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In a quite forgettable game, Celtic fielded an understrength side with the Scottish Cup Final in mind. Kilmarnock won the game 1-0 but in truth, Celtic had some real chances in the game.
In 17 min Fotheringham struck a weak free kick after Mahe was fouled. Smith broke through in 25 minutes beating the offside trap, but shot early and put the ball wide. He really ought to have taken his time and advanced into the box. On the 32 min mark Killie hit the post and 4 minutes later McCoist should have scored when he was put through after Tebily lost possession, but he screwed the shot wide. Celtic took a quick corner in 40 min and Tebily had a chance but Marshall dived at his feet to save the shot. A minute later Healy was put through by McNamara but shot wide. The second half was uneventful and a nil-nil draw looked on the cards. However Maloney had a good run on 51 min and fed the ball to Mahe who was on-side on the left of the box but again the shot went wide. On 78 minutes Mahood scored for Kilmarnock. Killie's best player Giacomo went round Tebily and fed a ball into the box. Vega was between Mahood and the goal, but Mahood stuck his foot between Vega's legs and knocked the ball home. Celtic's last chance came in 83 minutes when Maloney missed after a Mahe cross. Mahe looked the best of the returning Celtic players, but Tebily demonstrated that he is not good enough with a tendency to lose the ball in vital areas.
KILMARNOCK (3-5-2): Marshall; MacPherson (Fowler 70), McGowne, Dindeleux; San Juan, Innes, Mahood, Calderon, Hay; McCoist (Cocard 48), di Giacomo (Boyd 88).
CELTIC (3-5-2): Douglas, Vega, Stubbs, Tebily; Boyd, McNamara, Fotheringham, Healy, Mahe; Smith, Maloney. |