A serene Easter Sunday started for Celtic with their third guard of honour in-a-row, but it ended in controversy amid chaotic scenes in the Highlands, as they were denied victory by a piece of blatant cheating before their captain lost his head and very nearly lost his place in next weekend’s Scottish Cup semi-final against Rangers. An appeal, which at best can be described as tactical though, will save him from that fate.

Frustrations were at boiling point as Alex Schalk conned a late penalty out of referee Don Robertson that let Liam Boyce draw Ross County level at two goals apiece. A skirmish between Scott Brown and Boyce earlier in the game was clearly still on the Celtic skipper’s mind as he then thundered into a needless, and frankly stupid, challenge on the goalscorer that deserved the punishment meted out by Robertson.

It had all seemed to be going so well for the champions as Kieran Tierney got the ball rolling before the break with his second of the season, but the defender’s joy had been replaced by anger by the end of the afternoon. Tierney knows from bitter experience what it feels like to be on the end of such a decision.

Read more: Scott Brown free to face Rangers as Easter holiday delays SFA appeal hearingThe Herald:

“I knew straight it away it was a dive,” Tierney said. “It was the same kind of thing with Jamie Walker when we played Hearts in the first game of the season. But this incident was more obvious.

“I think Walker was banned for it but it’s obviously not up to me. It should be the same rule for every player.

“It’s not a nice part of the game, you can expect contact but you’re not going to go down if there’s no contact. It’s as simple as that.

“If it’s a striker’s prerogative to do that then everyone would be falling about. Whenever you get close to people in games you need to stay on your feet but if someone gets too close then, fair enough

“I couldn’t believe it when the referee gave the penalty, everyone was so surprised.

“The linesman had a great view and was standing straight in line with it, but obviously not.”

Michael Gardyne’s first equaliser for Ross County all seemed so long ago, the midfielder hitting back early in the second half with what remarkably was his first of the campaign.

Celtic had appeared to dispel whatever mild concern that had caused them as Patrick Roberts climbed off the bench to put them back in front, before they lost the lead late on through Schalk’s comical dive and then lost the plot as it all kicked off.

Read more: Scott Brown free to face Rangers as Easter holiday delays SFA appeal hearing

The game had been regarded as a chance to run through their lines for Celtic ahead of next weekend’s Scottish Cup semi-final against Rangers, so it was something of a surprise to see them line up in an unfamiliar formation with three at the back and James Forrest and Callum McGregor serving as wing-backs. Not that they did much defending.

The new set-up didn’t seem to knock the champions out of their stride, and the opening to the game resembled a keep-ball session for the visitors, but apart from one scramble in the County area where Moussa Dembele and Forrest wasted opportunities to convert, there was little goalmouth action to speak of.

Just when it looked as though the game would limp languidly towards the break though, Tierney pierced the Highland tranquility with a fierce strike that might have ended up in Inverness had it not been for the intervention of the net.

The ball was fed along the edge of the County area, where Tom Rogic eventually laid it into the path of the young defender. He took a touch, looked up, then unleashed the proverbial daisy-cutter that flew beyond Scott Fox before he had even moved.

The visiting fans were in fine voice at the start of the second half as they awaited the seemingly inevitable glut of goals that would follow for their favourites, but the home side put their gas at a peep five minutes after the restart with a brilliantly-taken equaliser.

Ryan Dow got the ball wide on the left and put an inch-perfect in-swinging cross over Erik Sviatchenko and onto the head of Gardyne, all five-foot-five of him, and his glancing effort flew past Gordon and in via the underside of the bar.

The passive County approach was replaced by a higher press and a greater desire to compete, and suddenly it was game on. Two County corners in quick succession caused mayhem in the Celtic area, and Gordon had to look lively to deny first Andrew Davies and then Boyce.

Brendan Rodgers responded on the hour by hooking the ineffective Rogic and Dembele, with Cristian Gamboa and Leigh Griffiths brought into the fray and a more familiar four in defence being deployed.

Read more: Scott Brown free to face Rangers as Easter holiday delays SFA appeal hearing

Roberts was also soon with us with Forrest making way, and it was he who would make the biggest impact, weaving into the box on the right before opening up his body and curling the ball beyond Fox.

Stuart Armstrong crashed a free-kick off the bar as Celtic looked to put a seal on the win, but then came the late drama as referee Robertson was duped into awarding County one of the most ridiculous spot-kicks you are likely to see.

The ball was fed into the forward, but as both he and Sviatchenko stretched for it, the Celtic defender noticeably pulled out of the challenge. Schalk threw himself to the ground in any case, and he got the award he didn’t deserve. Boyce was cool as he converted, but Brown was anything but moments later.

“I sort of knew that someone was coming, and I was waiting until the last second to try and get out of the way to buy a free-kick and take the pressure off,” said his victim, Boyce.

“Once I flicked it though I just felt like I’d been hit by a bus, and I looked down and my sock was ripped and my leg is really swollen now.

“These things build up in a game and I think he might have been a wee bit frustrated with the way things went and it has just happened.

“I had fouled him and Alex had fouled him straight after, and maybe he was angry at the decision as well and things have just boiled over.”

Brown must be wondering now, after the red mist has faded, whether his act of vengeance on the County striker was really worth risking his place for next Sunday. I would wager not.

ROSS COUNTY: Fox; Fraser, Davies, Van Der Weg; Naismith, Chow, Dow, Gardyne (Franks, 88’), Tumilty (Schalk, 80’); O’Brien (Routis, 82’); Boyce.

Scorers: Gardyne (50’), Boyce (pen. 87’)

Booked: O’Brien (80’)

CELTIC: Gordon; Simunovic, Sviatchenko, Tierney; McGregor, Brown, Rogic (Gamboa, 60’); Forrest (Roberts, 67’), Armstrong, Sinclair; Dembele (Griffiths, 60’).

Scorers: Tierney (34’), Roberts (78’)

Booked: Simunovic (87’)

Sent off: Brown (90’)

Referee: Don Robertson

Attendance: 6205