Keane and Dublin in race to win medals

Celtic’s elder statesmen Roy Keane and Dion Dublin are struggling to make enough appearances to guarantee themselves Bank of Scotland Premier League championship-winning medals.

SPL rules state players need to have figured in 10 matches to make sure of a title gong, although they will look at any special case submitted by the Parkhead giants.

But the former Manchester United duo are the players most likely to miss out with six games remaining.

Keane, who has a Champions League and every major domestic medal from England, has only just started jogging again after another hamstring injury and he is four matches short of reaching the required number to automatically land one.

Dublin, who is two years older than his 34-year-old team-mate, also notched his sixth appearance last night in the 1-0 victory over Hearts and might have a better chance of getting another four games if he too can steer clear of injury.

An SPL spokesman said: “Ten games would take a player over the 25% games-a-season threshold we have set in the rules.

“If the club wants to apply to provide medals for a player outwith that for special circumstances then they will apply to the SPL.

“The success of that will depend on the case. After the season is finished we will sit down and discuss that case.”

The SPL will announce the post-split fixtures over the weekend and then decide when Celtic will be presented with the silverware.

The spokesman added: “First of all the fixtures need to be decided.

“But once they are made public over the weekend then we will be announcing plans for a presentation after that.

“That wasn’t being looked at until Celtic clinched the championship last night.”