Controversial Refereeing Allows Rangers To Keep Pace

The Bhoys Stay On Track With 2-0 Win Over Hibs

By Tony Quinn

Celtic beat Hibs 2-0 on Sunday with a goal in each half from Stephen McManus and Scott McDonald to restore their four-point lead over Rangers in the SPL. They have one away game left in the title chase against Dundee Utd while Rangers have three away games remaining. Hibs had Martin Canning and Ian Murray red carded in the final seven minutes. Defeat also cost Hibs their last chance for a UEFA Cup place. Stephen McManus powered in a header from a cross by Shunsuke Nakamura in the 37th minute. Canning was dismissed in the 83rd minute and McDonald headed Celtic's second four minutes later from close range. Murray, booked earlier, was sent off four minutes into stoppage time for a second yellow card.

After the game Gordon Strachan said. "That was a terrific game. Hibs were after the points they needed to get to third and we were after the points to keep the League going, so it made for a smashing game of football. I thought we deserved it because we created more chances. Sometimes you're unlucky, as we proved this year that you can make a lot of chances and not be that lucky. Paul Hartley and Gary Caldwell were the best men on the pitch."

After the Rangers game against Dundee Utd on Saturday, Utd manager Craig Levein launched an attack on referee Mike McCurry and claimed Rangers were protected after watching his side lose 3-1 at Ibrox. Utd could have had a penalty in the 54th minute, when Rangers defender David Weir appeared to foul Noel Hunt in the 18-yard box, but 'referee' McCurry waved away their claims to the disgust of Levein. The visitors looked to have pulled one back in the 71st minute when Danny Swanson's shot from 25 yards deflected off Weir and found the back of the net but it was disallowed for 'offside'. Levein said. "The referee could have phoned me in the morning and just told me, 'Rangers are going to win so just stay home'. You can't win here, it's absolutely impossible. The referee bottled it at the penalty. He knew it was a penalty but if he gave it he would have to send off David Weir. I would have fancied our chances if we went to 2-1 and Rangers were down to 10 men."

Gordon Strachan's house was been broken into last week police have said. Thieves raided the Celtic manager's home in Bothwell, Lanarkshire, and reportedly made off with a haul of his belongings. Strachan and his wife Lesley are believed to have slept through the break-in. The thieves reportedly stole items including a camera and a laptop computer. The Bhoys' boss had no idea anything had happened until the next morning, according to reports. Asked if he was having sleepless nights because of the close-run championship race against Rangers, he said. "I'm sleeping too well. It'll be self-explanatory in a wee while, I'm sure. But I am sleeping too well, trust me." Strathclyde Police confirmed they had received a report of a break-in.

The SPL fixture fiasco has come to a head in recent weeks with Rangers rebuffed as they sought more help to get the SPL season extended ahead of the Uefa Cup final. Now, television and radio pundit Mark Lawrenson thinks the Glasgow giants' EPL ambitions could be rekindled. "If Ever Celtic or Rangers get the chance to join the Premier League, who on earth could blame them now?" he said.

Artur Boruc has been given the okay to delay joining up with his Poland team-mates if the SPL title race goes to the wire. Leo Beenhakker's squad will get together on May 19 to begin their Euro 2008 preparations which will include warm-up games against Macedonia, Albania and Denmark. But Boruc has been told he can remain in Scotland until after Celtic play their final league game on May 22 - if the championship hangs on that day's results.

Gordon Strachan and Barry Robson have landed both Clydesdale Bank SPL monthly awards for April. Strachan was named manager of the month after leading Celtic to four SPL wins in five games. Robson was voted player of the month. The 29-year-old midfielder also won the January award for his performances for previous club Dundee Utd.

Aiden McGeady insists he will not allow off-field hassles to drive him out of Celtic. The Ireland international claims he is regularly targeted in the city. But the 22-year-old said: "It's just something that happens in Glasgow where everybody you meet is a Celtic or Rangers fan. A lot of the time it's people who don't know anything about football and just want to have a go at you to try to get a reaction. It's the same for a lot of footballers in Glasgow although I don't think any one of them had it worse than Neil Lennon and he dealt with it pretty well. You have to develop a thick skin but it's not a big deal most of the time. People are either going to shake your hand or give you abuse but they won't drive me out, not at all."