fixture at New Broomfield, losing out to the sheer
physical strength and brute force of Celtic.
It was a game where the skill and class of the Light
Blues was nullified in part by a lack of protection
from the referee and in part by the heavy going.
Conditions were difficult to say the least – a dreich
night of sweeping rain – but the Light Blue legions
were out in greater force than their opposite numbers,
despite this being Celtic’s home game.
Celtic’s Under-21 Side, much the more experienced, was
very much a mirror of their first-team, with emphasis
at the back on height, weight and brawn rather than
skill, the rest on work-rate rather than football
ability.
Rangers might have taken an early lead when a Tom
Brighton cross found Chris Burke whose net-bound shot
was blocked in four minutes.
Graeme Smith had to be alert seven minutes later,
holding a 25-yard free-kick from Stephen Crainey.
The opening goal was merely delayed however – Craig
Beattie netting the rebound after Graeme Smith had
made a good save from a twenty-yard Jamie Smith drive.
Referee William Collum clearly believed that he was
only allowed to book Rangers players – having earlier
yellow-carded Billy Gibson for a foul on Ross Wallace
he did likewise with Daniel Fortunato for a wholly
innocuous challenge on the same player.
Celtic’s heavier pack were finding the heavy
conditions to their advantage – Wallace’s left-foot
shot from a Beattie pass being touched wide by Smith
on the half-hour.
The second goal was merely delayed however – four
minutes later a Beattie shot produced a superb
point-blank save by Graeme Smith, only for hesitance
on the part of his teammate Steven Smith to present
Wallace with the opportunity to knock the ball home.
Rangers were up against it – yet reduced the deficit
in 37 minutes when clever work by Chris Burke wide on
the right created an opening – his cutback being
rifled into the net by Bob Davidson.
The Ibrox youngsters made two changes at the interval,
with Darryl Duffy and Charlie Adam replacing Tom
Brighton and Alex Walker.
It was the Light Blues who had very much the upper
hand following the restart – Chris Burke’s volley from
a Billy Gibson chip being blocked by goalkeeper David
Marshall in 51 minutes.
The referee at last took action against Celtic for
their physical approach, yellow-carding both Ulrik
Laursen and Steven Jack in quick succession – although
the latter could consider himself fortunate to stay on
the park following a quite dreadful tackle on Charlie
Adam.
It was all Rangers at this stage – yet on the
counter-attack Smith had to be alert to turn wide a
Beattie drive on the hour.
Conditions were deteriorating rapidly – and played a
key part in Celtic’s decisive third goal when Gary
McKenzie’s slip allowed Wallace space on the left, his
cutback finding Bryan Prunty who had the easiest of
tasks to net in 64 minutes.
The Referee’s appalling decision to yellow-card
Fortunato in the first-half came back to haunt the
Italian in 75 minutes when he clashed with Stephen
McManus. Both players received yellow cards, but for
the Ranger it was the end of the game.
With a numerical disadvantage and a two-goal deficit
there was no way back.
CELTIC Marshall (McGovern 75); Jack, Crainey; Smith,
Laursen (Low 62), McManus; Guppy, McBride, Beattie,
Prunty (Arbuckle 87), Wallace
UNUSED SUBS Lawson, Irvine
RANGERS G. Smith; Hutton, S. Smith; McKenzie, McLeod,
W. Gibson; Burke, Walker (C. Adam 45), Davidson
(McCormack 71), Fortunato, Brighton (Duffy 45)
UNUSED SUBS Kalenga, Trialist