Enjoy Your Dominance Celtic Fans But The Pendulum Will Swing Back - Some Day

TO USE the argot of the streets – Celtic ripped Rangers a new one yesterday. It was 5-0 going on 10-0, and, but for some superb saves from Jake Alnwick, and the fact Celtic visibly lifted their collective foot off the gas pedal in the second half, it might well have been. It isn't the River Clyde which separates these two clubs, it's a gap wider and longer than the Grand Canyon. But, while that day may be some way off, it will come, the pendulum, as it has over the 130-year history of these two clubs playing each other, will swing back towards Rangers.

For instance, I can remember one of my earliest Old Firm games – Celtic Park, 10 August, 1963; final score: Celtic 0 Rangers 3. With Jim Baxter, left, then at the height of his powers, as orchestrator-in-chief, the Rangers back five: Shearer, Provan, Greig, McKinnon and Baxter, spent the final 15 minutes, simply passing the ball around between themselves. They made no effort to get into the Celtic half, to add to the goals tally – Baxter simply wanted to rub it in, how much better Rangers were.

That victory set Rangers on their way to the second of the club's seven Trebles. The Celtic team they beat so easily contained five men: Tommy Gemmell, Billy McNeill, Jimmy Johnstone, Stevie Chalmers and Bobby Murdoch who would have their revenge some time after, 18 months later, Jock Stein was appointed manager – when it comes to the Old Firm, dominance seldom lasts long.

1963 - Baxer taking the mickey - 1967 this

Just a thought, what might Scott Brown have been able to do mentally to the Rangers players yesterday, had he possessed even a quarter of Baxter's arrogant gallusness, and been ready to conduct some show-boating yesterday? Or, mindful of the demise of OBFA, might the Police Scotland Match Commander – had Scottie taken the proverbial – have lifted him for: “Conduct liable to cause a breach of the peace?”

By the way, I clocked a marvellous gif, circulating on Facebook last night. It was a clip from Forrest Gump, of the bold Forrest running out of a gateway and setting off down the road on his epic run. The subtitles said: “Steven Gerrard leaving Celtic Park yesterday.” Brilliant.

Mind you, ever since it first came-up, I have said, all this “Gerrard for Rangers” hype is nothing more than a rude effort, by the Glib and Shameless Liar, to divert attention away from his own problems with the Takeover Panel and the Courts, the general chaos around the governance of the club, and the desperate need of a cash-strapped and perhaps technically-insolvent club to extract some cash, in the form of early season book renewals, from the only people still gullible enough to entrust their hard-earned cash to them – their faithful fans.

Yesterday's sorry capitulation will not have helped that cause any. If Gerrard is unveiled as the next Rangers' manager, I will be shocked – he's surely not that desperate for a manager's job, or daft enough to take-on that train wreck of a club.

Graeme Murty - badly advised not to speak to the press yesterday

And, what about Rangers reaction to such a public humiliation – not putting-up anyone to speak to the Press afterwards. Right enough, “Dignity FC” as some Celtic fans ironically dub them. I can well understand Graeme Murty not wanting to speak, but, come on, it's part of the job, it goes with the territory – whoever advised him not to appear at the press conference did Murty, and the Club, absolutely no favours.

LET'S get back to fitba, and THE best moment of the weekend. I refer to that Kris Boyd free-kick goal against Hibs. That strike has to be a Goal of the Season contender. Who knew the master of the six-yard box tap-in had that in his locker?

But, it was all in vain, as Hibs won a cracking eight-goal thriller. Still, the match demonstrated, there is life outside the Big Two in Scotland, kudos to both teams, such a pity the Killie defence had an off-day. You know, if they can keep attacking like that, Hibs just might prove Neil Lennon and Scott Brown correct and be officially the second-best team in Scotland.

 Boydie - a Goal of the Season contender

I occasionally name-check my fellow coffin-dodger Johnny. That's the Celtic fan who claims Ayr United is his team. Now, on Saturday, the bold Johnny, who lives less than a mile from Somerset Park – he can walk to the ground from his house in about 15 minutes, which is not bad for a pensioner of his great age – opted-out of the Honest Men's final league game of the season, against Albion Rovers.

Having travelled through to see them lose at Alloa the previous week, Johnny reckoned he was a jinx, so he would remain at home. I called him on the final whistle, and suggested, if he was a true glory hunter, he would head round to Somerset to await the arrival of the helicopter, with the League One trophy. But no, he came up with a lame excuse there too.

Ian McCall - the wee man deserves his success with Ayr

Any way, congratulations to Ian McCall and his troops for getting the job done. And well done too to Chairman Lachlan Cameron, for agreeing to switch to full-time football in the third tier. The road they travelled was, at times, a bit like Tam o' Shanter's ride, but, the Honest Men reached their destination – the Championship.

I SEE the 12 East Region junior clubs who applied were all accepted into the East of Scotland League at last week's meeting. This move surely brings closer the day when we have, in Scotland, a proper pyramid, mirroring the long-established English one.

Sorting-out this long-overdue and sensible move might be an early priority for new SFA @CEO Ian Maxwell. Mind you, on reflection, Ian will not be short of urgent topics to take care of when he finally crosses Glasgow from Firhill to Hampden. Life will certainly be busy for him during the first few heady months in the hot seat.

Mind you speaking of junior club defections and a pyramid system. I still reckon, perhaps on the neutral ground of the coffee shop on the Duke of Rothesay's Knockroon development, some Auchinleck Talbot and Cumnock supporters will meet and set-up the Junior Football Resistance Movement, dedicated to keeping ill-feeling and gratuitous violence where it properly belongs – on the terraces - and just as often the playing area - of junior football grounds.