Lawwell lauds history Bhoys
CELTIC Chief Executive Peter Lawwell has applauded Brendan Rodgers and his squad for making history by going 63 consecutive domestic games unbeaten.
The 4-0 victory over St Johnstone at McDiarmid Park on Saturday afternoon enabled Celtic to break a 100-year-old record set by Willie Maley’s side way back in 1917 and Lawwell has congratulated all involved for their efforts.
Speaking to the official Celtic website, the Chief Executive said: “I would like to congratulate Brendan, his backroom team and our players on this extraordinary achievement and on writing their names once again in the history of both Celtic and British football.
“So many people have been part of this fantastic effort and, as well as Brendan and the players, I would like to thank and congratulate everyone at the Club, all our staff who do such a great job and, of course, our supporters who have been such an important part of this wonderful record – they are all part of the wider Celtic team.
“It is fitting that, as we are about to celebrate 130 years since the Club’s formation, we have reached such a milestone.
“To break a record which has stood for around 100 years requires something special and this record has been characterised by a very special and relentless pursuit of quality and success.
“Celtic’s rich history features so many giants, including the great Willie Maley who previously held this record. Brendan and our players have once again shown why they will also go down as Celtic greats.
“As a Club we always aim to be the best and we will continue to do all we can to keep reaching new heights and give our fans a team and a club they can be proud of.”
SIXTY THREE not out. No matter the detractors – and there are always plenty of those – who will carp about the standard of the league, the sheer ruthlessness and hunger of Celtic’s run towards the establishment of a new British record is not to be sniffed at.
Saturday’s 4-0 win over a woeful St Johnstone side was delivered in the same vein that Celtic have performed throughout the bulk of those 63 games.
Moussa Dembele’s goal, the second of the afternoon, was arguably the pick of the bunch given the manner in which he started and finished the move, but Scott Sinclair, the unfortunate Steven Anderson who turned the ball into his own net following Dembele’s quick feet and Olivier Ntcham all chipped in too.
In any league and at any level 63 games without defeat takes a bit of doing.
Brendan Rodgers has done it step by step, having picked up the baton when Ronny Deila bowed out with a 7-0 walloping of Motherwell on the final day of his reign at the club.
The Norwegian took the first step, Rodgers has taken the next 62. Of those games, Celtic have won 56 and drawn just seven, stats that underline the consistency which the Parkhead side have used to dominate the domestic landscape.
Rodgers himself was quick to insist that his players deserved to be lauded for their efforts and application – which is difficult to argue with but equally without the Irishman at the helm there is a fair argument to suggest the sequence of results would never have been delivered.
After all, the spine of the team remains familiar to that one which pummelled Motherwell on the final day of the 2015/17 season. Kieran Tierney scored the first goal against the Fir Park side and has been pivotal in the games that have followed since then.
Similarly, Scott Brown, Leigh Griffiths – absent from the 4-0 win over St Johnstone which eclipsed the record due to a calf issue – Dedryck Boyata, Jozo Simunovic, Craig Gordon, Stuart Armstrong, Callum McGregor, Tom Rogic and James Forrest have all developed under the tutelage of Rodgers.
The Celtic manager preaches about his team being hungry, about being relentless, but on current evidence it is more than just words.
His philosophy has taken firm root at Lennoxtown, as judged by the manner in which it is bearing fruit.
THERE is something of note too in the manner in which Rodgers looks to encompass the success of the team through every aspect of the club; emails were sent to each member of staff at the club last week from Rodgers to thank them for their endeavours and whatever small part they had played in taking the club to the significant landmark.
It echoed his appreciative efforts last season in the aftermath of the league title win when he gathered the staff from ever pocket of the club one morning to toast the success with hot rolls and a bit of fizz.
Those bubbles have not gone flat this season and that stems from the philosophy of the manager as he eschews the temptation to stand still and drink in the view.
The run will end at some point but for now they are 63 games in and still no-one looks like laying a glove on Celtic. Neil Lennon’s Hibs came closest with their 2-2 draw before the last international break but other than that the dominance of the Parkhead side has been unwavering.
This has led to grumbling in some quarters about the predictability of the domestic game. For Celtic fans, though, this would not appear to be a concern. For those of a certain vintage who suffered through the desperate leanness of the 1990s, this would appear to be their reward.
Rodgers will down tools for a fortnight now as international football takes precedence. The return to normality begins with a trek to Dingwall before the League Cup final at Hampden and a December where their feet will barely touch the ground given the run of games.
On Saturday’s offerings, their hunger remains as keen as ever. Which is just as well –