penalty gave them a 1-0 win in Paisley.
- This weekend is the Buddies’ first Scottish Cup semi-final meeting since 1984, when Celtic won 2-1 before going on to lose to Aberdeen in the final.
- St Mirren’s 3-1 victory over Celtic in the League Cup final this season was one of only three wins for the Paisley side in the past 36 meetings across all competitions.
Articles
Celtic extra special in extra-time to book Scottish Cup final spot
https://www.celticfc.com/news/2026/april/19/celtic-extra-special-in-extra-time-to-book-scottish-cup-final-spot/
First Team
By Paul Cuddihy, Celtic View Editor
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19 Apr 2026, 4:29 pm
Scottish Cup semi-final
Sunday, April 19, 2026
Hampden Park, Glasgow
CELTIC…6
(Maeda 1, Ralston 43+3, Iheanacho 95 & 100, McCowan 96, Nygren 102
ST MIRREN…2
(Mandron 53 & 90)
(after extra-time)
Celtic booked their place in the Scottish Cup final with a 6-2 extra-time victory over St Mirren at Hampden.
After taking a 2-0 first-half lead thanks to goals from Daizen Maeda and Anthony Ralston, St Mirren scored twice in the second-half through Mikael Mandron to put the game into extra-time.
But in a blistering first period of extra-time, Martin O’Neill’s side scored four goals without reply to put the tie beyond any doubt and spark scenes of celebration amongst the large Celtic support in the National Stadium.
Celtic wanted to get off to a strong start and they couldn’t have asked for any better than a goal from Daizen Maeda inside the first 60 seconds of the game.
The Japanese internationalist closed down St Mirren goalkeeper, Ryan Mullen, blocking his attempted clearance, with the ball spinning back and into the net.
It wouldn’t be the first time that Maeda caused the St Mirren defence problems with his pace and willingness to put the backline under pressure.
And on nine minutes, Arne Engels came close to doubling Celtic’s lead but his shot from the edge of the box hit the post and spun wide.
On 15 minutes, St Mirren were forced into an early change when Ryan Mullen had to go off injured, with 17-year-old Grant Tamosevicius coming on.
And the teenager soon pulled off a good save to deny first Benjamin Nygren and then moments later, Daizen Maeda.
With 30 minutes gone, St Mirren were denied an equaliser when Vil Sinisalo produced a stunning save from a Miguel Freckleton header, while the Finnish goalkeeper had a couple of nervy moments when his clearances were closed down by St Mirren players. But he was able to produce two saves to deny the Paisley side.
With a minute remaining, St Mirren again capitalised on slack play at the back by Celtic, but Killian Phillips’ tame effort was wide of the target.
And in the third minute of added time, Celtic doubled their lead with a stunning goal.
Sebastian Tounekti cut in from the left and rolled the ball across to Yang, who back-heeled it into the path of Anthony Ralston.
And he produced a stunning strike which hit the roof of the net to give the Hoops a 2-0 half-time lead.
54%
Possession
46%
20
Shots
12
10
Shots On Target
5
6
Corners
11
11
Fouls
15
2
0
Cards
3
0
However, the second-half started better for St Mirren as they reduced the deficit on 53 minutes when Mikael Mandron steered his header from eight yards out beyond Vil Sinisalo to make it 2-1.
Benjamin Nygren had a chance four minutes later, but his shot went wide of the target in what would prove to be a rare chance in a more nervy second-half.
With 15 minutes remaining, St Mirren captain Mark O’Hara headed over from a free-kick, while Sinisalo produced a good stop with three minutes remaining to deny Mandron his second goal of the game as St Mirren searched for an equaliser.
And right on the 90-minute mark, Mandron did make it 2-2, latching on to a long ball over the top and firing it beyond Sinisalo.
It was a goal which put the game into extra-time, and it was Celtic who took control of the game with a quickfire double.
In the fifth minute, Kelecho Iheanacho rose highest at the near post to head home a James Forrest cross and then, just 60 seconds later, Luke McCowan made it 4-2.
James Forrest’s pass towards Iheanacho was blocked but the ball fell into the path of McCowan who coolly slotted the ball home.
And when Iheanacho curled home a stunning strike from just inside the area in the 100th minute, Celtic supporters could really start celebrating and looking forward to a Scottish Cup final against Neil Lennon’s Dunfermline Athletic side.
Before that was another goal just two minutes after that from Benjamin Nygren – his 20th goal of the season – to make it 6-2 in Celtic’s favour.
St Mirren’s teenage goalkeeper produced two good saves early in the second period of extra-time to deny first James Forrest and then Iheanacho with what would have been his hat-trick as Celtic continued to press forward in search of more goals.
There were to be no further goals in the game, however, and Celtic can now turn their attentions back to league business before the season’s finale at Hampden on May 23.
Celtic: Sinisalo, Ralston, Arthur (Murray 90′), Trusty, Tierney (Saracchi 83′), McGregor (Oxlade-Chamberlain 73′), Engels (McCowan 73′), Hyunjun Yang (Iheanacho 83′), Nygren, Tounekti (Forrest 61′), Maeda
Subs: Adamu, McCowan, Iheanacho, Oxlade-Chamberlain, Doohan, Saracchi, Hatate, Murray, Forrest
St. Mirren: Mullen (Tamosevicius 15′), Donnelly (McMenamin 82′), Gogic, Freckleton, O’Hara, Devaney, Allan Campbell (Richardson 74′), John (Tanser 105′), Phillips (Idowu 74′), Mandron, Ayunga (Young 74′)
Subs: Richardson, Tanser, Idowu, McMenamin, Calvin, Young, Etete, Douglas, Tamosevicius
Kelechi Iheanacho: We worked hard and blew St Mirren away in extra-time
https://www.celticfc.com/news/2026/april/19/kelechi-iheanacho–we-blew-st-mirren-away-in-extra-time/
First Team
By Matthew Campbell
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19 Apr 2026, 5:30 pm
Kelechi Iheanacho came on with seven minutes of the 90 remaining in the Scottish Cup semi-final, but it was in extra-time that the Nigerian internationalist made a massive impact on the match.
He netted twice to help the Hoops beat St Mirren 6-2 and book their place in next month’s final against Dunfermline Athletic.
The first was a near post header from a James Forrest cross and then he produced a stunning left-foot finish from inside the area.
The 29-year-old was delighted with his goals and the end result, as he explained to Celtic TV after the game.
“I can’t really describe how I feel at the moment,” Iheanacho said. “I’m really happy!
“Obviously, there was a little bit of panic in the second half when they got the goals.
‘We were lucky enough to get to extra-time and we blew them away after that.’
“We’re really happy as a team, we really worked hard in extra-time to get the goals.
“In extra-time, we just had to get after them, press them and get the goals, that was the plan.”
Today’s result means that the Hoops can look forward to the Scottish Cup Final on May 23 where they will face Dunfermline.
There is, of course, the small matter of the fight for the league title before then, but Kelechi Iheanacho says that when the Scottish Cup Final rolls around, the Celts will be ready for it.
He added: “Cup finals are never easy, and I haven’t watched much of Dunfermline.
“But obviously we’ll give it our best to make sure we win the silverware.
“Collectively, as a team, we’ll really fight to win it.”
Manager’s post-match reaction to Scottish Cup semi-final win
https://www.celticfc.com/news/2026/april/19/manager-s-post-match-reaction-to-scottish-cup-semi-final-win/
First Team
By Paul Cuddihy, Celtic View Editor
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19 Apr 2026, 5:21 pm
Martin O’Neill was delighted to see his side book their place in next month’s Scottish Cup final with a 6-2 extra-time victory over St Mirren at Hampden today.
It was a rollercoaster of a game, with Celtic leading 2-0 at the break thanks to goals from Daizen Maeda and Anthony Ralston, only for St Mirren to score twice in the second-half to take the game into extra-time.
But the Hoops scored four goals in the first period of extra-time courtesy of Luke McCowan, Benjamin Nygren and a Kelechi Iheanacho double to put the game beyond their opponents and set up a clash with Neil Lennon’s Dunfermline Athletic next month.
Speaking to Celtic TV after the game, the Celtic manager said: “It was a brilliant day and I couldn’t be more pleased with the team in many aspects.
“We can get it forward a wee bit more quickly at times but, overall, for us to fight back – it was getting very close to a win in normal time, but St Mirren came roaring back and got a great goal, so we had to do it all over again.
“And the goal just a couple of minutes into extra-time helped us enormously. We got a surge of confidence after that and we went on to win convincingly.
“It was a tough afternoon, but there were some great goals, Kelechi Iheanacho coming on and doing brilliantly, Luke McCowan scoring as well, so I’m delighted that we won.”
And speaking of the impact that Kelechi Iheanacho made, Martin O’Neill said: “Everyone in the dressing-room knows that he has been a really good player.
“He’s had a few injuries and he’s been trying to get that fitness, but a properly fit Iheanacho is definitely a handful as he’s proved today.”
As for any boost to the squad’s confidence going into the last five league games of the season, starting with next weekend’s home match against Falkirk, the manager added: “We’ve ended up scoring six goals.
“Now I know that the game was 2-2 after 90 minutes, but at the end of it all we’ve got the capabilities and that’s the confidence coming back.
“Today’s performance, particularly in extra-time when we scored four goals in relatively quick succession has got to give us an enormous boost.”
Celtic and St Mirren serve up mad Scottish Cup semi-final: calamity, 17y/o debutant and fairytale final
Mark Atkinson
By Mark Atkinson
Sports Editor
https://www.scotsman.com/sport/football/celtic/latest-celtic-news/celtic-and-st-mirren-serve-up-bonkers-scottish-cup-semi-final-calamity-17yo-debutant-fierce-response-and-dream-final-6819280
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Published 19th Apr 2026, 16:43 BST
Eight-goal thriller goes way of O’Neill and Co as Celtic do best to throw it away
How not to start and finish a Scottish Cup semi-final, by St Mirren Football Club.
This was a wild occasion at Hampden, a game that will live long in the memory. The outcome is that Celtic are in next month’s final against Dunfermline Athletic after prevailing 6-2 following 120 pulsating minutes. If the first semi-final a day previously between the Pars and Falkirk was low on entertainment, this certainly made up for it.
Celtic displayed why they have struggled this season – but why the remain in the hunt for silverware. Pre-match, manager Martin O’Neill urged his players to keep their double hopes alive. They answered his call – but did little for the 74-year-old’s heartrate in the process.
The drama started early. The clock had just struck a minute when St Mirren defender Miguel Freckleton passed the ball back to goalkeeper Ryan Mullen. The stopper took a moment to look up and pick his pass. He had not bargained for the most energetic, rapid man on the pitch chasing him down.
Mullen’s pondering was painful and perilous. By the time he saw Daizen Maeda coming, it was too late. His clearance was blocked by the striker and the ball slithered over the goalline despite the keeper’s vain attempts to stop it.
It set the tone for a barnstorming match, a Hampden classic, where an edgy Celtic exacted a modicum of revenge for losing the Premier Sports Cup final here back in December, when they left with their tail between their legs.
Mullen was on the bench that day. He is the No 2 keeper at St Mirren but Shamal George picked up a training ground knock during the week and wasn’t fit enough to play. Mullen had come on for him the week before at Celtic Park for another issue and had fared fine. There was no suggestion of what was to come.
Mullen understandably looked jittery with the ball at his feet after the Maeda incident and on 14 minutes, just after a close shave when being harried by Maeda once more, he crumpled the turf disconsolately. He was unable to continue with his own injury.
The 17-year-old keeper makes his debut
So it was over to Grant Tamosevicius, a 17-year-old who had never played a senior match. The Scottish teenager of Lithuanian descent had warmed the bench three times previously for St Mirren and spent a month on loan at Arbroath in November. The kid was not qualified to play in a match of such magnitude.
Nevertheless, St Mirren interim coach Craig McLeish had no choice. Tamosevicius was summoned and for a player of such tenderness, he coped well with the moment.
He clutched an effort from Benjamin Nygren and then beat away a fierce Maeda drive. St Mirren grew into the game, Celtic could not control the midfield and their own keeper, Viljami Sinisalo, made an excellent save from a Liam Donnelly header before his own moment of near-calamity.
The Finn dithered on a back-pass and smashed it off Killian Phillips. The ball bounced over him but not with enough pace to completely outwit the stopper. He did well to claw it off his own line but the episode heightened the tension in the Celtic support. They were not in control.
So when Anthony Ralston leathered the ball home in the third minute of first-half stoppage-time, via the underside of the bar after good work from Sebastian Tounekti, it gave them breathing space. They required it.
St Mirren threw caution to the wind after the interval. The arrears were halved on 53 minutes when Mikael Mandron headed a Declan John cross back across goal and into the net. Hope coarsed through the Paisley faithful.
The game was now even. Both teams pressed for the next goal but neither showed enough composure in a 20-minute spell thereafter despite some half-chances in the penalty box.
Celtic replenished their midfield with the introduction of Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and Luke McCowan for Arne Engels and captain Callum McGregor. It is rare to see the skipper withdrawn at such a pivotal point in the match but fitness issues continue to linger. He did not have a vice-like grip on the game in any case.
St Mirren finished the game the stronger of the two. They brought on Conor McMenamin for Liam Donnelly to add an extra attacking player on the pitch. Nothing to lose now.
Celtic were clinging on. Ball retention was non-existent. Sinisalo saved from McMenamin with his foot and then palmed away the rebound from Mandron. Their sizeable support showed their displeasure. Tamosevicius was now a spectator with them.
Four minutes of stoppage time flashed up. St Mirren weren’t done yet. Jake Young flicked on a Freckleton pass and Mandron was through on goal. No mistake this time. He belted the ball into the bottom corner and extra time was upon us.
It would have been easy for Celtic to fold. Pack up and go home. This has been a trying season, what’s another sob story to add to it. But they regrouped, and showed why they are still in the fight for the Premiership and now in the Scottish Cup final.
Substitute Kelechi Iheanacho glanced home a cross from James Forrest on 96 minutes, with Tamosevicius in no-man’s land. It was 4-2 moments later when the ball broke into the path of McCowan, who steered home. By 100 minutes it was 5-2, Iheanacho clipping home with a deft finish. Then Nygren slotted in after a cutback from Maeda on 102 minutes. Job done. Job well and truly done. In the space of six minutes.
Where was this Celtic version beforehand? O’Neill will have his last dance on May 23, back at Hampden against Dunfermline, who are managed by his former captain Neil Lennon. It surely can’t be as dramatic as this …
…
Martin O’Neill demands Celtic contract talks for ‘lad’, reveals striker latest and savours Neil Lennon moment#
https://www.scotsman.com/sport/football/celtic/latest-celtic-news/martin-oneill-demands-celtic-contract-talks-for-lad-reveals-kelechi-iheanacho-latest-and-savours-neil-lennon-moment-6826541
https://www.scotsman.com/sport/football/celtic/latest-celtic-news/martin-oneill-demands-celtic-contract-talks-for-lad-reveals-kelechi-iheanacho-latest-and-savours-neil-lennon-moment-6826541
Mark Atkinson
By Mark Atkinson
Sports Editor
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Published 19th Apr 2026, 18:01 BST
Celtic boss knows more is required to ensure silverware at end of season
Martin O’Neill accepts that Celtic will need to raise their level for the final six games of the season if they are to achieve their ambition of winning the double.
Celtic required extra time to defeat St Mirren 6-2 in an epic Scottish Cup semi-final at Hampden. They secured a return date to the national stadium on May 23 against Championship side Dunfermline Athletic and remain in contention for the Premiership crown, sitting third in the league and three points behind leaders Hearts.
O’Neill took heart from his team recovering from letting a two-goal lead slip in extra time and rediscovering their poise. He was also pleased to see six strikes, with Kelechi Iheanacho (2), Daizen Maeda, Anthony Ralston, Luke McCowan and Benjamin Nygren getting on the scoresheet. But the veteran coach knows that more is required to ensure the campaign ends with silverware.
“Obviously I’m relieved to have won the game,” said O’Neill. “But I’ve got a lot of pride about the side, in the way they focused in extra time. With St Mirren scoring so late on to equalise, they are in the psychological ascendancy. For us to retrieve that situation, in the manner in which we did, gives the team confidence, which is great. And gives us all renewed energy.
Did I think that we were going to score four goals in six or seven minutes? No. But it was for us to try and turn the game, turn the game in our direction again. They did it emphatically.
“[But] I think that we’ll have to improve. No doubt. I don’t think that we can just be hanging on in games. I think if we can get an early goal in matches, I think we have to really, really go for it. Try and put the game to bed if we can do. But there are going to be moments in these next five league games where we will be stretched completely. And it’s whether we have the resilience to do it.”
O’Neill hopes that Iheanacho can have a huge part to play in the final matches. The former Manchester City hitman has struggled with injury since arriving last summer from Sevilla, but the manager revealed the Nigerian believes he is fully fit and hinted he may be a close to a starting berth,
“I couldn’t disagree with that, yeah,” responded O’Neill when asked if he is on cusp of a place in the team. “Obviously he’s had the few injury problems. I think I said to you that sometimes if you felt as if he started the games, he might not see the game through. We’ve got a couple like that at the moment. Today his goals have been big for us. Really big. He says he is completely fit. And I’m not completely sure. But he was brilliant for us. He took the goals magnificently. You can see why he’s had a career.”
Forrest catches manager’s eye
Another player who made a telling impact from the bench was 34-year-old winger James Forrest, who set Iheanacho up for the third goal. He is out of contract in the summer and O’Neill called for him to given a new deal.
“I would like to keep James for one more year, at least, so that he could see his career through at the football club,” said O’Neill. “I would be asking the board. And I think James would stay for another year. He’s 34, isn’t he? 34. With just a little burst, you know, the one-v-ones.
“He has changed a number of games for us. You know, he changed the game at Aberdeen. I know Nygren scores the goal, but he came on and changed that. We scored from him getting the cross at Rangers as well, too. So, yeah, he’s definitely played a part. And Neil Lennon was telling me that he is just, which I’ve known now for two or three months, that he really is a proper lad.”
O’Neill was also asked in Forrest should be in contention for the Scotland squad. “Right, OK,” he smiled. “Well, I’m not the manager. I don’t know. I don’t know. It hasn’t crossed my mind. So I’d have to think about it. So the last thing I want to do .. I used to hate this myself, you know, when other managers were telling me how to run the football club or run international football. So I do not want to have a headline up here … but why not put him in?”
The Premiership campaign now takes centre stage for O’Neill, with the visit of Falkirk on Saturday. But he now knows the season will end with a clash against his former Celtic captain Neil Lennon, who has done a fine job in charge of Dunfermline.
“I’ve just done an interview with him,” added O’Neill. “He’s doing some punditry work. Gosh, he gets everywhere. But he has done remarkably well. Did brilliantly for me at Leicester and at Celtic. And I think I mentioned to you on Friday, he’s done brilliantly at Dunfermline. What an effort yesterday. So when the time comes, I look forward to it.”
BBC
https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/live/c3w33753j9yt#Report
Kheredine Idessane
BBC Sport Scotland Senior Reporter
Celtic will face Dunfermline Athletic in next month’s Scottish Cup final after a thrilling, eight-goal epic with St Mirren at Hampden was eventually settled by a sensational spell in extra time.
With the match tied at 2-2, four goals in six minutes blew the Paisley side away after they had come from two goals down to force the additional half-hour.
In that additional period, quick goals from the head of substitute Kelechi Iheanacho and the boot of Luke McCowan broke the Buddies’ spirit before Iheanacho slammed in a fifth. Extra gloss was added when Sweden international Benjamin Nygren stroked in his 20th goal of an impressive debut season.
It pits manager Martin O’Neill against his former midfield stalwart, Neil Lennon, in a repeat of the 2007 final, which the Pars lost 1-0 in their last appearance in the end of season showpiece.
It all seemed so harsh on a St Mirren side – and their 17-year-old goalkeeper – who fought back superbly after conceding in the first and last minutes of the first half.
Daizen Maeda’s quick closing down pounced on an error from goalkeeper Ryan Mullen to give Celtic a dream start after just 57 seconds before a superb Anthony Ralston strike doubled the lead on the stroke of half-time.
Celtic also hit the woodwork through Arne Engels and Yang Hyun-Jun and regretted their inability to kill the game off when Mikael Mandron headed St Mirren back into contention shortly after the break.
His fine, powerful shot in the 91st minute seemed to indicate the tide turning in the Paisley side’s favour but the Scottish champions found an extra couple of gears in extra time.
All of this happened after a somewhat chaotic opening spell in which Mullen – deputising for the injured Shamal George – was forced off injured on 14 minutes, meaning a professional debut for teen Grant Tamosevicius. The youngster made a couple of good saves but could do little about Celtic’s devastating onslaught in extra time.
The record 42-time winners are through to the final on 23 May but were made to work extremely hard for their place.
Dunfermline beat bitter rivals Falkirk on penalties to reach Scottish Cup final
Analysis: Celtic blitz eventually overcomes St Mirren
O’Neill had bemoaned a lack of energy in his side in the narrow Scottish Premiership win over St Mirren last week. It was quite the opposite, certainly in the opening stages at Hampden, with a place in the cup final up for grabs.
Celtic hustled and harried the Buddies to distraction, chasing down every ball and forcing the Paisley side to panic at times. The opening goal was a classic example.
One has to admire Celtic’s resilience and patience, too. There was no doubt they were the better side in spells in the match, particularly with the goal rush in extra time. Their heads could have sunk when St Mirren equalised but the response will have heartened O’Neill greatly. The team who have won games narrowly of late all of a sudden found half-a-dozen when it mattered most.
For St Mirren, this was a match that started calamitously, rapidly deteriorated, improved considerably before they finally fell away. A proper rollercoaster of a performance.
They rallied superbly from their multiple early setbacks and may well have thought they were on their way to the final when they found an equaliser and plenty of momentum.
Craig McLeish’s men deserve great credit for the way in which they dealt with an extremely tricky situation and grabbed a Scottish Cup lifeline through Mandron’s mighty double.
But it’s Celtic who advance to their 62nd final, where they will be overwhelming favourites to claim a 43rd Scottish Cup against Lennon’s Championship promotion-chasers Dunfermline.
Not for the first time, though, there will be concerns that the bar set by their first-half display lowered significantly after the break as they now look to build momentum for the defence of their Premiership crown in the five remaining league games. They can at least take heart after rediscovering their scoring touch.
What they said
Celtic manager Martin O’Neill: “Delighted. Almost had the game won. St Mirren, who were never out of proceedings and showed a lot of quality themselves, got the equaliser. It’s a matter of trying to win again and so we come up big in the first period of extra time. It was great for us, really great.
“James Forrest coming on, making the first goal, Iheanacho scoring, naturally a major turning point in the game just when St Mirren had gained the advantage just by scoring late on in proceedings going into extra time. For us to score so quickly was a blow to them and obviously a major boost to us.
“We took the goals brilliantly and it was a joy; joy, from our viewpoint. I couldn’t be more pleased with the team, really, considering that they could’ve crumbled just in extra time.”
St Mirren manager Craig McLeish: “I’m so proud of the group and how they performed throughout the day. To come back from the set-backs that we had early on in the game like losing a goalkeeper early on, losing the goal in the manner in which we did early on, to fight back from that and the fans pulled us through.
“Second-half performance was up there with the best since I’ve been in charge of the group. We thought we were in a really good place going into extra time. We made some changes that probably helped us get back into the game. We end up with a lot of attacking players on the pitch.
“We change our shape as well so taking those risks help us get to extra time and then they maybe expose us a little bit there, the quality that Celtic bring on the pitch then takes its toll and they hurt us.”
Why evergreen Forrest is Celtic’s enduring influencer
https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/articles/c5yw6068l05o
Tom English
BBC Scotland’s chief sports writer
Published
19 April 2026
Cometh the hour, cometh the legend, clink-clanking his way on to the Hampden pitch, dripping with silverware from one of the most storied Celtic careers and, now, with the prospect of even more. James Forrest – 35 years young in July – helped turn Sunday’s madcap Scottish semi-final in Celtic’s favour. Evergreen, in every sense.
It turned into an absolute rout in breakneck speed but Celtic were reeling when it went into extra-time, the favourites surrendering a 2-0 lead against a St Mirren side who have looked them in the eye all season and shown zero fear.
It was 2-2 and St Mirren had the momentum, then Forrest started to play. Thirteen league titles, eight Scottish Cups, five League Cups and an incalculable amount of hunger to add to his total. Twenty-six winners’ medals and he continues to play with the hunger of a guy who has won nothing.
The goal that broke open the semi was Celtic’s third and, though it was nodded home by Kelechi Iheanacho, it was masterminded by Forrest’s energy and accuracy and craft in getting to the line and dinking a cross to his striker.
It was the goal that unsettled St Mirren, the goal that facilitated the deluge that came; three more followed in the next three minutes. Forrest was involved in the one that made it 4-2 as well, Luke McCowan driving another stake into St Mirren’s heart.
Forrest tried to make things happen – and did. He was aggressive when Celtic had lapsed into timidity. He was full of verve when too many of his team-mates were toiling. He was the spark. He lifted them all and helped carry them through a day that was brutally tough for a long time and then unimaginably easy for the rest of it.
He’s a bit-part winger these days and for many other days that went before. He’s started seven games this season, 11 the season before and single figures for the two seasons before that. Part of that was influenced by injury but in other part it was down to the arrival of shiny new wingers who haven’t been anything like as shiny as Celtic hoped.
Expensive, too. Sebastian Tounekti and Michel-Ange Balikwisha are the latest two but, for years, Forrest has counted them in and counted them back out again – Marian Shved, Luis Palma, Marco Tilio, Nicolas Kuhn, Liel Abada. Some successful, some not, some others who just disappeared into thin air. That is far from a complete list of Celtic’s wide men in recent times. Regardless, Forrest remains the constant, the great survivor and the enduring influencer.
O’Neill v Lennon another thrilling plot twist
How fitting it is that a season that has thrown up more plot twists than Agathe Christie’s collected works will have one last thriller to round it all off?
Martin O’Neill versus Neil Lennon in the Scottish Cup final in May. The icon most probably managing Celtic for the very last time against his one-time captain, the player he bought, nurtured, depended on and protected in a glorious era. Back to the future they go.
The temptation in all of this is to say that you couldn’t make it up – this meeting of Celtic greats – but we’ve known for a long time that Scottish football is a place of infinite wonders where anything is possible and believable.
St Mirren did their darndest to change the storyline. Everything is degrees of sweatiness for Celtic these days and this was another deeply uncomfortable afternoon before the floodgates were forced open and St Mirren washed away.
At the break, when leading 2-0, it looked like a rare thing of late was going to happen – a Celtic stroll. They’d taken the lead when St Mirren goalkeeper Ryan Mullen delayed a clearance and was suckered by Daizen Maeda sneaking up on his blindside like a lion sizing up an unsuspecting antelope. The outcome could not have been uglier for St Mirren or prettier for Maeda.
He got them off to a flyer and Celtic looked sharp. They hit the woodwork twice, they had a danger about them for a little while. St Mirren lost Mullen to injury and had to replace him with the only fit option, 17-year-old Grant Tamosevicius, playing in his first senior game. No pressure, son.
St Mirren found plenty in adversity. Tempo, aggression, work-rate. They pushed Celtic back, hustled them and harried them, lived in their face and watched them struggle.
Mikael Mandron made it 2-1 then 2-2 and they deserved it. Celtic were like a boxer on the ropes, ahead on points and hoping to see out the final moments by covering up as best they could. They got caught. Into extra time it went. And into orbit went Forrest’s impact.
Lennon was there to see it. Dunfermline will be underdogs in the final but given that his own team have already beaten Hibs, Aberdeen and Falkirk on their way back to Hampden and haven’t conceded a goal to any of them, then he can’t have witnessed too much to scare him.
The goal-fest was Celtic at their most ruthless but it was unlike them this season. If they could deliver that kind of efficiency and class in front of goal for the reminder of the season then it’s conceivable they would motor on to a double.
There’ll be huge encouragement in Iheanacho’s performance, a dangerous weapon and the best tool Celtic have for the run-in. His two goals were timely, to put it mildly. Winger Maeda, for all his phenomenal work-rate, is not the centre-forward Celtic need right now.
O’Neill has many things to ponder. What an end game awaits. Five league games and one cup final, the last act against one of his greatest leaders of the past.
They shared a television gantry at the end. Laughing and joking, the mood will be a little more intense the next time they meet.
…