Lady Luck Deserts Saints

Last updated : 16 April 2007 By Ed_ScottishFitba
Vennegoor of Hesselink gets his second
On Saturday St Johnstone fell at the last hurdle to reach the Scottish Cup final. Celtic ran out eventual 2-1 winners but the result was in doubt right up to the last. Gordon Strachan's side took the lead with a controversial first-half penalty awarded to and converted by Jan Vennegoor of Hesselink before Celtic defender Stephen McManus helped Martin Hardie's lob over Artur Boruc into his own net to draw the sides level. After the break, the Dutchman restored Celtic's lead with a near-post header from a Shunsuke Nakamura corner. The Perth Saints were not the pushover that some were expecting and the second half was a very worrying time for the fans in green and white.

St Johnstone striker Peter MacDonald believes the Saints simply ran out of luck on the day. He said: "We are not happy with the result but we were happy with the performance. For parts of the game we were the better side and it's not often that happens against Celtic. We had a few chances but maybe the wee breaks didn't come our way. Artur Boruc made a good save from Paul Sheerin, Kevin James headed just over the bar and Jason Scotland had a shot cleared off the line. It's not often you see Celtic get pinned back by that, especially by a First Division team."
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