Always wanted to use that title for something. I guess this will be it then.
Celtic will kick off with Hearts in approximately 48hrs time and we’ll be 90 minutes away from a historic Treble Treble.
Of course, we’ll start overwhelming favourites as you’d expect after winning eight back to back domestic trophies and a 26 game unbeaten cup run combined with on paper an absolutely superior squad not to mention that we’ve won all four of our last meetings with the Edinburgh side tallying up an aggregate score of 12-2 in the process.
But the last time we met Hearts at Hampden was way back in the heady days of 2012 when Neil Lennon was in his first tenure as boss and no one gave Hearts much chance then as we walked out for the national cup semi-final.
In the end, we went down 2-1 thanks to a controversial late penalty for the men in maroon that was converted by an ex-Celtic no less in Craig Beattie.
It was quite the kick in the nuts at the time especially as it came only four weeks after a pretty disastrous League Cup final defeat to Kilmarnock. However, Rangers administration and eventual liquidation coupled with us lifting the title for the first time in four years pretty quickly erased any bad taste left in the mouth.
Hearts went onto slaughter Hibs 5-1 in the final that year before encountering their own issues with administration soon after.
Now here we are seven years and fourteen domestic trophies later and a likely one time only chance to capture a treble of trebles something which would have seemed unthinkable back in 2012.
There was, of course, a dress rehearsal of sorts last Sunday as Celtic were given the league trophy and triumphed 2-1 at Celtic Park against the Tynecastle side but truth be told they mostly played their youth and fringe players as did we and it’s safe to say that both teams starting elevens come 3pm on Saturday will look completely different.
Mikey Johnstone looked terrific bouncing back well from what must have been a pretty chastening experience at Ibrox the weekend before and scored a fabulous double. His place in the squad for the final at the very least is all but assured.
And young Karamoko Dembele made his long-awaited first-team bow and very much lived up to the hype. Hopefully next season we get to see much more of him as he continues his progression to possible superstardom.
But on Saturday it’ll be time for the likes of James Forrest, Callum McGregor and Tom Rogic to fully reenter the fray and provide the creativity and expected fireworks.
Our form recently has been pretty consistent. Since Lenny’s return, we’ve been laboured but generally effective and have amassed nine wins and three draws with only one defeat in thirteen games.
It’s not been the most scintillating of football with only 18 goals scored in that time but we’ve proven to be pretty solid at the back with nine clean sheets and only five goals conceded.
We’ve also produced our best performances in the cup with dominant wins away at Hibs (2-0) and in the semis against Aberdeen (3-0) on our last visit to the national stadium.
Meanwhile, Hearts have really struggled of late.
After taking 25 from the first 30 points on offer in the league this season which saw them top the table for the opening few months they have only taken 26 from their last 28 which has resulted in them finishing in a rather disappointing sixth place.
They have lost six out of their last seven league games with no league wins since the 30th of March. Indeed they have only won two out of their last fourteen league games, nine of which have been defeats. They’ve also only kept one clean sheet in their last thirteen which was away to relegation bound Dundee eleven weeks ago come Saturday.
Their salvation for what has otherwise been a rather pitiful season has come in the cups where they’ve lost only once in twelve games scoring 29 goals in the process.
That one defeat was of course to us back in late October last year when thrashed them 3-0 at a packed Murrayfield in the League Cup semi-final.
In the Scottish Cup semi-final, they hammered Inverness Caley Thistle 3-0 to earn their final place though carried a lot of luck that day as Inverness had a goal chopped off and came close on other numerous occasions.
Their season has been blighted by injury with the likes of striker Uche Ikpeazu, captain Christophe Berra, central defender John Souttar and talisman Steven Naismith all spending long periods in the recovery room. Manager Craig Levein had actually completely transformed the squad last summer via twelve departures and nineteen new arrivals but the majority have proven to be dross with the clubs fortunes ultimately not much improving on the previous campaign – league position wise anyway – and there being an over-reliance on a small band of players.
So as you can see the final really is ours to lose.
That potential scenario sort of reminds me of Rangers losing to Dundee Utd in the final back in 1994.
The Tannadice club had just finished a disappointing sixth in the league under new manager Ivan Golacs and weren’t given much chance in the final against an all-conquering Ibrox side who had won the previous seven straight domestic trophies including back to back Scottish Cups.
Yet they just didn’t show up that day and after an Ally Maxwell howler in the Rangers goal Craig Brewster pounced and the Arabs won the national cup for the first time in their history.
Hopefully, we learn from history and it doesn’t repeat itself. Surely be to God it won’t.
Anyway away from the cup final build-up the rumours about who will be in the manager’s chair next season continue to swirl around like confetti at a windswept gypsy wedding.
Not so long ago most people had resigned themselves to Neil Lennon being made the permanent manager but in the wake of a woeful defeat at Ibrox to Rangers, the past few weeks has seen all and sundry getting a mention.
Last week I had it on total hearsay authority that Rafa Benitez was in pole position with talk that he was on the verge of a Newcastle United exit imminent.
But then nothing came of that and instead Davie Moyes name has reappeared from the ether.
According to some, him getting it was a stick-on and many in Celtic cyberspace appeared to agree with most venting their frustration as the possibility. Oh, how times have changed. I remember before Brendan got the job three years ago many salivating at the prospect of Moyes getting the nod. Now they are more spitting blood at the prospect.
Earlier today I heard talk that Celtic were planning to close down streets around Celtic Park on Monday in the anticipation of a big announcement. That has since been exposed as more bullshit.
The fact is that nobody knows yet who it’ll be and I include both Peter Lawell and Dermot Desmond in that.
My belief is that Dermot wants a big name to clamp down on any possible resurgence across the city and shift the feelgood momentum and the press adulation back towards Kerrydale Street.
However, wanting a big name and getting one are two different things.
Though it seems fickle now at the time Brendan was both available and had some feeling towards the club so his appointment was a perfect storm. The reality is that the likes of Mourinho, Benitez, André Villas-Boas etc just don’t have that sentiment and with jobs available at the likes of Juventus etc we are in the grand scheme of things somewhat small fry I hate to say.
I guess we’ll see and with nine and then ten in a row at hand and there for us to go get our majority shareholder still might have a firecracker to produce come Monday but my overarching feeling is that we should be preparing to be underwhelmed.
Anyway we’ll get the answer to that long-standing conundrum soon enough.
Until then I just hope we can get the Treble Treble in the bag, that weather forecast is miles off and that it turns out to be a memorable day in which we bask in both the sun and shiny silvery glory of another treble.
The potential gloom can wait until Monday if indeed it has to come at all.
To finish here’s a reminder of the last time we played in a Scottish Cup final under Lenny. Much better than the Hearts memory.
....Always A Tim! 