Late, late show sinks Celtic
In an absorbing afternoon in Govan, Hoops skipper Scott Brown was controversially shown a straight red card by referee Dougie McDonald in the 65th minute after wrestling with Kyle Lafferty but it looked like the visitors would see the game out.
However, in the final seconds of the three added minutes, Edu, on earlier for Lee McCulloch, bundled the ball over the line following a goalmouth scramble to take Walter Smith’s side 10 points clear with a game in hand.
“We have to keep going and try win every game,” the Celtic boss said.
“But it’s fair to say it’s there for Rangers to lose. However, strange things have happened in football.
“But we are all sensible enough to know we need Rangers to slip up along the way.
“I thought we would see the game out but it wasn’t to be. We have been there before this season. A corner kick in the last minute of injury time, and the last opportunity and we lose a goal. Maybe that’s the youthfulness of the defensive unit but a lot of credit to them, they stuck to their task after the sending off.”
Mowbray had not seen the Brown dismissal again on TV but claimed plenty in the Celtic dressing room believed there are grounds for appeal: “They thought it was a very harsh decision.”
And last night Celtic confirmed they will appeal the red card decision.
Mowbray also denied he would have to exert a calming influence on Brown, whom he recently made his captain. He said: “I’m not there to change Scott from the combative footballer he is, that’s what makes him the player he is. He hasn’t a case to answer with me.”
Mowbray tried hard to refrain from criticising referee McDonald, who had been under added pressure from the Parkhead camp who let it be known earlier in the week that they were aggrieved at decisions which they believed had gone against them this season – including in the two previous games against Rangers.
McDonald booked Rangers defender Madjid Bougherra and Hoops striker Marc-Antoine Fortune early in the game and then ruled out a goal by Edu for handball by his Ibrox team mate Kenny Miller.
However, asked if Bougherra was perhaps fortunate to escape further punishment after subsequently committing several more fouls, the Celtic boss said: “I don’t want to comment, I will get into trouble but the referee gave himself a difficult job with early bookings.
“There was a sense early on that the game wasn’t going to finish with 22 players on the field but maybe that was his tactic, to stamp his authority on the game but I think he gave himself a few problems.”
Mowbray revealed that teenage stopper Thomas Rogne, making his Old Firm debut, sustained a hamstring injury which caused him to be replaced by Darren O’Dea.
Rangers boss Walter Smith accused the unnamed Celtic source who this week revealed the club’s unhappiness with the performance of referees of putting unnecessary pressure on McDonald. He called for the club to be open about any grievances with officials rather than hiding behind anonymous leaks.
“I thought the referee handled the game very well today,” said Smith. “It was an unfair circumstance he was placed in this week. The Old Firm games are always awkward, everybody comes under scrutiny. But it would be nice, if somebody was going to criticise the referee, that they come out of the closet and do it rather than do it in an anonymous manner.”
Smith added: “I’ll need to do an Arsene Wenger on the red card because I missed our goal that was disallowed and I missed the ordering-off as well.”
RANGERS: McGregor, Whittaker, Bougherra, Weir, Papac, Davis, McCulloch (Edu 26), Thomson, Lafferty (Novo 70), Miller, Boyd.
Subs Not Used: Alexander, Beasley, Fleck, Little, Wilson.
CELTIC: Boruc, Hinkel, Thompson, Rogne (O’Dea 31), Braafheid, Kamara, N’Guemo, Brown, McGeady (Samaras 61), Keane, Fortune (Ki 68).
Subs Not Used: Zaluska, Wilson, Rasmussen, Zhi. Sent Off: Brown (66).
Referee: D McDonald (Scotland).
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