Scottish Leagues 2001/02

[Guinness]

Fook it

Prods/taigs really who the fcuk really cares anyway??? (except the nut jobs back home)... However, Windsor Park is the best Noriorn would have to offer... I was there last year and it is finally enclosed all around!!! I believe it holds up to 25,000 now shite, Vancouver could use a stadium of that size... minus the dinky gravel track around it of course...


Peace keeper, Guinness

 

[Captain Shamrock]

Celtic manager Martin O'Neill is facing massive selection problems for their clash with Dundee United at Parkhead.

The defending champions need just three wins to retain their title but will be without suspended trio John Hartson, Bobo Balde and Alan Thompson.

Defender Joos Valgaeren is recovering from a hernia operation, while striker Chris Sutton is still not ready to return after an ankle injury.

Veteran Tom Boyd is set to step into the defence, and young Stephen Crainey should continue after his impressive display in the draw with Rangers.

Lubo Moravcik or Shaun Maloney will partner Henrik Larsson in attack.

Jamie McCunnie is set to return for Dundee United at right-back against Celtic.

Stuart Duff will be pushed into midfield, while Derek Lilley is available again following his two-match suspension.

Jim Paterson will be on the bench after recovering from an ankle operation.




HOWEVER, the League Champions, who are now TWO games away from repeating, prevailed 1 - 0



Celtic 1 Dundee United 0


Captain

 

[Guinness]

CIS Cup Final

Rangers 4 Ayr United 0
Goals by Ferguson, Flo and Caniggia (2).
WE ARE THE CHAMPIONS!!!

 

[Rangerforever]

Ah yesssssssssssss

50% of our way to the double cup run done.


I'll bet Baz and the lads are enjoying double cups tonight courtesy of the young lassies of Glasgow.

 

[Jinky]

Congratulations.

 

[Captain Shamrock]

Congratulations on an outstanding victory.............'

 

[Rangerforever]

The Tics

OK, I'll state the obvious.
We (The Huns) are being set up to cough up words when the inevitable happens.

However, your warm words of support give comfort.

Cheers.

 

[Guinness]

Shuuuuu...

RF be afraid, be very afraid

 

[Buckfast]

Like Berti already

Ferguson and Lambert 'best of British'
By Brian Scott

Berti Vogts yesterday hailed Paul Lambert and Barry Ferguson 'The Best of British' as he unveiled his first Scotland squad.

And he urged the Rangers player not to miss out on next week's friendly against World and European champions France because of injury.

'We have a very good midfield here in Scotland, maybe it is the best in Britain,' Vogts said of the Old Firm pair after naming them in a squad which included three teenagers for the Stade de France next Wednesday.


Gotta love Berti having the balls to call in the teenagers for his first match against the World & European Champions.

Berti is the shot in the arm that Scottish Football needed and may produce Scottish players that can compete for first team places in the Auld Firm.

Sad that it took a Kraut though. My Pappy would be turnin'.

 

[Rangerforever]

Lambert

Ya gotta like the fact he's back in the side.

Him and Baz in the midfield is very sweet indeed.

Now all we need is the Euro venue and we're in.

 

[Rangerforever]

Berti

I swear to God I can feel points portruding out of 4 perfect corners of my heed.

 

[Captain Shamrock]

One more, right Jinky?

Final score Fir Park

Motherwell 0 - 4 Celtic

Paul Lambert (10)
Henrik Larsson (53)
Henrik Larsson (pen 61)
Johan Mjallby (78)


Jinky, will you be attending the league clinching victory on Saturday? I will definitely be attending. Who will the Bhoys be beating on to clinch the title?


Captain

 

[JAGS]

Old Firm Game Last Week

Jinky + Captain,

Just back from Scotland on Sunday and was able to take the Old Firm game in live at Ibrox last Sunday. Not a bad game with a cracker from Numan, but nothing beat the atmosphere. We were 5 rows up from the field just bordering the group of 'Tic supporters. Only thing between us was a few of Strathclyde's Finest. Took a bunch of shots on the digital that hopefully I have enough Techno (not the music) to post. I was always impressed with Larsson on the Tele, but a different class live.

Also took in the Hibs v. Hearts game on Saturday. Another good match with a lot of emotion. Canada's wonderboy Kevin McKenna of Hearts played up front and looked like he would fit in better with TugBoat Annies. What an embarassment. A lot of solid SPL tackles = cleats up and about knee level. Again, nothing beat the atmosphere and there were only about 15,000 fans. I tried to get the crowd going with Oogie Oogie Oogie, but no takers or they hadn't heard the song.

Two other matches taken in on the quick tour. Bayern v. Man Utd. at Old Trafford. Not a great game, but again the pre-match build-up, the atmosphere and the post match were excellent. Saw a Munich fan get the shite kicked out of him when he started to sing in a bar after the match. Not recommended etiquette I assumed in another country. Other match was Falkirk v. Raith Rovers. Good solid Scottish 1st Div. match with the heart and emotion that you would expect.

Now I'm waiting for Partick Thistle v. Celtic in the Tennents Scottish Cup Final. Go on you JAGS!!

Yours in UK Football,

JR

 

[Jinky]

Captain,

the only way the hoops will be celebrating winning the league this Saturday will be if Rangers lose to Killie tommorrow night.

Celtic play Ayr Utd in the Scottish Cup semi final this weekend,
I believe that Scotland play France the week after.

April 6th at Paradise versus Livingstone should be party time.

And before I forget,

3...2...1

 

[Captain Shamrock]

Thanks, Jinky.....

Will you be going to watch the game this weekend? If so, I am DEFINITELY in.......Let me know......

Captain

 

[Guinness]

Jinky

Originally posted by Jinky

April 6th at Paradise versus Livingstone should be party time.

Why are Celtic playing out of Ibrox???

 

[Rangerforever]

He's blue!
He's white!
He's a Tim,
but he's alright!

Neil McCann.....Neil McCann......

Gers 5 - Killy 0

Celebrations have to wait another week Bhoys.

 

[Jinky]

I just saw Lambert's opener against Motherwell from Wednesday and it was simply the best goal I've seen this year in any league.

ps, Guinness,

Ibrox is affectionately known as Castle Greyskull.

 

[Captain Shamrock]

Celtic 3 Ayr 0


Ayr actually outplayed Celtic. James Grady was man of the match. He will look very good in the Hoops next year. He took the piss out of Rangers last week, apparently, and made Bodo Balde look very average today. Ayr were very unlucky not to lead at half-time. Celtic dominated the first 5 minutes of the second half and scored their first goal. Thompson scored a cracker of a free-kick later in the half after Ayr were unlcky not to tie it up when Grady's shot hit the bar from short range. Rangers will have a hard time on the Hampden surface. It was fcuking shocking and it really affected Celtic's play. Anyway, we're on to our 50th Cup final and I am sure it will be another victory over Partick Thistle.........



Celtic booked their 50th Scottish Cup Final appearance at Hampden last night with a 3-0 victory over plucky First Division Ayr United.
But while the margin of the Cup holders' victory suggests that it was little more than a stroll in the park for Martin O'Neill's side, that was far from the case.

Gordon Dalziel's team had clearly kept their eyes on a potentially massive prize of a third Hampden trip in a season following their equally brave performance against Rangers in the CIS Cup Final.

Just as they had done against the other half of the Old Firm last Sunday, the gallant Somerset Park side refused to capitulate. They held out a few minutes longer than they had against Alex McLeish's Ibrox side, losing the opener to Henrik Larsson's strike in 49 minutes.

The writing was on the wall once the Swede had put Celtic in front, although it was late in the game before Celtic tied up the victory with a double from substitute Alan Thompson.

Thompson, who replaced the injured Steve Guppy after 28 minutes, struck in the 81st and 87th minutes to put the tie far beyond Ayr's reach.

So, for the second time in a week, Ayr and their loyal fans left the national stadium heartbroken. History will record that they lost seven goals in successive appearances to the Old Firm, the truth is they deserved better.

As against Rangers, Ayr simply ran out of steam in the end and that more than anything accounted for their downfall by a heavier margin than was justified.

Now the stage is set for yet another Old Firm Scottish Cup Final in May if Rangers, as expected, dispose of other First Division opposition today in the shape of Partick Thistle.

It will constitute a major upset if Thistle succeed in beating their illustrious rivals and thus end Rangers' hopes of securing a cup double. But while Rangers are anticipating another difficult 90 minutes, hopes are high in the Ibrox camp that they will be able to remove this latest obstacle from their path.

Meanwhile, the fans of Ayr United, who descended on Glasgow in their thousands on successive weekends - but were faced by a half-empty stadium yesterday - can feel rightly proud of their team's achievement in reaching one final and the semi-final of the other national cup competition.

Even O'Neill felt a need to lavish praise on their efforts. O'Neill said: 'We knew it would be a difficult game and all the accolades must go to Ayr United who were magnificent. They didn't deserve to be beaten 3-0 and they might not have deserved to lose four to Rangers last week.

'After we scored, Ayr had their best period of the game and they were unlucky to not equalise and at 1-1 it would have been a different game again. They hit the crossbar and Rab Douglas made a great save and then it took two great goals for us to win the game.'

Rival manager Dalziel said: 'We did not deserve to lose 3-0 because we bossed the second half. The players were dying to get back out for the second half and we played some great football. We pressurised Celtic and had a wee go at goal.

'I'm so proud of my players because we were playing against a class side and didn't let anyone down at all.

'Our performances against SPL clubs in the Cup this season have been fantastic and the players deserve an awful lot of praise. People might think that a 3-0 defeat has taken the gloss off this game for me but that's not the case at all.

'Now we'll enjoy the rest of the weekend and then start preparing for another big game on Tuesday - against Arbroath.'


Captain

 

[Captain Shamrock]

Ghod after the first goal.......

What a beauty!