Grant Munro’s fourth club goal, ten minutes from time, earned Caley Thistle a well deserved draw – particularly on their excellent second half performance. The match was live on Setanta TV and Celtic manager Gordon Strachan was forced to watch it from the stand as he started a two-match banishment.

 

Charlie Christie made one enforced change with Liam Keogh making his 100th appearance in place of the injured Barry Wilson.

 

As usual the visit of either of the Old Firm leads to a capacity crowd and this was no different. 50 freeloaders also enjoyed the match from the A9 embankment. Celtic had the better of the first half but could not make their superiority really count.

 

The first serious chance of the game came in 15 minutes when Celtic’s Jiri Jarosik turned and shot from 20 yards. Mark Brown was equal to the task and made a good save. In 23 minutes a John Rankin 30 yard free kick rebounded off Neil Lennon and safely back to Artur Boruc. The opening goal came three minutes later from a long clearance following an ICT attack. Shunsuke Nakamura found Kenny Miller and, with the defence short handed, he flicked the ball low from the right of the box past Darren Dods and Stephen Pearson slid in to put the ball behind Mark Brown. Celtic looked well in control for the rest of the half but Rankin did have two good strikes as the half time whistle loomed. His first was a 25 yard rising effort which Boruc dived to touch over the bar. He then tried a low shot from the same distance but this time it went just wide.

 

Half Time: 0-1

 

David Marshall replaced the injured Boruc at half time and he had to face a rejuvenated Caley Thistle. Kenny Miller did have the space and time to put Celtic two up in 58 minutes but he shot early from the left side of the box and Brown collected easily. A Dennis Wyness lob from 18 yards just cleared the Celtic bar in 64 minutes and this was the striker’s last touch before Graham Bayne took his place. Bayne was immediately put through by Rankin, after good build up play from Craig Dargo, but his angled shot was held by the diving Marshall. In 68 minutes a Bayne flick set up a Dargo chip which went over the advancing Marshall but just wide. Celtic substitute ‘Magic’ Zurawski took a Gary Caldwell pass on the right of the home box in 71 minutes but shot over the bar. A McGeady low shot was held by Brown in 77 minutes then the equaliser came three minutes later. Substitute Richie Hart’s first touch was a corner from the left which came off the head of Darren Dods and seemed destined to run for a goal kick. Bayne had other ideas and did well to keep it in play before crossing into the box. It deflected into the path of Grant Munro 18 yards out and he powered it past the helpless Marshall to set the home section of the stadium alight. The Celtic backlash was inevitable and it nearly paid off two minutes later – Miller stretched for a cross from the right just a couple of yards out but he was off balance and it went wide. Brown held a McGeady chip then into added time Pearson blasted wide from 20 yards. The home side could just have sneaked it in the final two minutes. Dargo and Hart combined to give Bayne a sight of goal but he hit wide. Then, with seconds left, a long ball out of the Caley Thistle defence was chased by Bayne and Marshall. Bayne stretched to get a touch 30 yards out but it had no power and the defence recovered to clear.

 

Full Time: 1-1

 

Disappointment for Celtic, a fine point for the home side and tenth place retained.