All ifs and buts at the moment

The FA Cup down south managed to get all four of its quarter final ties played with a winner at the first time of asking but this wasn’t the case up here.

Three draws and one postponement means the semi-final draw is looking rather full with all 8 quarter finalists still having genuine hopes of reaching Hampden.

The draw is:

Dundee United or Motherwell v Brechin City or St Johnstone

St Mirren or Aberdeen v Inverness Caldeonian Thistle or Celtic

The ties are scheduled to be played the weekend of 16th and 17th of April.

Aberdeen left it late in Paisley where St Mirren yet again lost a late goal in the 1-1 draw.

Plucky Brechin grabbed the lead but then hauled back a 2-1 deficit against St Johnstone to leave that tie at 2-2.

Dundee United and Motherwell served up a great treat at Tannadice with the holders pulling back from a goal behind on two occasions to create another 2-2 draw.

And of course, a waterlogged pitch prevented Caley and Celtic locking horns with that match scheduled for Wednesday night.

It is a farce that the Celtic v Hibs game on Wednesday has been postponed to allow this tie to be re-scheduled at short notice but that’s the rules of the cup taking precedence. However, with Sky not planning to show the re-arranged game and the money going into the pot as opposed to being split between the two sides, how hard will Caley work at making the pitch playable….

The St Johnstone v Brechin replay will be televised live on Sky on 22nd of March, giving the broadcaster some football to show in the build up to the international fixtures.

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Rangers implode through a lack of discipline

Another crazy night in Glasgow and a game where Celtic’s match-winning full-back Mark Wilson managed more shots on target in one passage of play than Rangers managed all night.

The talk will be of the scuffles, the red cards and the controversy but Celtic were clear winners on an evening when Rangers offered little but aggression. If a Rangers fan had been at the two Cup games, they would have spent close to £80 on match tickets alone and apart from a thrilling opening ten minutes of the first game, the Ibrox side offered very little in these games.

In the early stages, the Rangers 5-4-1 seemed to puzzle Celtic, who had plenty of the ball but couldn’t quite work out the best way to unlock that defence. At this point, the Rangers fans and backroom staff were probably confident in their game plan, which had worked in Europe on numerous occasions.

Then Steven Whittaker threw it all into disarray. His first booking may not have merited a yellow card for the challenge alone but the fact that he had committed a number of fouls by this point, which ref Calum Murray pointed out, meant it was a justified yellow card. Compare and contrast to Scott Brown’s booking for the collision with Davie Weir and it’s obvious that Whittaker has little to complain about.

The thing is, for all that Scott Brown is labelled as being ‘not quite right’, he knows if you are on a booking in this game that you cannot fly into challenges in a reckless manner. Whittaker did and picked up a stupid second yellow, sending him off and giving Celtic the initiative.

There was quite a delay in getting the game started with El Hadji Diouf getting involved, allegedly barging the Celtic physio and then remonstrating with the Celtic bench, who gave him the reaction he craved.

Celtic nearly scored immediately when Samaras capitalised on a poor backpass but Alan McGregor saved and it headed to half-time goal-less. More scuffles followed on the way to the tunnel.

Celtic started brightly and they grabbed the goal that was to prove to be decisive. Izaguirre now had the freedom of the left hand side and again in this Cup round, fired a cross in which reached Mark Wilson. The full-back fired a thunderous shot towards goal which Sasa Papac bravely blocked. The ball bounced off Weir and fell back to Wilson who sclaffed the shot into the ground, where it bounced and spun over McGregor and beyond Bougherra into the net.

Given the tremendous shot he had just hit previously, the second one was a tame effort from Wilson but that doesn’t matter when it goes in.

Hopefully Sasa Papac will recover from the blow he took in keeping the first effort out, it was quite a powerful shot. There was a lengthy period of stoppage time to ensure the defender, who had not descended into the madness like many on the park, was okay and then strapped in securely before being escorted off the pitch.

Rangers could have equalised at the re-start when a Mulgrew header looped over Zaluska but the Polish stopper managed to double-back on himself and stop the ball before it cross the line. El Hadji Diouf tried to shove the keeper over the line but it was a fairly half-hearted attempted.

From there, Celtic kept possession well and drew foul after foul from Rangers. Bougherra was booked for a brutal foul on Gary Hooper, the Algerian stopper was late and made sure his studs went firmly into the back of Hooper’s legs.

The English striker was lucky he was not severely injured and Bougherra was lucky it wasn’t a straight red card. Bougherra had been at the centre of some controversial moments, most notably when he put his hands on Murray to stop him flashing a red card at Whittaker but this was not to be his last act of petulance.

In the dying moments, just after Diouf hit a tame free-kick straight at Zaluska to give Rangers their first effort on target, a ball up the touchline saw Hooper and Bougherra give chase with the Algerian launching himself at the ball. He got the ball but was off the ground and took a lot of the man.

That is a bookable offence but again, the stopper tried to prevent Murray from flashing the inevitable red card. It had been a night of indiscipline from Rangers but given the pre-match threats made by Kyle Bartley, it was obviously something Rangers were planning to do.

It is one thing to go head to head and toe to toe with the opposition but there needs to be a calmness and reason in your actions, this is something too many Rangers players lacked. Even the normally mild mannered Davis showed moments of madness with late reckless challenges and notable dissent.

That should have been it but Diouf needed his name in the morning papers and set off on a crusade to get himself sent off. As the Celtic fans and players celebrated, the Senegalese player harangued the ref, applauded him and gave him verbals.

Calum Murray did his best to avoid sending the striker, no doubt the ref was aware of the insanity of the night but Diouf was not taking no for an answer. Red card duly received, he trotted off to the Rangers end to throw his top and under-garment into the crowd. The Rangers end roared their approval of this act but you wonder how many would have preferred if the player was noted for impacting on the football game as opposed to the ancillary stuff.

As for the McCoist and Lennon spat – until you know what was said by McCoist that caused Lennon to react, you can only criticise both parties. It is obvious that Lennon remains public enemy number 1 and will be slated by the media but McCoist, usually seen as the cheeky chappie the media love, was equally to blame and if any team had a complete lack of indiscipline, it wasn’t Lennon’s side.

As usual though, too many people are blinded with so much hatred of Lennon that they are unable to see anything remotely close to the truth with him or look at both sides. Lennon should be criticised for reacting, let’s not be unclear about that, as the victor Lennon should have risen above it but you have to wonder what he reacted to.

So there you go, it’s been a long time since a big fight night gathered so much of a crowd in Glasgow. In case you missed it, there was a bit of a football game in there which Celtic won 1-0 and progressed to the quarter final of the Scottish Cup.

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Dandy Dons leave it late to book their place

Well, that’s a Scottish Cup day and a half. The big two clashed in Glasgow giving you so much to talk about and then its Aberdeen v Dunermline.

It wasn’t much of a game to look at but with an injury time own goal separating the teams, that’s the beauty and the agony of the Cup right there. Aberdeen will now be fancying a return trip to Glasgow and taking the opportunity to lay to rest the nightmare of their League Cup semi-final showing. To do so, they will need to overcome St Mirren in the quarter-finals.

The Scottish Cup quarter final draw is:

Dundee United v Motherwell

Brechin City v St Johnstone or Partick
10 teams still left in the cup and at the moment, every one of them should be thinking that they have a good chance of reaching the semi-final.

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There’s only one biggest show on earth

By the end of this season, Celtic and Rangers will have clashed 7 times which let’s be honest, is far too much. However, if the remaining matches are as pulsating as the one we had today, strap yourself in for a feast of football.

Celtic were the victors at Ibrox when these clubs last met but Rangers started brightly in that game. They did so again today but the difference was they grabbed the goal their brisk start merited. Jamie Ness had space at the edge of the box when a corner was knocked down to him but he arrowed it into the back of the net with the minimum of fuss. There has been a lot written about Ness of late but he is worthy of the column inches that will be coming his in the next few days.

Rangers were attempting to blow Celtic out of the water and when Davis smashed the ball off the underside of the bar it was looking like there was only one team in the park. However, much like the game last month, Celtic started edging back into it.

Celtic had went close with a couple of chances but it was a deflection that allowed Joe Ledley to grab his second assist at Ibrox as he fed in Kris Commons. Up until Celtic showed an interest in the Scottish internationalist Rangers fans were full of praise for Common’s talents and their judgment was proved right when he swept home the equaliser.

The game seemed to change just before half-time when Naismith was taken down by Celtic keeper Fraser Forster with the inevitable red card shown to the goalie. You have to say that with the way football is these days, it was the right decision. Much like Celtic benefited in midweek, they suffered today, so there shouldn’t be too many complaints about the red card. The striker made the most of it and ensured he would be hit by the keeper but that’s what you do these days.

It does show the nature of football though, there were some brutal challenges in the game, players being taken out of play from behind and very late but the red cards were dished out for technical rules as opposed to harming an opponent. That is football though and the man in the middle had as good a game as you could hope for in these matches.

Stephen Whittaker swept the ball past Lukas Zaluska and with a 2-1 lead at half-time over 10 men; you sensed the Rangers crowd were considering it was job done. That wasn’t quite how it panned out.

It was no surprise to see Rangers sit back and give Celtic possession but the way Celtic moved the ball to create the space was extremely clever and with El Hadji Diouff offering no support to his full back, Mark Wilson was continually running into dangerous positions. On the ball Diouf was very quick-footed and bright but he will need to offer more to his team-mates in this sort of game.

The game was levelled again when Wilson controlled a cross in the box and fed Scott Brown who curled a superb shot into the corner of the net and the Broomloan Road end erupted. Brown had a brief staring contest with Diouff, which earned Brown a booking (again a right decision in the laws and spirit of the game but weak when compared to some of the challenges) and the Cup tie was really up for grabs.

Rangers came close with a couple of balls fizzed across the box that were just out of reach of onrushing players, with Davis being particularly unlucky not to grab a third for Rangers. Celtic were denied with a last-gasp block by Bougherra and then McGregor was in the right place at the right time to deny Samaras….although the keeper didn’t know too much about it – it’ll be rightly regarded as a great stop though.

The numerical advantage that Rangers held was wiped out when Steven Naismith received a second yellow for diving. You could argue that after a dive in the first half and then a crude challenge after his booking that Naismith could have been off before then but he gave the ref no option to send him off. It certainly wasn’t the first time this season the Ayrshire striker went down without any contact and it was very foolish play in believing that Charlie Mulgrew would follow through with his challenge.

There was still time for more controversy when Giorgios Samaras was incorrectly flagged offside when he bore down on goal and Sasa Papac has the same assistant referee to thank for not seeing his sly kick at Charlie Mulgrew when the two were tussling over the ball as Celtic were preparing a strike from the edge of the box.

The last ten minutes were scrappy but the two teams must have been knackered after a day of hard work and effort.

Two red cards, two brilliant goals and 2-2 at Ibrox. The two teams will meet again at Celtic Park this month in the league before the replay is played at the beginning of March.

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Late Win and Cup Misery For City Rivals

We may as well cut to the chase for Hearts fans and let them gloat about Hibs being dumped out of the Scottish Cup by Ayr United. Most people would sit back and say to Hearts fans, “You guys went out of the Cup last week, what are you laughing at?” However, that’s not how football works!

We must now be at the stage where there is nearly no one left who was alive when Hibs last won the Scottish Cup and for that reason alone, Hearts fans will be chortling for weeks ahead. We are not quite at the stage where there is no one left but we are not too sure if Eunice Sanborn, born in Louisiana in 1896 has too many memories of that match, the ESPN coverage was quite patchy back in the day! Anyways, Hearts fans are happy and they will also be able to add another number onto their songs of joy.

There was also joy for Hearts fans when they grabbed a late winner against Kilmarnock, keeping the Gorgie side firmly ensconced as the third force in Scottish football. It didn’t look good for the Jambos when the home side took the lead before twenty minutes. Rui Miguel opened the scoring but the rest of the night was to be about Stephen Elliot.

The striker was a replacement for the ineffective Novikovas and he grabbed the equaliser on 72 minutes. More was to come from the striker when Killie keeper Cammy Bell blundered, allowing Elliot’s shot to squirm home and give the visitors the lead.

You get the impression some Hearts fans may be delaying their journey home from Rugby Park in order to let their Leith chums catch them up on the roads back to Edinburgh. After all, the Gorgie supporters at least have a tilt at the top to look forward to, all Hibs fans have left is a relegation dogfight.

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All the madness comes on the Sunday

In a move that has come as no surprise to anyone, the Rangers v Celtic 5th round Scottish Cup tie will take place on Sunday 6th February with a 1215 kick-off.

The fact that the big two are facing each other took some by surprise yesterday but the tie has captured the imagination of Scottish football already. Even with a 6 match ban handed to Neil Lennon, Terry Butcher raging at fixture changes, Hearts being dumped out of the Cup and a third Celtic player being the intended target for bullets in the post…this Cup tie is still the main news story in Scottish football today.

The reasons for the early kick-off time have been debated over and over but if one team is triumphant in this tie, it gives their fans a long time to celebrate for the rest of the day. Then again, a victory in these games can often lead to a week’s worth of celebrations.

No announcement has been made about the game being televised yet but that is only a matter of time with Sky and BBC waiting in the wings. Whoever has first pick (we assume its Sky but can’t say for definite) will have this game on live.

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Tynecastle triumph comes against the odds

Ever since the Cup draw this afternoon paired Rangers and Celtic together at Ibrox, Hearts fans have had Hampden on their mind. After all, the Jambos appear to be best of the rest by a good distance and would fancy their chances against whatever of the big two made it through from the 5th round.

And as so often happens in football, you take your eye off the task at hand and you get punished.
Tynecastle was stunned when Peter McDonald was fed by Steve May and the Glaswegian striker fired home to put the Perth side in the lead. St Johnstone have been playing well of late but the form book was indicating that the Edinburgh side were the more likely to win at Tynecastle.

A game of few chances on targets meant that one goal was always likely to be the winner and McDonald’s strike put St Johnstone into the 5th round.

At this moment, St Johnstone do not know who their opponents are going to be but Falkirk currently have a 2-1 lead over Partick Thistle with 8 minutes to go at Brockville. If the home team sees it out, Steven Pressley will bring the Bairns to McDiarmid Park. EDIT: And yes…that’s the beauty of football, Partick grab an equaliser with 4 minutes to go – as it stands, St Johnstone will have to wait to see who their opponents are.

A fantastic win for St Johnstone against the odds and for once in the Scottish Cup, Hibs fans will be able to point to their Jambo colleagues in the morning and have a right good chuckle to themselves.

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Easy stroll at Ibrox sets up next round mega clash

Rangers bounced back from their New Year defeat to Celtic by comprehensively trouncing Kilmarnock at Ibrox last night but the reward is another clash with their city rivals.

From the first whistle, Rangers displayed a far greater hunger than their Ayshire opponents and it was no surprise when Lee McCulloch opened the scoring with a great finish.

Kyle Lafferty pulled out an arguably better strike for the second goal and Rangers were on easy street. A lot of the Rangers pressing and tackling, particularly that on Alexei Eremenko, looked fairly robust but Kilmarnock had no answer to the combative style of Rangers play.

A second half penalty put a fair complexion on the score-line and allowed the small crowd to troop home soaked but happy with the evening’s work.

Rangers reward for defeating Kilmarnock 3-0 comes in the shape of a tie against Celtic. The match sees Rangers at home against their bitter rivals as they bid to get back to winning ways in the Scottish Cup. Their progress last season was thwarted by eventual winners Dundee United and Walter Smith will be keen to have his last match in charge of Rangers take place at Hampden.

Neil Lennon will also be desperate to get his hands on silverware this season. Celtic are currently at the top of the SPL so that will remain their prime concern but the Scottish Cup is always a tournament worth having. Celtic will also want to banish the memories of Hampden last April as quickly as possible.

As you can see, the 2-0 victory for Celtic over Berwick Rangers has seen the Glasgow side rewarded with a draw against the bigger Rangers in what is already the tie of the round.

The fifth round ties of the Scottish Cup are scheduled to take place the weekend of the 5th and 6th of February. Of course, by the time the BBC and Sky get their hands on the fixtures who knows when the games will actually be played…

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Manager ‘honoured’ to be given the chance to lead next season

Football clubs should always look forward but every now and again, it doesn’t hurt to look back.

Dundee United fans will forever fondly look back on Saturday the 15th of May and their Scottish Cup triumph but there was some darker moments in the season.

Who can forget that bleak night at Ibrox when United were trounced 7-1 at Ibrox and Peter Houston felt out of his depth in managing the club. There was a feeling that perhaps his role as assistant to Craig Levein saw him too close to the players, making it difficult to become the main man at the club.

It wasn’t a fun night for the Tangerines but some of the Arabs can probably look back and laugh now.

If someone had told you that night that United would go all the way to Hampden victory, knocking Rangers out along the way, they would have been considered certifiable.

It just goes to show that football can throw surprises at you at any time.

Peter Houston has been offered the permanent managers job at Tannadice and it appears that Peter Houston is all set to accept. And why not, the manager has picked up a piece of silverware and is one round away from making the Europa League group stages.

There is still a lot of doubt about the financial security for United but the events of the past week will have made it a big easier to get players in or keep players on board.

This has been immediately borne out by the fact that United have announced Scott Robertson and Keith Watson have signed contract extensions with the club. There will be bids this summer for some of United’s Hampden heroes and it is probably inevitable that United will lose one or two players.

Then again, any youngster or rising player with a sense of ambition will view United as a great place to play football and perhaps move onto even bigger and better things. This may sound a bit callous but if United can get some hungry and exciting talent on board, the club can be all set for a period of entertaining times…and hopefully an extended European vacation!

What players do you think Peter Houston will be keen to keep a hold of?

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Play-off round draw on August 6th

Winning the Scottish Cup is reason alone to celebrate but another reason for partying for those of a United persuasion is the European involvement that comes with it. Dundee United secured third place in the league so their European spot was secured but the 3-0 win sees them enter the Europa League at the Play-off round.

The draw for the Europa League qualifying round takes place on Friday the 6th of August.

There are 24 teams directly entering the Europa League at this stage and some of other clubs joining Dundee United include Manchester City, Aston Villa, Napoli, PSV Eindhoven, Bayer Leverkusen and Borussia Dortmund.

United will be hoping to progress to the group stages but a match against one of these teams would be brilliant for the club.

The other teams in the Europa League play-off come from the previous Europa League qualifying round, with 24 sides progressing from there and 15 teams dropping in from the Champions League qualifiers.

United will no doubt be hoping for one of the teams that have progressed from the Europa League route but even one of these ties could be a tricky proposition for United.

That is something for United’s backroom staff and fans to worry about after summer…not for now!

Congratulations to Dundee United – Scottish Cup winners 2009/10

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