Artur Boruc admitted a few weeks ago that he'd love to score a goal for the club "I've always said I'd love to score a goal for Celtic but it's not happened yet." he said then. Well it happened in last night's Co-operative Insurance Cup semi final against Dundee United. With the game in the sudden-death stage of a penalty shoot-out the Holy Goalie scored with one of the most audacious spot-kick's ever seen.
Scott McDonald bagged the glory for the Celts in one of the most dramatic of finishes to a cup tie ever seen at Hampden when he sank his second spot kick to win the game 11-10 and the Aussie hit-man revealed that he'd had no worries as his big keeper stepped up to the spot just prior to his determining strike. Scott had watched the goalie as he practised taking penalties the day before the match and he was confident in Artur's ability to beat his countryman and future team-mate Lukasz Zaluska from twelve yards. "Artur's penalty was good." said Scott "He practises them in training and he usually gets Jan Vennegoor of Hesselink to be the keeper when he has a go so there's a big guy in goal. They were at it yesterday and took five each. I think it finished even between them. So the big man is confident when he goes up there to take one and to put it in there as he did tonight is something special."
In an awesome display the players from both sides produced a spot-kick master-class in one of the finest penalty shoot-outs ever and McDonald revealed just how tense the whole occasion was "There is pressure when you go second. But ask the United boys about that. They were under pressure themselves." he said "Every time they scored we had to answer them. It's nerve-racking just watching it, never mind having to take a penalty. So I'm delighted to get though after all that. It was the first shoot-out of my career where I had to hit two penalties."
"We all have to step up and I've missed penalties before in games." continued McDonald. "We missed some early in the season but it looks like we've sorted that out now. Both teams' penalties were top quality. Finishing was tremendous under a lot of pressure. It's hard when it goes on that long because nobody deserves to lose. We are just grateful we got through. Now want to win the trophy. It's been a while since we've had an Old Firm final - six years I'm told - and that will be great for the players and fans. It's something to look forward to and it will be fantastic. I hope it's as good spectacle - on a good pitch."
Press speculation linking Celtic with Willo Flood, the Cardiff City midfielder currently on loan for a second year at Dundee United, meant that the spotlight would be on the Dubliner anyway but when he missed with his second spot-kick he was placed firmly in the glare. McDonald had every sympathy for the unfortunate Flood "He's a talented footballer and wherever he goes, he'll do well. I'm sure he will recover and get a good reception after this." said the Celtic number seven "It was a tough game in tough conditions but both sides tried to get forward and played some good football on a bad surface. We were told beforehand not to get frustrated if things didn't go for us and the boys did that. Hampden is bigger than I remember it and that was a runaround when Rangers beat Motherwell in a final a few years ago. I hope I can get a winners' medal this time."