Accies boss tell squad not to be 'overawed' by Celtic

Oct 22 2009

BILLY REID knows Hamilton face a very tough game when Celtic come calling on Sunday but urged his players not to be overawed by the multi-million pound opposition.
Having watched the Parkhead side stutter to a 0-0 draw at home to Motherwell last weekend,
while Rangers struggled to dump St Johnstone 2-1 in Perth, Reid knows the Old Firm are not invincible.
“We know what Celtic are capable of,” he said. “They’ve got guys like Aiden McGeady, Shaun Maloney, Georgios Samaras and Scott McDonald, who are all quality players, but I would say to our guys not to be frightened against opposition like that.
“Stand up and be counted and don’t let the game pass you by. Quite often, in a televisedgame, if you don’t start properly it can be over before you know it.
“We need our guys to take responsibility on the ball, create chances and defend properly.”
Reid added: “I don’t think there is a fear factor for us. If you look at everybody’s record against the Old Firm it hasn’t been great –Aberdeen haven’t won at Ibrox since 1991 and that tells you how hard it can be.
“We’ve beaten every team in the SPL except for Rangers and Celtic, and when we played Celtic at home the last time I think we maybe deserved to take something from the game.
“The pressure is on Celtic on Sunday but we’re the home side and we need to take the
game to them.
“They will be dangerous. They won’t have been happy at not scoring on Saturday, particularly at home, and they took a bit of stick from their supporters, so they’ll be trying to get the three points.
“In recent times, it seems like teams are picking up points against both of the Old Firm though, so they’re not invincible. We hope Celtic misfire and we play to our potential.”
Reid admitted his frustration at taking only a point from Saturday’s clash with DundeeUnited at Tannadice. In a situation that echoed last season’s trip to
Tayside, Hamilton led through a Mickael Antoine- Curier goal only to be pegged back in the last of FIVE MINUTES of stoppage time.
Reid said: “A draw was probably fair but we went so close to a win and with a really goodperformance as well. “It was frustrating for us and I don’t know where the officials got five minutes of extra time. We certainly don’t get that when we’re chasing a game. It gave them a big lift as soon
as that board went up. But it was a fantastic performance from us and showed that we can do well against teams like Dundee United.”
Captain Alex Neil resumed full training this week for the first time since undergoing surgery during the summer. James Gibson also successfully underwent surgery to repair ligament damage.
● Fans are reminded that Sunday’s match,
which is live on ESPN, kicks off at 12.30pm -
and that clocks go back by an hour at 2am on
Sunday!