The clock is ticking and the fourth official is fiddling with his board. The scoreboard isn’t budging – but neither are any of the fans.
Ange Postecoglou might have brought his We Never Stop mantra to Parkhead, but the Celtic boss didn’t invent it. The Hoops have a long tradition of playing until the final whistle and often punishing teams who are starting to believe they are on the verge of a result, only to have the rug pulled out from under them in the dying moments. Billy Stark’s Celtic side that won the double in the club’s centenary season made a name for themselves thanks to late, late shows, and the Hoops hero reckon the current crop have a similar handy knack for pouncing when the buses are revved up and ready to go.
And the Scotland youth boss believes SPFL rivals might be in for some more overtime if some of the World Cup guidelines are rolled out in Scotland. Matches in Qatar have regularly rumbled on past 95 minutes – and there’s even been more than a few smashing the 100 minute barrier as officials clamped down on time wasting.
That could spell bad news for some Scottish sides who already fear the worse when games against Celts creep into the latter stages.
Stark’s Celts are famous after late winners in the Scottish Cup against Hearts and Dundee United, on the back of similar crucial strikes in the league against the likes of Morton, United and Rangers.
This season Celtic have pounced in stoppage time to seal wins against St Johnstone and Dundee United – but they’d also grabbed an incredible 18 goals after the 75 minute mark in matches.
More added time might mean more trouble – and it would have certainly saved Celts some hassle back in 1988.
Stark said: “I think we would have won games more comfortably if we had the added time like we’ve seen at the World Cup!
“It would have been less stressful, that’s for sure.
“It will be interesting to see how that plays out in Scotland and if we see the eight, nine and 10 minutes of injury time.
“A few teams will be thinking that’s the last thing they need against this Celtic team.
“They’ve scored a lot of goals late on. They managed to find a way to win games and that’s what you need if you are going to have success over the course of the season.
“We managed to get a few late goals that season and the ones in the Scottish Cup semi-final and Final as well to clinch the double.
“We never came up with the phrase ‘We never stop’ but that was the case with our team as well.
“The Centenary season was a real rollercoaster and the late goals were a feature.”
Stark knows what it takes to notch late – he played a key role in Frank MacAvennie’s late winner in the Scottish Cup Final against Dundee United – and he insisted it’s not luck if it happens time and time again.
It takes a whole lot of ingredients to pull it off repeatedly – and these results are massive when it comes to sorting out the winners and losers over a campaign.
The Scotland youth supremo said: “When you get these late goals in games where it might not seem like you are going to get there, it really galvanises everyone and it keeps up the momentum.
“When you look at the qualities of certain teams there are a lot of things that come into it. There are lots of teams who don’t quite have the ability to get over the line when it matters.
“It’s a combination of things. There’s an element of luck but there’s so much else as well.
“It’s down to the quality in the team and squad, the ability to change things or bring on players who can make a difference.
“You add in fitness as well, and that’s crucial. These are all important, but also a lot is down to mentality.
“You need to have that belief that it will come eventually. That comes from the manager.
“Looking at our squad, we also had chemistry. Big Billy was a tremendous manager and personality and he was brilliant at bringing in players who could supplement the legends who were already at the club.
“People remember the on the pitch stuff but a lot of that spirit was down to the off the pitch atmosphere.
“It was tough and everyone worked hard, but it was also laugh-a-minute in that dressing room.”
Stark is looking forward to a barnstorming return to Premiership action this weekend with Celtic facing another of his old clubs Aberdeen at Pittodrie.
The Dons know all about the Hoops hitting late after last season.
Celts looked like spilling points on both trips other last term, but they recovered after letting a two goal lead slip to win 3-2 in February on the back of another title turning victory the previous September.
Postecoglou was under pressure after a bumpy start to the campaign but Jota nabbed a winner with just six minutes to go to set Celts off on a run that would deliver the title.
Stark said: “That game last season was a big victory and when you look back there are certain key moments that are seen as turning points.
“It’s always one of the big fixtures on the Scottish calendar and there have been some great games over the years.
“Aberdeen have evolved this season and they have been impressive at home. They will be a big test.
“We had a 1-0 win up at Pittodrie in the centenary season when McAvennie stepped in to score from a tight angle.
“I remember (assistant boss) Tommy Craig saying when it comes to winning championships, there’s always a number of 1-0 wins when you’ve maybe not been at your best but you’ve been resilient and taken the chances when they’ve come – whether it’s the first minute or last.”
