Ross and Tanser goals give Falkirk 2-0 win over Celtic
Falkirk beat Celtic 2-0 at Falkirk Stadium with two first-half goals, reversing the result of the sides' August meeting.
By Harvey Watkins,
Falkirk beat Celtic 2-0 at Falkirk Stadium on Sunday, with both goals arriving in the first half. Ethan Ross scored in the third minute and Scott Tanser added the second in the 38th. The score did not change after that.
The result reversed the outcome of the sides' previous meeting this season, when Celtic won 2-1 on 29 August.
An early lead
Ross's goal came almost before the match had settled. A lead inside three minutes changes the shape of an afternoon in a way few other events can. It gave Falkirk something to protect for the remaining 87 minutes and left Celtic needing to score simply to draw level, with almost the whole match still to play.
Tanser doubles it before the break
Tanser's goal seven minutes before half-time was arguably the more significant of the two. One goal is a lead; two is a cushion. It meant Celtic went into the interval needing two goals just to take a point, and it came late enough in the half that there was little time left to respond before the break.
A goalless second half
Nothing was added after the 38th minute. That is more than 50 minutes of football, plus stoppage time, in which Celtic did not find a way back. Falkirk kept a clean sheet, and the two-goal margin held to the end. A goalless second half can be read in more than one way, and the scoreline alone does not say which. What it does show is that Falkirk's lead was never cut.
Set against August
When the sides met on 29 August, Celtic won 2-1. Falkirk scored that day but finished on the wrong side of a one-goal margin. On Sunday they scored twice and conceded none. Across the two meetings this season, the sides have a win apiece, and Falkirk lead 3-2 on goals.
Two matches are a small sample, and each was played at a different ground, so it would be unwise to draw firm conclusions about the balance between these sides. What can be said is that Falkirk have now scored in both meetings this season, and have conceded only twice across the two.
What it adds up to
The MatchDay 12 result is a single win, and it should be treated as one. But it is a clear one: a two-goal margin, both goals before half-time, and no reply. For Falkirk, it showed that the August defeat was not the final word on this fixture. For Celtic, it was a first defeat to Falkirk this season, and an afternoon on which they did not score at all.