Why Saturday Is So Vital

With an Old Firm game to come at Ibrox, and with such an impressive run of
league results, a gap of nine points would appear insurmountable. Likewise,
a victory for the Yahoos would deliver them with a huge boost at a time
where they face so many crucial matches in such a short space of time. Such
a result would also ensure the league race would go down to the wire and
would render the Ibrox old firm encounter a ninety minute heart attack
experience.

In addition, the much quoted 'psychological edge' would come into play in
the event of a decisive result at Celtic Park. Victory for either side
would see them buoyant ahead of the forthcoming CIS Cup Final. Perhaps more
important, however, is the recent evidence from occasions where the Old Firm
have clashed twice in such quick succession.

Folklore and bravado would have you believe that if one team triumphs on
Saturday then the law of averages, the spirit and determination of the
wounded team; or the cumulative effect of assorted rebels praying to the
SFA, The Pontiff and the head barman of the Brazen Head, will ensure that
the vanquished team has a good chance of victory in the next encounter.
However, on the last three instances of Rangers and Celtic clashing in such
close proximity the team victorious in the first match has also won the
second.

Way back in 1991, before Bhoys Against Bigotry and The Bunnet, Celtic
defeated Rangers twice within a week, triumphing 2-0 in the Scottish Cup and
following that up with a 3-0 victory in the league at Celtic Park. You may
well remember that Rangers had a sending off or two over the course of these
ties and, funnily enough, we played far better when losing by three goals to
nil.

Moving on to happier times, Season 97-98 witnessed two titanic clashes in
the month of April, where Scottish cup joy was found in a 2-1 East End
victory and icing placed on the cake with a 2-0 Ibrox victory garnished with
a Thern goal in a million. The most recent double header was in February
2001 where cheating and despicable refereeing conspired to send Rangers to a
3-1 League cup reversal at Hampden, a match sadly followed by another close
defeat at Celtic Park by a single goal.

Let us be under no illusions about the lengths, depths and intricacies of
rule breaking and thuggery that Celtic will conspire to in the next week or
so. Talk of the league being second priority to the Uefa Mickey Mouse Cup
is blarney of the worst kind and the separated brethren will be aware of the
recent record in double headers.

Recent history suggests that any winner on Saturday may also prevail a week
on Sunday, and although History is there to be mocked and records to be
broken, it would do no harm at all to win at Celtic Park and to carry that
confidence forward to Hampden and the first leg of what would be an unlikely
but wonderfully crafted treble.

MDC