Sandman’s Definitive Ratings – St Jabberwocky v Celtic | OneFootball

SANDMAN’S DEFINITIVE RATINGS: CELTIC v ST JABBERWOCKY…

Brendan Rodgers meeting Pope Francis

St Johnstone v Celtic, Scottish Cup semi-final at Hampden Park on Sunday 20 April 2025. Photo by Vagelis Georgariou (The Celtic Star)

St Johnstone v Celtic, Scottish Cup semi-final at Hampden Park on Sunday 20 April 2025. Viljami Sinisalo. Photo by Vagelis Georgariou (The Celtic Star)

VINDALOO – 6.5/10 –  Not often keepers take advice from Jamesy but ‘just the tip,’ had Vinny making a peach of a stop to keep the clean sheet. Zero chance with the disallowed rasper but his easy day in the Hampden sun was to be enjoyed after he’d remained sharp and quick on his feet during the level half hour.

Greg Taylor. St Johnstone v Celtic, Scottish Cup semi-final at Hampden Park on Sunday 20 April 2025. Photo by Vagelis Georgariou (The Celtic Star)

GREGGS THE BAKER – 7.5/10 – Mr.Organisation brings something extra to the team when he’s tuned-in, baffling the haters. It’s his positional awareness, for the back of the class – the part of the game he slaved to perfect under Ange. Which affords great linkage with Daizen/A.N Other winger, and – exemplified in two goals – creates channels down the inside-left for advancing midfielders to exploit, overload and punish the opposition; e.g Reo, Scales and Calmac. Sign him up.

Alistair Johnston. Photo by Vagelis Georgariou (The Celtic Star)

WAYNE GRETZKY – 7.5/10 – ‘Blitzed by The Moose’ – that’s the Perth episode of Countryfile’s title. Only used to horses and livestock, the farmers didn’t see the world’s largest deer coming. Or they’d have had their man-servants shoot him. Aggressive and intuitive to win the ball and set up the opener, crowned his day with a terrific assist for the fifth.

Liam Scales. Photo by Vagelis Georgariou (The Celtic Star)

OF JUSTICE – 7.5/10 – Almost a meritocracy when you see a centre-back retain his place. And this type of game was well-suited to Liam’s cultured left foot; Time to stride forward and pick a winning pass – ideal for the Barndarig Beckenbauer, and he exploited every yard of space to play as virtually a fourth or fifth midfielder. Not that he was lapse in his defensive duties – two sprightly interventions early as they got the first corner of the game and our minds raced back to the aberration a fortnight ago; Liam was the Celt most alert to danger.

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Cameron Carter-Vickers. Photo by Vagelis Georgariou (The Celtic Star)

GET CARTER – 7/10 – Yeah, I can do it again… And hoofed it into the Zombie end. No cruise missile repeat this week but the big mhan was all about rugged control and asserting dominance over their hopeful, pacy forwards.

Callum McGregor. St Johnstone v Celtic, Scottish Cup semi-final at Hampden Park on Sunday 20 April 2025. Photo by Vagelis Georgariou (The Celtic Star)

Callum McGregor. Man of the Match at Hampden in the Scottish Cup semi-final win over St Johnstone.

CALMAC – 8.5/10 MOTM – Bossed it. Energised it. Won it. When we needed the revs, the skipper floored the gas (that’s USA-talk for fully depressing the accelerator to its maximum position, kids. Go watch some action movies, get off tik-tok). Cool and precise, clipped in a beauty. Then took charge properly and carved them up. Had us in cruise control, but a cruise at top-speed that knackered St.Johnstone mentally after 30 minutes and left them dribbling on the canvas fifteen minutes later. He was both architect and demolition man.

THE TERMINATOR – 6.5/10 – There’s so much more to come from this bhoy. Get the feeling he’s absorbing the lessons learned from his captain and mapping out his game-plan. We see in bursts the class and moments of invention that he’s capable of, and I think the culmination of his educational first season in the Hoops will pay off big-time soon.

Reo Hatate. St Johnstone v Celtic, Scottish Cup semi-final at Hampden Park on Sunday 20 April 2025. Photo by Vagelis Georgariou (The Celtic Star)

HAKUNA HATATE – 8/10 – Keep reminding yeez – when Reo wakes up and logs in to the game we cannot fail. Felt his way in quietly for half an hour then announced his readiness with a swivel and shift of the hips that took out two of them on the edge of their box and almost created the opener. It was but an aperitif, m’lud – in the next fifteen minutes he racked up three assists and had the cowhands telling half-time fireside tales of the Japanese ghost they thought they’d seen lurking around their area. Reo at his most fluid is Reo at his most destructive and I’ve been telling doubters that for weeks now as he’s been our main sorcerer. On this form, unplayable in this country. Keep it going for a few week, lhad.

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Daizen Maeda. St Johnstone v Celtic, Scottish Cup semi-final at Hampden Park on Sunday 20 April 2025. Photo by Vagelis Georgariou (The Celtic Star)

LORD KATSUMOTO – 7.5/10 – From unplayable Japanese to unstoppable Japanese. The records will fall, cut down by the Samurai’s blade before the cuck in No.10 confiscates it….Another two today, going on a hat-trick, to bring his season total to somewhere near infinity. Started wide, destroyed their flank, throwing in some fine but wasted crosses, before deciding just to flaming well score himself. It’s getting ridiculous now…

Adam Idah scores. St Johnstone v Celtic, Scottish Cup semi-final at Hampden Park on Sunday 20 April 2025. Photo by Vagelis Georgariou (The Celtic Star)

DUNCAN IDAHO – 6.5/10 – Hmm, well the big bhoy is trying a bit more, that’s for sure; maybe realising his Celtic career’s in jeopardy. Good movement and effort, sweet tap-in for reward. Still must give us more in terms of linkage and hold-up play. Maybe needs to add application to his game when it’s not going his way, rather than the defeatist demeanour he can bear at times. Get gallus.

James Forrest. St Johnstone v Celtic, Scottish Cup semi-final at Hampden Park on Sunday 20 April 2025. Photo by Vagelis Georgariou (The Celtic Star)

JAMESY – 7.5/10 – The legend returns to Mount Florida, still searching for this mythical ‘Florida’ burd. His zip was up from the kick-off (metaphorically unusual) and it was he who zipped about, causing the most problems for them early on. The Jamesy give-and-go is still a delight to see in action (ladies…) and on this form we’ve seen he can lift teams to titles; that bustling energy cannot be contained – even by empty pint glasses – and the money shot today would have been Jamesy stepping up to take the penalty he won…

…Oh yes he did. But in Mibbery’s world a combined take-down by a tag-team doesn’t count as illegal; one to knock you off-stride with a clip, one to knock you down with a barge. Prickly. . He was subbed to a special ovation, late for his traditional Easter Playboy Bunny Hunt but smiling nonetheless. So to the final five league games and the golden goal we want to see for the 16-season record. I repeat, Brendan – PLAY HIM, PUT HIM ON PENS.

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SUBS –

Luke McCowan. St Johnstone v Celtic, Scottish Cup semi-final at Hampden Park on Sunday 20 April 2025. Photo by Vagelis Georgariou (The Celtic Star)

HIGHLAND TOFFEE – 6/10 – Lookout Luke, the MIB’s a humourless bar steward.. And doesn’t like you being upset with…A play-acting opponent…Only in Scotland…But Luke shrugged it off, took a look and looked on it and hungry for involvement and glory.

Paulo Bernardo . St Johnstone v Celtic, Scottish Cup semi-final at Hampden Park on Sunday 20 April 2025. Photo by Vagelis Georgariou (The Celtic Star)

SAINT BERNARDO – N/A – Paulo, welcome back again. Make the most of the minutes and show us some encouraging signs for the season to come.

TAKINTE – N/A – The nonchalance of the Kuhn – deft flick into AJ to set up the fifth. Will he stay? Probably not. Damn.

Jota. St Johnstone v Celtic, Scottish Cup semi-final at Hampden Park on Sunday 20 April 2025. Photo by Vagelis Georgariou (The Celtic Star)

NOTEBOOK – 6.5/10 – The Greatest Showman! And a young sidekick entering stage right, lol. Always just one touch from glory, and he wasn’t letting a sunny glamorous occasion go to waste.

TONY THE TIGER – N/A – “Oh Hampden in the sun, Celtic seven Rangers one..” ‘Tony, ye’re on for the last couple! Get stripped!’…”Haud ma scarf. See yeez later”..And on runs Tony out the cheap seats with a steward in pursuit.

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Brendan Rodgers. St Johnstone v Celtic, Scottish Cup semi-final at Hampden Park on Sunday 20 April 2025. Photo by Vagelis Georgariou (The Celtic Star)

THE NOTAPRODDYGAL – 7.5/10 – Well, the rhetoric wasn’t wasted as he gets two five-star outings in a row from the ashes of the OK Corral. There might still be questions over integrity and man-management but the fires are stoked for a blazing half-dozen games to the end, and another treble on his CV. Is it The Brodge in action or the collective in reaction? Six scintillating wins calls the former, another farcical misadventure down in Hades will tell another story…

MIBBERY – 3/10 – Ah, well, managed to sneak in a yellow for Luke; match report: “Raised his voice and looked at me askance…” And there was the Jamesy clattering that didn’t count because he didn’t go down easy enough at the first maiming attempt. On balance, they were also just being harsh to deny the St.Johnstone boy his glorious riggin’-ripper. After Bilbao it’s all so distressing for them.

Celtic supporters shows their support at full-time following the team’s victory in the Scottish Gas Scottish Cup Semi Final match between St Johnstone and Celtic at Hampden Park on April 20, 2025. (Photo by Ian MacNicol/Getty Images)

OVERALL – 8/10 – It’s all about getting through, they used to say. 6-0 and 5-0 in the National Cups semis declares that name on yer birth certificate ain’t yer real Da’… It was taps aff in the Sellick End from the sunny start, and by half-time it was moobs out for Jamesy with one of the most thrilling fifteen minutes of the season lifting the crowd into a frenzy. Last week it took half and hour to notch four, so if the pattern continues we’ll be looking for a fifth at Tannadice around the eigth minute next time out. This sort of Celtic performance at a crucial juncture in the season gilds the Bhoys’ achievements as history is made; endorses their claim to the titles they’ll win and puts the rest in their place.

Callum McGregor of Celtic celebrates scoring the opening goal during the Scottish Gas Scottish Cup Semi Final match between St Johnstone and Celtic at Hampden Park on April 20, 2025. (Photo by Ian MacNicol/Getty Images)

We know we should win many a time, but ultimately it’s the manner in which we do – and today was that comprehensive, swashbuckling satisfaction we crave. Standards at Celtic demand perpetual quality even if the level of opponent isn’t CL-level. After that opening 30 minutes we had their measure, settled into our rhythm and the tempo took care of the rest. There’s no resurrections at 4-0 down, even on Easter Sunday.

Celtic supporters shows their support at full-time following the team’s victory in the Scottish Gas Scottish Cup Semi Final match between St Johnstone and Celtic at Hampden Park on April 20, 2025. (Photo by Ian MacNicol/Getty Images)

Might have been double figures looming but I’m glad it wasn’t – they’re not the worst side in the league although final statistics might damn that, but Billie Jean King’s got them at least trying to play their way to safety with football the foremost stipulation. So they got skelped but not humiliated and we got entertained and delighted and through to another final; that treble within touching distance. What an eggs-cellent day.

Go Away Now

Sandman

St Johnstone v Celtic, Scottish Cup semi-final at Hampden Park on Sunday 20 April 2025. Photo by Vagelis Georgariou (The Celtic Star)

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