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| Sunday Papers; 16/11/08 | |
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| Tweet Topic Started: Nov 16 2008, 12:14 AM (90 Views) | |
| Jinty | Nov 16 2008, 12:14 AM Post #1 |
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Sunday Herald Making a virtue of necessity By Stewart Fisher Cillian Sheridan has been pushed on to the frontline on the back of an injury crisis but, as Stewart Fisher discovers, it’s an arrangement that has worked well so far CELTIC'S VISIT to New Douglas Park this afternoon could quite easily turn out to be a tale of two teenagers. James McCarthy, who turned 18 this week, may be an Accies player but those sections of the Parkhead support inclined to make him a cause celebre suddenly find they have an emergent Republic of Ireland youth international of their own to brag about. Cillian Sheridan has now started five of the last six games for his club, coming on as a substitute in the other, and scoring three goals in the process. It is all too easy to get caught up in hyperbole about young footballers, but given the difficulties of integrating even the most talented youngsters from an Old Firm youth system into the first team, the progress of the 19-year-old from Bailieborough seems every bit as remarkable as the 82 senior appearances that McCarthy already has under his belt. With the club in the midst of a run of 11 consecutive domestic wins, having overcome a spate of injuries and a gruelling Champions League schedule to take a lead at the top of the SPL, it took quite a search for anything at all which could make Celtic feel inadequate this week, but Arsenal still managed it. Parading their next generation of teenagers in the stress-free environment of a Carling Cup win against Wigan involves leeway that Gordon Strachan knows he will never be afforded at Celtic. "I can't be jealous of them Arsenal, because it will never happen to us, because we will never have that money to spend on first-team players, let alone 17-year-olds," Strachan said. "We have no opportunity to lose any game at Celtic. Arsenal can. If they get beaten in the League Cup then it is not a problem, but that wouldn't happen with us. You saw what happened with the Inverness cup result under John Barnes in 2001, that headline will last forever and cost someone his job." Old Firm managers are entitled to point out that there is little incentive to take risks with even the best untried youngsters from your own set up when you have the financial wherewithal to snap up ready-made players from elsewhere. Aiden McGeady, Stephen McManus and Shaun Maloney had all served partial apprenticeships by the time Strachan arrived at the club and made them integral to his side, and it took an injury pile-up for Paul Caddis to get his chance last season. Where the Old Firm are concerned, in most cases - as with Sheridan - talent is only half the battle. The coaching staff deserve credit for identifying his abilities early on and fast-tracking him into training with the first-team squad, his debut coming up in Inverness as far back as 18 months ago. But it still took no fewer than three concurrent injuries, to Jan Vennegoor of Hesselink, Georgios Samaras and Chris Killen, for Sheridan to make the big step up. Oh, and the fact (not inconsiderable in Sheridan's case) that the injuries to others in the team haven't co-incided with the growing pains suffered by the youngster himself. "Cillian has always been involved in the first-team squad," Strachan said of the 19-year-old, who is also no mean Gaelic football player. "We tried to introduce him last year at times, but he got injured, and his injuries were long-term injuries. We knew there was something there, but it is only in the last few months he has been able to regularly train and steadily train. He is fantastic to work with, intelligent, and enthusiastic. This week we have sat down and watched videos and tried to recreate situations on the training field and I think that has helped him." It will be a few more weeks before Vennegoor of Hesselink is fit to return, but with Samaras returning to the side from the bench on Wednesday night, the next question is whether Strachan will stick with his new boy in the event of a loss of form or once the Greek striker is again fit enough to join an in-form Scott McDonald. Craig Beattie is just one recent example of a Celtic striker who usually made an impact when he played but was unable to make the transition to first-team regular, yet Strachan believes it is not a fate Sheridan should concern himself with unduly. "That is not a worry just now, he has just got to worry about enjoying himself, playing and winning," Strachan said. "You only worry about these things when it comes round, if it comes round." Sheridan's teammates are certainly grateful. Barry Robson watched him hold his own against Manchester United's central defence, and was as impressed with the amount of selfless work he does for the team as with those two smart finishes on Wednesday night. "He has done fantastically well, he has been outstanding and deserves all the credit he gets," Robson said. "He is a young boy who works hard. He keeps himself to himself and wants to improve as a player. That will give him a great chance and the boys are delighted for him here. He has helped us no end. "He played against two of the best centre halves in the world and he did a great job, so if he keeps working and doing what he is doing he has got a real good chance in the game," the Scotland midfielder added. "He has got the right manager and the right coaches here to progress him as a player. Every player that turns out to be a really good player works really hard for the team. When you are playing at a big club, and you don't work hard for the team, then you won't play." Sheridan's emergence has been just one bright spot of a period for Celtic which has made the 4-2 home defeat in the first Old Firm game of the season seem like a blessing in disguise, even if it was a really good disguise. Since then, 11 domestic wins in a row have formed a siege mentality akin to that displayed in the closing stages of last season, regardless of the injuries sustained. "In any league at any time, it is good going," Strachan said, "and between all these games we have had to play Champions League games, which we all know can be emotionally and physically draining. For the players to be able to deal with all that they should be pleased with themselves, not satisfied, but pleased." No fewer than six of them still feel fresh enough to cram in another game, Wednesday night's Scotland friendly against Argentina, and Strachan and Robson are both equally relaxed about the prospect of fresh injuries. "I think it is a game we should all just enjoy. Press, fans, we should all give George a break and just enjoy the game," Strachan said. "I know we have a hectic schedule but all the boys here want to go and play for your country," Robson said. "It is your country, and you don't want to miss any game." As for Celtic, after Hamilton today comes St Mirren on Saturday - the two teams who entered the weekend occupying 11th and 12th in the table. Whether or not their new star keeps his place, Celtic will take some catching. |
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| Jinty | Nov 16 2008, 12:15 AM Post #2 |
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Sunday Herald Imagine that... the ref is an Old Firm fan By Michael Grant The only men in Scotland who don’t support Celtic or Rangers are referees, assistant referees and football journalists. THE ONLY men in Scotland who don't support Celtic or Rangers are referees, assistant referees and football journalists. It is a happy coincidence that these noble, upstanding types were born and raised in a protective bubble of immunity, making them impervious to the charms of the Old Firm. For much of the country, especially the west central belt, an allegiance to one of the big two is in the DNA, but not for the refs or the writers. No sirree. Every Saturday afternoon our press boxes are full of people who support only the likes of Partick Thistle, Airdrie or St Mirren. And you'd better believe it. As for the refs, well, none of them ever really followed any one team when they were growing up, you understand. They just liked whoever played the best football. Of course they did. Given the suspicion, negative reactions and hounding they would attract by owning up it is quite understandable that referees and their assistants, and even mere hacks, keep their traps shut about the fact that they may have spent their formative years paying into Parkhead or Ibrox. Graham Roberts secured big, bold headlines at the launch of his autobiography last week by announcing that there were referees freely walking the streets of Scotland who, brace yourselves, support Rangers or Celtic. Apparently they're not even under any supervision orders or electronically tagged. Well, yes. Of course they are out there. Most people interested in football in this country support one of those clubs. The single most significant and depressing factor which prevents the top flight in Scotland being more than an endless duopoly is the huge, unalterable gulf in fanbases and attendances between the Old Firm and the rest. From any 10 people interested in football in Scotland maybe six will support Celtic or Rangers (or more than six, depending on geography). Scottish referees are a product of the same background and social conditioning as the rest of us. As Scottish males enthusiastic about football, some of them being Old Firm fans is as inevitable as breathing oxygen. Roberts went further, of course: not only did Scottish referees support Celtic or Rangers, they made decisions which demonstrated their active bias towards whichever club they favoured. That was why, in his view, foreign officials should be asked to handle the Old Firm derby. Roberts' infamous conducting of the party tunes at Ibrox made the Southampton-born former England international an unlikely advocate of the impartiality to be expected from those with no previous connection to Scottish football. But his comments about bias were meat and drink to the conspiracy theorists who convince themselves that this or that official is working against their team. Walter Smith weighed in too by alluding to two decisions given in Rangers matches by Tom Murphy. The assistant referee kept his flag down when Scott McDonald scored for Celtic in a derby in April, and raised it when Steve Davis played a pass to Kris Boyd at Motherwell on Wednesday. Both decisions were wrong, marginal and explicable. Smith offered a clarification two days later when he said he had no problem with Murphy being on duty at future Rangers games, but his initial innuendo meant the hounds had been released. Murphy is now seen by some Rangers fans as a guy who has it in for them and gives Celtic every break he can. It would be sort of exciting to believe, and write, that referees go out with an agenda to help Celtic or Rangers, but I don't buy it. Endless replays, multiple camera angles, slow motion and the internet mean they can't hide like they used to and any blatant demonstration of prejudice would mean instant, permanent and deserved notoriety. Are they prone to errors? Naturally, and they prove that every week the same as the rest of us in all walks of life. Are they influenced by the noise of the vast home crowds in Glasgow? Sadly human nature dictates that they will be. Are some of them closet Celtic or Rangers supporters? Certainly, but the last time anyone checked that wasn't a crime, nor a reason to exclude them from serving in the SPL. The real issue here is the hysteria of tight, incorrect offside decisions being treated as though a linesman ran on to the pitch to make a sliding tackle. Ironically the one man whose agenda was undeniable last week was Roberts. As Smith said in his best quote of the week: "It's not a bad line if you're trying to sell a book." However long he lasts in the job, and however well he does in it, just about the only certainty is that Diego Maradona is going to brighten up our lives when he arrives with Argentina this week. I expect the works from Diego, the full unbridled Maradona experience. So take out a pen and tick off the following checklist as he delivers them: 1. being surrounded at Glasgow Airport; 2. pretending not to hear questions; 3. crying; 4. wrapping himself in an Argentina scarf (or a Scotland one); 5. saying something about how good our fans are; 6. saying something mildly derogatory about England; 7. looking over-excited, wide-eyed and slightly baffled; 8. offering praise for Kirk Broadfoot or Chris Iwelumo; 9. promising to come back to Scotland very soon; 10. resigning. It's going to be great. |
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| Jinty | Nov 16 2008, 12:29 AM Post #3 |
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The Scotsman Strachan happy Sheridan has found his niche after early start in Gaelic football and offer from Aussie Rules giants By Graham Bean NOT many SPL players can say they rejected a career in Aussie Rules to sign for Celtic but Cillian Sheridan could have been turning out for the Brisbane Lions instead of facing Hamilton Accies at New Douglas Park this afternoon. The young striker has been a revelation in recent games, mixing it in the Champions League with Manchester United, then firing in a couple of goals to see off Kilmarnock in midweek. No-one is hiding from the fact that Sheridan is the fourth-choice frontman at Parkhead, but following injuries to Georgios Samaras and Jan Vennegoor of Hesselink, manager Gordon Strachan has not been let down by the teenager he pitched in alongside Scott McDonald. So, instead of trying to make a name for himself Down Under, Sheridan, 19, finds himself partnering an Australian in the Celtic attack. It was while playing Gaelic football in his native Ireland that Sheridan first attracted the attention of Australian Rules scouts. Considered an outstanding GAA prospect, he was making a name for himself with Cavan. The Brisbane Lions got to hear of his raw potential and offered to take him to Australia for trials. It never happened and Sheridan transferred his talents to association football where he proved similarly adept. Celtic were soon alerted and he was signed as a 17-year-old and made his first-team debut in February 2007 in the last-gasp Scottish Cup win at Inverness. Strachan has been thrilled with his progress this season but stresses there is still much work to be done with the player. Hardly surprising given his early sports career was devoted to Gaelic football. "We had some work to do with him with the video analysis on Monday then we tried to do some stuff with him on Tuesday on his movement," Strachan explained in the aftermath of his two-goal show against Kilmarnock. "So we're trying to bring him on because he doesn't know the game all that well, to be honest with you. He's an intelligent lad and what you give him he takes in. But what you have to watch as a coach is giving too much information at the one time because that can blow your mind. I thought he was awesome (against Kilmarnock] ... You could see at one point the defenders thinking, 'there's that kid coming back at us again'. "We know he can score goals but we just had to see about his fitness and if he could keep playing games… but he's been a real bonus for us." With Samaras back from injury but still short of sharpness, it will be fascinating to see if Sheridan can keep Celtic's top scorer out of the first-team just a little longer. The Greek is a confirmed fan and echoed Strachan when he spoke of Sheridan's ability to soak up information. "In pre-season, myself and Cillian played some games together and I tried to put him in the correct positions," Samaras said. "I tried to show him things like holding the ball up and when to pass it but, trust me, since pre-season his improvement has been so big." So big that the free-scoring Samaras is likely to be sitting on the bench at Hamilton today as the lanky youth from Bailieborough lines up alongside McDonald, looking to add to the three goals he's scored already this season. He may not be able to keep the Greek out of the side too much longer but Sheridan has a big future at Celtic. |
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