Celtic B completed an impressive comeback victory in the Lowland League on Wednesday night, rallying from a goal down to triumph 2-1 over Bo’ness United at the Penny Cars Stadium.
Despite a bright start from the young Hoops, Tobi Oluwayemi had to be on his toes early in proceedings to keep out an effort inside the area from the visitors against the run of play.
Bo’ness continued to threaten, once again calling the Celtic goalkeeper into action, as a scramble from a corner kick resulted in a right footed strike going straight down the throat of Oluwayemi from around eight yards out.
Celtic then began to dominate possession and were extremely unlucky not to take the lead. From a Bruno Davidson whipped cross, Ben Quinn unselfishly headed the ball into the path of Tsoanelo Letsosa, who saw his close-range effort with his right foot effort tipped around the post in impressive fashion by Musa Dibaga.
Corey Thomson had a strike that went wide of the target, while the lively Letsosa fired a long-range shot off the mark before the first half drew to a close.
Celtic were struggling to break a determined Bo’ness rearguard before the interval in a relatively low key encounter, though the second-half was soon to produce its fair share of drama.
Half-time: Celtic 0-0 Caledonian Braves
Both sides upped the intensity in the second 45 minutes as they aimed to open the scoring. Tsoanelo Letsosa made a good run into the box to get on the end of a Matthew Anderson cutback, only to see his side-footed attempt fly a good bit over the bar.
Bo’ness possessed a notable threat on the counter attack and went agonisingly close to taking the advantage, with a cross ball from Jamie Hamilton being slammed off the crossbar by Alassan Jones on the 54th minute.
Celtic also had a good chance to break the deadlock on the hour, though Joey Dawson couldn’t beat Musa Dibaga one on one following some positive approach play from Corey Thomson.
Zander Miller should’ve converted after he breached the Celtic backline; however, he fluffed his lines from six yards as Tobi Oluwayemi managed to close the angle on the striker.
Nevertheless, Bo’ness took the lead on the 74th minute, as a long ball evaded the Hoops backline and made its way to Alassan Jones, who cushioned the ball before executing a ruthless volley to put his side a goal to the good.
Corey Thomson nearly levelled with a curling effort not long after before Ben Quinn latched onto a deflected through ball in the 78th minute and tied the score at 1-1 with a clinical finish low into the corner.
Celtic rallied and indeed went on to secure all three points on the 84th minute, with Ben Quinn picking up the ball and jinking past the Bo’ness defence and slotting home with his left foot to grant his side a deserved victory.
Next up, Celtic B take on Edinburgh University in Airdrie on Saturday as they aim to climb the table further.
Man of the match: Ben Quinn
Ben Quinn was by far and away the best player on the park, constantly getting the better of his marker to create promising openings for Celtic.
Ultimately, his two excellent goals claimed three points for the young Hoops, which will delight managerial duo Stephen McManus and Darren O’Dea.
