Stephen Robinson hit out at Celtic after their late 1-0 win on Flag Day at Celtic Park, claiming the champions were wasting time after snatching victory in the closing minutes.
The Hoops had plenty of chances to win it earlier but couldn’t make them count, with St Mirren defending strongly and frustrating Brendan Rodgers’ side for most of the afternoon.
McCowan, coming off the bench, finally made the breakthrough to the relief of the home crowd, but Robinson felt his team deserved more after holding Celtic for so long.
He said: (RecordSport), “It was disappointing because we lost to a deflection.
“I think our level of performance showed that Celtic were trying to waste time in the last five minutes of the game. That showed the level of threat that we were posing at that stage.
“Defensively, I thought we were superb, very, very well organised. People use that as a slight against St Mirren sometimes, but that is one of the basics of management, get your team organised.
“We said we would have five or six opportunities to break and we did. Some we picked the right option, some we didn’t. Yeah, it is disappointing to lose to a deflection. If somebody had scored from 25 yards you hold your hands up. But they didn’t.”
Despite Robinson’s frustration, Celtic can be pleased with the way they kept going until the end. Rodgers’ side had to stay patient before finally breaking down a St Mirren defence that stayed organised and hard to break for most of the match.
The narrow score line didn’t reflect the number of chances created, and better finishing would have made for a more comfortable afternoon.
It’s also clear that new signings are needed if Celtic are to match the quality lost in recent months. The departures of Kyogo Furuhashi and Nicolas Kühn have left gaps in the forward areas, and the current squad will need fresh attacking options to hit the same heights.
St Mirren can take pride in their shape and work rate, even if the late goal was a bitter blow. Robinson’s men gave little away for most of the game and looked dangerous on the break when the chance came.
In the end, Celtic start their title defence with three points on Flag Day, while St Mirren are left wondering what could have been after keeping the champions out until the dying minutes.
