Celtic 4 - 0 Hamilton Academical: Rotation, Rotation, Rotation. Gordon Strachan�s well-intentioned attempt to shuffle his pack folded like a house of cards after 20 seconds.

Rotation, Rotation, Rotation. Gordon Strachan's well-intentioned attempt to shuffle his pack folded like a house of cards after 20 seconds.

The Celtic manager replaced top-scorer Georgios Samaras with Jan Vennegoor of Hesselink for the visit of Hamilton, but the Dutchman injured an adductor muscle in his first challenge of the match and could now be sidelined for up to a month. The loss of the striker is a major blow to Celtic with a trip to Manchester United in the Champions League looming.

Aside from the early setback, Strachan's changes worked. Lee Naylor was injured rather than rotated but Barry Robson proved an able deputy at left back. Robson is the type of committed, uncomplicated player that every manager must crave in their squad. Hamilton's failure to trouble Celtic in the final third meant the former Dundee United midfielder had minimal defensive duties, but motored up and down the flank at every opportunity. With a raft of midfielders jostling for starting spots at Parkhead, Robson's adaptability could prove to be his greatest asset. "I want to play in midfield but if the manager wants me to play anywhere then I'll happily do it. It's quite straightforward for me," said Robson.

Strachan also restored Scott McDonald, last season's top scorer, to the team and was vindicated with a goal and a decent all-round performance. The Australian has been criticised for being out of shape this season and responded by lifting his shirt and patting his stomach following his second-half strike. This incident, meant to be a show of defiance, actually proved to be unintentionally amusing as the little striker's midriff could hardly be described as a rippling six-pack.

As long as he keeps scoring, however, no-one cares. "How can you give him stick? He scored 31 goals last year and the season has barely started," said Robson. "People say he looks heavy but, believe me, Scotty isn't heavy. He's a strong wee guy and he will bang loads of goals in. He's a top player, a good lad and there's no concerns there at all."

Samaras' 37th minute strike, Celtic's second, was his tenth goal in 11 games. "Big Sammy has done great as well," said Robson. "He can be anything he wants to be when he gets going. He scored again and he is looking good. I thought we were outstanding. All over the pitch we were on our game. Give credit to Hamilton, it's the first time they've come to a big stage like this, but we concentrated on our own game and I thought every player on that pitch played well."

Middle to front, Celtic were intermittently devastating. With Shunsuke Nakamura on the left and Aiden McGeady on the right - who scored Celtic's first and fourth respectively - Celtic bristled with invention and easily dismantled Hamilton. The dynamic between Marc Crosas and Scott Brown in central midfield also looked promising. The young Spaniard has a deft touch and is an accurate passer, qualities also shown by forgotten man Massimo Donati this time last year. Although it is too early to judge, initial indications suggest that Crosas is a much more aggressive, forceful character than the Italian.

Brown also looks to be maturing into a more rounded midfielder. The 22-year-old retains possession much better than he has ever done and appears to have shed some of the belligerence that has hampered his game in the past. If he can start to build more of the surging runs and dynamism of the past back into his game then he will start to reach his full potential.

Hamilton, meanwhile, were a forlorn bunch. Billy Reid's team started well but their inablity to retain possession undermined their attempts to make a game of it. It is 20 years since Hamilton last pitched up at Celtic Park. Some of their players were not even born then and it was the inexperienced core who suffered most. Young midfielder James McArthur failed to make any impression and compounded a miserable afternoon when he missed a second-half penalty, a soft award following Gary Caldwell's challenge on James McCarthy.

"I think that just summed up James McArthur's day. In the first month of the season he was the Young Player of the Month," reflected Reid. "He's gutted down there. It's probably the worst game he has ever played for me. That happens in football and he has got to pick himself up. He has a huge future and it's a learning curve for him as well. That's the first real going-over we have had and I include Falkirk last week a 4-1 defeat, because that certainly wasn't the case. But we need to stop the flood of goals."

Alex Neil, the Hamilton captain, challenged his team-mates to learn from their chastening experience. "Today has shown, not just the young boys, but the team in general, how far away we are. I'm always one to big everyone up, but I'm not going to do that when we perform like that.

Hopefully this will show a few people in the team how far away we are from teams like Celtic. We have to buck up our ideas. Everybody has been taking the plaudits, but now it's time to knuckle down and not rest on our laurels."