Celtic 4 Ross County 0:A Gary Hooper brace after the break helped Celtic romp to victory over Ross County in their Clydesdale Bank Premier League clash at Parkhead.
The home side dominated the first half with Staggies goalkeeper Mark Brown forced into several saves, although former Celtic man Rocco Quinn and Alex Cooper both missed great opportunities for the visitors.
However, when Celtic skipper Brown struck a minute after the interval the Highlanders’ resistance was broken, and Hooper helped himself to two classic poacher’s goals before substitute James Forrest capped his return to action after being out since October with a hamstring injury by grabbing the fourth.
The Scottish champions were drawn against Italian giants Juventus in the last-16 of the Champions League on Thursday, but the exciting prospect of those games to be played in February and March did not spill over into this pre-Christmas fixture, especially in the first 45 minutes when a half-filled Celtic Park was subdued.
However, manager Neil Lennon will have been happier with his side’s ruthlessness in the second period as the moved five points ahead of Inverness at the top of the table.
:quality(70)/cloudfront-eu-central-1.images.arcpublishing.com/irishtimes/YVIRIOZQ35EWRPZXR27KGMO6YU.png)