Bury had a massive let off to take Celtic back to Gigg Lane on Tuesday night, when Celtic came within inches of taking the tie.

Celtic started strongly, keeping Bury on the back foot for the opening twenty minutes. Indeed, Liam Tongue almost caught Mitch Allen napping in the Bury goal, when he took an acute angled shot in the opening minute. Jack Tinning caused the visiting defence a world of problems, winning every header on set pieces, including one requiring a sharp save from Allen. After Jack Irlam had fired wide of the mark, Bury got an opportunity and took it. A long ball into the path of Kai Evans and the winger didn’t need asking twice, bursting past two defenders to beat the offside trap and go one-on-one. Before Charlie Monks could set himself, the ball flew past into the top corner. The only other chances of the half fell Celtic’s way, but Tinning twice more steered headers goalwards and Irlam went agonisingly close volleying in Ruben Jerome’s cross. It looked like another game of one mistake and one goal and out.

But then, right at the start of the second half, yet another Louis Isherwood foul around the box, and Irlam took it. He found the eye of a needle putting the ball in the back of the net. Jerome curled his effort over the bar, while Irlam beat the offside trap, but Allen came well out of his box to narrow the angle. Irlam tried an audacious thirty-five lob, missing by mere inches. Bury ground out the remainder of the match, taking the tie back to Gigg Lane on Tuesday, and whilst Bury might sigh in thanks, Celtic might rue that narrow miss.