Match Report -
Worksop swept aside
By Iain Benson
Celtic produced a good display to sweep aside a poor Worksop outfit that rarely troubled the Celtic goal. At first, it looked as though it was going to be one of those games, when the referee denied a clear handball in the box, and then gave a goal kick for a blatant corner.

However, Celtic were rampant all over the pitch, and Winn decided to chance his arm in the swirling winds with a distance shot that Wilson in the visitors nets did well to parry, unfortunately for him, Sykes had been following in, and tapped the loose ball into the net. Sykes continued his good performance as he skipped past Simpkins who retaliated by scything Sykes down just outside the box, he got booked and Worksop escaped as Maxfield's free kick sailed out for a goal kick.

Ellington knocked down a Turley flick on, Sykes drove the ball towards goal producing a good save from the keeper. From the corner, Haran nodded down to Parr, who lifted the ball a little too high. Black overlapped Brodie and whipped in a good cross that Ellington nodded narrowly wide as Celtic found acres of space around the Worksop back line. Though when Simpkins yanked Ellington off his feet just outside the box, it was a return to form as Worksop got a free kick; had it gone the other way Simpkins would have been off.

Nicholson added to Worksop's card tally when he slid through Turley just outside the box, dead centre. Ellington took the free kick whilst Turley was receiving treatment, the wall (less than ten yards away), blocked the shot, conceding a corner. Turley was allowed on for the corner, so Maxfield put the ball to him, he slid it through the packed box to Ellington, who swept the ball into the net with a deflection after it had already passed the keeper.

Ex-Celtic winger Norton was on for the visitors, and he did have marginal success down the left wing, and towards the end of the half, he fired off a shot from distance that went under Haran's outstretched leg, but Pettinger was behind it all the way.

Turley then got the ball in the goal as Parr put him in, and he back-heeled it past Wilson, only for the offside flag to rule it out.

The second half started with Celtic more pedestrian looking, and though Ellington found enough space to fire off a good shot and force Wilson into a good save, Worksop looked more likely to score, and Crane got enough space to force Pettinger into a routine catch. Not so when a poor clearance fell to Norton and with only Pettinger to beat he hit the bar.

Perhaps it was a wake up call, as Celtic picked up a bit, and Brodie put Ellington into the box, only for Donney to stretch out a leg and put Ellington's shot out for a corner. Ellington then latched onto a loose ball in the box, fed it out to Winn whose powerful shot across the face only needed a touch to increase Celtic's lead.

A third was coming, and it had to come from Ellington who?d been pivotal in the front line, this time sliding the ball into the path of Brodie to put him one-on-one with Wilson, it was only the deftest of touches, changing the direction of the ball past the keeper.

Worksop were looking more like a side, and after Winn left the wall early during a free kick, and then did it again on the re-take, he got a yellow card. On the third attempt, Crane curled the ball wide.

Sykes won a corner out of nothing, and Hume forced Wilson into lifting the ball out for a second corner that Maxfield tried to cheekily curl in from the flag, but Wilson punched that for a third corner that Celtic couldn't convert.

One ex-Celt replaced another when Parton came on for Norton, and his first touch was to win a corner with Haran blocking his shot. Pettinger punched the corner as far as Thompson who struck a good shot and forced fine block from Pettinger.

Ellington could have increased Celtic's lead still further as the game went to the last few minutes. A fine low cross by Black was met by Ellington on the six yard line, but he lifted it over the bar. This was not to be the miss of the game though as Owens angled in from the sidelined and forced an excellent save from Pettinger, the ball rebounding out to Parton who lifted the ball to the unmarked Crane by the back post. With an empty net, Crane nodded the ball wide.

The win lifts Celtic to sixth in the table, still in touch with early season leader's Blyth Spartans (a team we?ve already beaten).

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