James Forrest’s last-minute equaliser against St Mirren last weekend was the highlight of Trophy Day.
With the strike, the winger became the first player in club history to score in 16 consecutive seasons, rounding off title day with a bit of history and sending Celtic Park into raptures.
It wasn’t a vintage performance from Celtic by any means, and they looked to be slipping to a rare home defeat before Forrest, wearing the number 49, popped up in the 49th minute of the second half to find the net.
Brendan Rodgers admitted he and the rest of the squad were desperate for Forrest to score.
“I was so happy,” he told the BBC.
“My first spell here, he was great. Coming back, obviously there were other players ahead of him now. But what he showed last year, he was a real catalyst.
“Him and Adam [Idah] made a real catalyst for us from February onwards. Everyone probably wanted him to score more than he did. He wanted to score, but he’s still doing it.
“I’m watching him in the game. He’s still doing all the right things. He’s going on the outside. He’s dinking it up for players. He’s cutting it back. He was doing everything unselfishly to the point where I thought, I want him to get a goal.
“So I actually moved him to the left. I’m trying to get him on the left so he can cut in and maybe get a shot and combine and have a better chance to score. But it wasn’t really happening for him.
“So I moved him back to the right again. Luckily, he gets the goal. But he’s just a brilliant player.
“Like I said, for him it wouldn’t really have bothered if he scored or not. But it was so nice. And the noise in the stadium was amazing.”
Forrest had already made an impact in the game, delivering some dangerous balls into the box and showing his usual willingness to work. But the goal, his first of the season, was the crowning moment, a well-struck finish low into the corner that left Zach Hemming no chance.
The noise that followed was as loud as anything all season, louder than Champions League nights.
After all he’s achieved, Forrest still has the knack for delivering when it matters.
He’ll be looking to help win the treble this season, but he won’t be stopping there, already having one eye on next season.
