Martin O’Neill allowed his thoughts to drift back to Celtic’s Black Sunday in May 2005 when Celtic threw away the title on the last day of the season at Fir Park…
Tonight though he gets the chance to right that particular wrong from a game that was for many who was there – including myself – a real low point in following the Hoops.
We used to be given the far corner of the main stand and I had a front row seat there to see the two late goals from Scott McDonald that gave Rangers – who were staying in their own and so were Tony Mowbray’s Hibs at Easter Road – an underserved title. Celtic though were authors of our own misfortune going into the final two games five points clear then losing them both.
By 2005 standards the Hearts lead of one point with two to play, is slender. Anything can happen and we can expect a few more highs and lows coming the way of both title hopefuls tonight and maybe on Saturday when Hearts (who could win it tonight if they win and Celtic lose) come to Celtic Park.
“It’s a different set of circumstances,” Martin O’Neill told written mainstream media yesterday afternoon at Lennoxtown, when asked about that 2-1 defeat at Fir Park on the last day of the 2004-05 season.
“It’s just ironic that it should be this. It could be all over tomorrow night if we don’t get a result. We have to win the game.”
Black Sunday hurt and the pain lingered. Tonight is a chance to put it to bed once and for all.
“So that still remains a massive disappointment to me, that game in 2005. But a different set of circumstances and this group of players wouldn’t even have heard about it,” the veteran Celtic manager said, as reported by The Herald. “I thought we should have won out of the park at the end of that day.
“We missed goal after goal. Marshall was brilliant in goal for them. I remember John Hartson headed one from about two yards, and it hit him straight in the face.
“And you got the feeling as the game was going on, there might be some sort of foreboding there. But listen, it happened. We should have won. We didn’t. It played on my mind for about 15 years, but after that I let it go.”
And as fate would have it, he’s back at Celtic this season and twice has had to drag Celtic back into contention to ultimately send him back to Fir Park to put the rest a memory that has haunted him and the Celtic support of a certain vintage for just over two decades. Martin was asked if he believes in fate?
“If it happens, yeah. I’ll say that if we get beaten at Motherwell, and that constitutes us losing [the league title], then I will never visit Fir Park again in my life. I will take a detour. I’ll go to Wishaw instead. I’ll visit the Tommy Gemmell statue!”
After a poor performance and a 2-0 defeat on a disgraceful surface at Tannadice on 22 March , Celtic looked down and out as the title looked like being a straight battle between Hearts and their big cousins. That game was followed by an international break and that turned out to be a blessing in disguise for Celtic. The squad got back together after that, re-focused on their targets and haven’t looked back since.
Martin O’Neill takes Celtic to Fir Park knowing that a win there followed by victory over Hearts on Saturday secures the title ahead of the Scottish Cup final the following weekend against Neil Lennon’s Dunfermline Athletic side.
“We were obviously down after Dundee United and had a reset after that,” the interim Celtic manager admitted. “Some of the players left for international duty, so I don’t really know what they were thinking.
“But when we came back, there was a mindset that we had to win football matches. Now, saying you have to win football matches and actually doing it are two totally different things. But there was no room for error, as it has been proved.
“We have picked up all our points since then, and we’re still behind. But there was a feeling at that stage where we believed we could still do it.”
The bookies have had Hearts favourites for most of the season. However going into the split it was the Rangers who headed the betting with Celtic third favourites. After the weekend results, with Hearts drawing at Fir Park on Saturday night and Celtic beating the Rangers 3-1 on Sunday, the bookies made Celtic the favourites to win the league, which would be an undisputed record number of 56 flags won. Celtic are really going for it.
“I don’t agree Celtic are now favourites,” Martin O’Neill said. “I don’t see it like that. I genuinely don’t see it like that at all.
“Our fixture against Motherwell now is extremely difficult. We have to win the game, and winning at Fir Park is not easy. They have something to play for, too, so it will be difficult.
“I know it seems an easy equation: we just need to win our two games. I would have taken that after we lost to Dundee United, of course. But the two games happen to be extremely difficult.”
As the finishing line is now in sight, and with a fast approaching Celtic on their shoulders heading in their final furlong of an incredible season, Martin O’Neill was asked if there’s now more pressure on Hearts than his team.
“I don’t know,” he replied. “I think you would have to ask them. That sounds like I’m almost trying to pile pressure on someone else. But we have our own pressure we have to deal with.”
Both games this evening are now on Sky Sports. It was an incredibly poor decision by the broadcaster to think that just showing the Hearts v Falkirk game was sufficient.
Thankfully they read the room, reading sites like Celtic Shorts, and quickly corrected this misjudgement. Fair play to them for that and also to Motherwell FC for issuing refunds to supporters who purchased their PPV when it was looking like the only way to watch the game for those supporters without tickets for Fir Park.
Tonight Martin O’Neill can banish Black Sunday from our minds forever. All he’s got to do is beat Motherwell. Easier said than done but this Celtic team appears to have the bit between their teeth. The momentum that’s been built up since Tannadice should be enough to get our noses in front by Saturday afternoon.
COYBIG
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1 Comment
Actually thought when the pre split fixtures were announced, that a chance of erasing that horrible memory, and so it’s finally arrived.
Has been in place for 21 years, which has remained a factor for myself, whenever the trip to fir park occurs?
It’s possibly why I might be even more nervous tonight, than what I was before the Glasgow Derby on Sunday.
Even a draw tonight, will make it a last day of the season shootout, even if there remains a number of different circumstances involved for Saturday, at this stage?
Always felt that a run of 5 straight victories, would be good enough to secure this title. That’s very much the case for ourselves now?
In fairness, we haven’t really looked like a team of achieving the likes, for the best part of this season, but last Sunday, we seen a renewed confidence within our play, that’s been absent for very long periods this season imo?
We are starting to look like a proper 90 minute team recently, and that will be required especially in our next 2 SPFL matches.
We are starting to get far more, than just the very small handful of players, getting to there own personal capabilities levels, which helps enormously in team performances. That may have been a huge issue, throughout this season, were consistency factors were in operation on a huge scale.
But at least, we have managed to stay in this fight, with getting more consistency in the winning results.
All will have to be applied to ourselves, especially tonight, and still believe that this current team/squad have enough about them to achieve the likes tonight?
Even a winning result tonight, won’t secure any league title regardless.
So would be more than happy to settle for erasing the 21 year old horrible memory finally imo?