SOCCER: A Shunsuke Nakamura hat-trick and a Scott Brown double gave rampant Celtic a 7-0 victory against 10-man St Mirren to send them within four goals of Rangers at the top of the Clydesdale Bank Scottish Premier League.
Buddies defender Jack Ross was sent off in the first half at 1-0 for a penalty-box foul on Scott McDonald with St Mirren 'keeper Chris Smith saving Jan Vennegoor of Hesselink's spot-kick, but that failed to dampen the enthusiasm of the champions who put in their most productive 90 minutes of the season.
Nakamura's first-half double had given Celtic a comfortable lead but they ran riot after the break, scoring five, with Spanish midfielder Marc Crosas grabbing his first goal and Saints' John Potter scoring an own goal to complete a nightmare afternoon for the visitors.
Celtic joined Rangers on 60 points and closed in on their Ibrox rivals' goal difference after Walter Smith's men only scrape past Hamilton 1-0 earlier in the day thanks to a Barry Ferguson goal.
The Rangers captain was born and raised in the Lanarkshire town but, with the title race so close, there was no room for nostalgia as he grabbed his first goal of the season.
Ferguson had not found the back of the net since May last year but picked the ideal opportunity to rediscover his goalscoring touch.
An under-strength Hearts moved five points clear in third as Michael Stewart fired the only goal away to top-four rivals Dundee United.
Hearts played without a recognised striker for the whole match, but Stewart drove home a 62nd-minute winner with their only shot on target.
United were handed a lifeline in the shape of a controversial late penalty, but Janos Balogh saved Francisco Sandaza's poor effort.
Aberdeen dropped two precious points in their bid to qualify for Europe in a disappointing goalless draw with Kilmarnock at Pittodrie - and they nearly finished empty-handed.
Darren Mackie had a goal chalked off for offside and Javan Vidal shot wide in a painfully dull first period of the Clydesdale Bank Premier League tussle.
But the visitors had the better openings in the second half with Jamie Hamill being denied excellently by Jamie Langfield before Craig Bryson hammered the ball off the post.
Motherwell extended their unbeaten run in the league to nine games with a 2-1 victory at bottom club Inverness.
An error by Ryan Esson enabled John Sutton to put the visitors 1-0 up but Caley were level before half-time through a Grant Munro goal.
Cillian Sheridan, on loan to Motherwell from Celtic, grabbed the winner eight minutes into the second period.
Hibernian and Falkirk did little to ease the pressure on their respective managers Mixu Paatelainen and John Hughes in an Easter Road stalemate.
Both teams have found wins hard to come by lately and this was a result that neither wanted.
The visitors created the better chances and Inverness' defeat meant they eased two points clear of their relegation rivals.
However, the Hibernian fans made their own frustration clear as boos sounded around Easter Road at full-time, with the home side slipping further behind in the race for a top-six finish.
Scottish Premier League Results
Aberdeen 0 Kilmarnock 0
Celtic 7 St Mirren 0
Dundee Utd 0 Hearts 1
Hamilton 0 Rangers 1
Hibernian 0 Falkirk 0
Inverness CT 1 Motherwell 2
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