Football Round-Up: Celtic fans stage Parkhead boycott
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Your support makes all the difference.CELTIC fans' growing disgust with events at their club was reflected at the turnstiles last night when thousands opted to stay away from Parkhead for the visit of Kilmarnock. A modest crowd, recorded as 10,882 although many departed early at the request of supporters' associations, were treated to a surprise in each half: first a fox raced the length of the field and then John Collins's last-minute free-kick gave Celtic victory, writes Henry Winter.
A boycott of the Scottish Premier League match had been called to signal fans' anger over Celtic's financial plight. Elsewhere in the Premier Division, Mo Johnston scored Hearts' goals in their 2-0 success at Dundee, whose neighbours fared better in the Scottish Cup at Fir Park. The Dundee United defender, Brian Welsh, found the Motherwell net from 20 yards to set up a quarter-final at Airdrie.
Andy Payton, the former Celtic striker, gave Barnsley the lead at Meadow Lane last night but Notts County recovered in style to prevail 3-1, their seventh win in nine First Division matches. Mark Draper added to his burgeoning reputation with two goals - a close-range effort and a middle-distance header - as County climbed above their neighbours, Nottingham Forest, into seventh.
In the Second Division, Cardiff City also went behind at home before picking up maximum points. The relegation-threatened club's 2-1 victory over fifth-placed Burnley was secured by Garry Thompson, with a brilliant left-foot strike, and Phil Stant. Cardiff rise two positions, to sixth from bottom. Port Vale were lifted to within two points of Burnley following their stalemate with Bradford.
It was an evening of mixed fortunes for those striving to reach the Second Division: Chester City, 1-0 victors over Gillingham, slipped into second behind Crewe Alexandra while Shrewsbury Town fell to third following a surprise 2-1 home defeat to mid-table Lincoln City. Within a win of the Gay Meadow club are Preston North End, who ascended into fourth with a comfortable 3-0 win over Hereford, Tony Ellis scoring twice to take his tally to 26.
In Europe, Norwich's conquerors, Internazionale, appear on course for the Uefa Cup semi-finals after winning the first leg, at Borussia Dortmund, 3-1. Wim Jonk, considered the makeweight in the Dennis Bergkamp deal, netted twice and Igor Shalimov added the third. In another quarter-final, Juventus lost 1-0 at Cagliari, for whom Julio Dely Valdes did the damage.
In the Cup-Winners' Cup, Benfica were surprisingly held 1-1 at home by Bayer Leverkusen. A crowd of 85,000 were forced to sweat until the final minute before Isaias equalised.
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