St Paul's FC | Football, London | stpaulsceltic.co.uk

St Pauls Celtic lose ground in the league

Second half comeback from the Celtic not enough as M.T.V push further ahead

This was a must-win game for the London Hoops and the addition of three new players to the squad allowed them to name their strongest 14 of the season. The back four of McBride, Hughes, Majid and McGinley retained their places, with Beelders having to contend with a spot on the bench on his return to the fold, and Kennedy and Bray again starting in the middle of the park. New signing Don Allen made his debut at right wing, with Rogan, McGuckin and Coull also keeping their starting slots. Boylan made his long awaited appearance on the bench alongside new boy Michael Jamieson, both brought in to add some class to the centre of the park.

The snow had been falling on Market Road for a few hours giving the park a wintry feel, and Celtic found themselves playing into a strong wind in the first half. This didn't seem to affect them as they tried to get the ball down and play football, rather than resorting to long balls, however they failed to carve out any real chances in the opening stages and instead it was MTV who looked the most dangerous with their strong and quick strikers causing the mute Celtic defence all sorts of problems.

Lazy start

It was MTV who took the lead, a lazy long ball evading the entire defence who were mere spectators as the striker coolly lobbed Hamilton who had been left badly exposed by his defenders. It was a blow to the Hoops and one which clearly stunned them, another defensive lapse costing them dearly. It took some time for St Paul's to settle and Allen tested the 'keeper from range with a rasping shot from all of 25 yards which he parried over. The defence too were starting to look a little more composed freeing up the midfield to get forward and support the attack. A fantastic move consisting of at least 15 passes worked St Paul's into a good position but the final ball drifted high and wide.

A major talking point of the half was the deliberate handball outside of his area by the MTV 'keeper. Incredibly the referee brandished a yellow card, leaving the Celtic players and standside assistant baffled. The only other events of the first half were bookings for Kennedy and an MTV player, both for dissent and both equally baffling, the referee continuing to cause confusion and anger with his decisions.

Into the break behind

Halftime and 1-0 down but there had been positive signs from St Paul's that, as long as the mistakes were eradicated, could see them still take something from the game. St Paul's started brightly in the 2nd half, looking to get McGuckin, Rogan, Coull and Allen on the ball early and put MTV under pressure. With the wind against them now, MTV struggled to get out of their own half with the 'keeper's goal-kicks not breaking the halfway line and more often than not drifting out of play for a throw-in. There was patience to St Paul's play but still they couldn't find that final ball to create any clear-cut chances.

McGuckin's direct running was causing MTV problems and he frequently found himself on the end of some rough tackles. MTV were dangerous on the break when they got the ball down, using the pace of their front two and the intelligence of their midfield to carve St Paul's open and concede a corner. The subsequent ball into the box was initially dealt with, but a scuffed shot hit Majid on the arm and the referee had no hesitation in awarding the penalty to MTV. It was a harsh and very soft decision as Majid's arm was at the side of his body and he tried to get it out of the way of the ball which was on it's way into Hamilton's arms.

Archie's penalty heroics go in vain

The penalty was struck well but an outstanding save from Hamilton, at full stretch diving to his right, kept the ball out and the rebound was cleared by McBride. This should have galvanised St Paul's but it wasn't long before MTV doubled their lead. Another defensive error, this time a poor touch, allowed the MTV striker his second chance to lob Hamilton, a cruel let-down by his defence for the Celtic 'keeper after his penalty heroics. Beelders replaced Hughes to try and shore up the backline as St Paul's tried to drive on in search of that elusive goal. MTV had only had three chances, all of which were gifted to them, and it was St Paul's again who were dictating the play of the game and it wasn't long before they pulled a goal back through birthday boy Coull.

Birthday goal

Bray was replaced by debutante Jamieson to inject some fresh legs into the engine room and a tidy short passing move involving Jamieson and Rogan saw the former release McGuckin into the box and his perfect cut-back was swept into the goal by Coull for his 14th goal of the season. This was the goal that really started to get St Paul's going and there was more confidence in their play as they pegged MTV back. Beelders and Majid looked solid at the back with McGinley in particular seeing more of the ball, starting attacks from the back, but clear-cut chances were at a premium and despite some excellent delivery into the box from Allen on the right wing, the ball eluded the Celtic strike-force. Another nice passing move on the left went to waste with the final crossed ball going wide. Boylan made his long-awaited debut with 15 minutes remaining, replacing the ineffective Kennedy in midfield as Celtic tried to push for an equaliser.

It wasn't long in coming, Coull again the man to put the ball away for his 15th goal of the season. A corner was driven in and after a number of ricochets, McGinley scuffed a shot that Coull turned into the net to bring the scores level and send the St Paul's players and support into raptures. Jamieson was now running the midfield and linking well with Allen. Rogan and Coull, while McGuckin was also causing the MTV right back problems with his pace on the left. Yet still there were no clear opportunities and painfully MTV were the next team to score. A corner from the nearside was floated in and an MTV player rose unchallenged to nod into the top right-hand corner, another gift courtesy of St Paul's Celtic. It was a painful goal to concede and against the run of play of most of the 2nd half. Jamieson and Allen went close in the dying minutes as Celtic tried, in vain, to find a winner. But as the snow melted away so did the hopes of a league championship in their maiden season.

Difficultes ahead

9 points is now the gap and despite the game in hand, that appears to be an insurmountable lead. With clubs in and around 2nd spot falling away at this crucial stage of the season only an MTV capitulation would give St Paul's an opportunity to claw back points.

It was dark wintry night but there were positives from the game. Jamieson looked excellent when he came on and Allen was a constant thorn in the opposition's side. McGuckin kept up his good form with another all-action display on the left wing and Hamilton was awesome yet again in the Celtic goal. With Tormod Smith and Sean Molloy also due back in the next couple of weeks things are looking positive, but the team must come out fighting in their next match against Drug Free World in a fortnight.

On a night where very few players got pass marks, there were a few contenders for man of the match, however it was again Coull who came up with the goods to try and drag the Celtic back into the game. His 14th and 15th goals of the season almost rescued a point but unfortunately on his birthday it wasn't to be.