A high class hat-trick took Leigh Griffiths to the top of treble chasing Celtic's scoring charts for the season last night and illuminated what had been a drab Premiership encounter.

 

Brought on only after his colleagues had laboured their way back to level-pegging after conceding a shock lead to Kilmarnock the first time the visitors had shown any sort of threat, he put them into the lead in 65 minutes and completed the scoring just 19 minutes later, the result by then beyond the slightest doubt.

It was a match that was everything Ronnie Deila,the Celtic manager, had anticipated as it became clear from the earliest stages that his side was likely to have to show patience since, if Kilmarnock had ever intended to play with the ambition Gary Locke was promising immediately ahead of the match it did not really look that way, most notably with Josh Magennis on their right and Tope Obadeyi on their left looking far more intent on getting back to help their defensive colleagues than giving Lee Miller much in the way of company.

While John Guidetti looked determined to impose himself on proceedings and Nir Bitton came close to crafting openings as he stroked the ball there was contrast to that in Kris Commons' disappointing distribution, while the touch of James Forrest, Scott Brown and even Johansen was letting them down when glimmers of openings arose.

True opportunities were few and far between, Guidetti wasting a free kick he had won 20 yards out by hitting it into the wall while, as he started to find his range, an in-swinging Commons cross from the right was just beyond the in-rushing Forrest.

Forrest and Emilio Izaguirre were also beginning to combine better down the left and when the full-back met his colleague's pass at the byline on left, his cross found Scott Brown in the clear but the captain was unable to get his feet sorted out and he skied his attempt when he might have had time to take a touch.

For all their dominance only one clear chance was created after the increasingly lively Commons won a corner with a teasing cross from the right that put Mark O'Hara under pressure, forcing him to chest it out of play, then raced across the pitch to take it and delivered the perfect ball for Van Dijk who had a free header eight yards out. The crowd rose as he drew his head back with goal at mercy, but then had to sit down again as the ball flashed past far post.

Frustration was rising in the stands and was directed towards Guidetti when Commons found him deep in the penalty area where he held onto the ball well but could not get shot in. Their main concern as the half petered out, however was the lack of pace in their play with everything just a bit too measured.

They came close to opening the scoring early in the second period when Izaguirre crossed from the left, Johansen dummied, Guidetti again held it up then rolled it back to Brown, but from the edge of the box he shot weakly directly at Samson.

Then came that shock 50th minute opening goal which properly shook the home support.

A rare attack had earned Killie a free kick deep in Celtic territory but still there looked little real threat as Westlake took the ball and cut infield from the left to line up a shot from a range and angle that looked unlikely to let him test Craig Gordon, only for the goal-keeper to remain, as he had been pretty much all night to that point, a spectator as it took that vicious deflection off Denayer and wide of him to his left.

A reaction was inevitable and Guidetti probably should have levelled things seven minutes later when he had time to line up his shot from within 10 yards to the right of goal only for Samson to pull off a fine save diving to his right.

The equaliser was delayed by only a minute, however when Matthews got the ball into the box where it broke to the edge of box where Brown was rushing in and the captain was initially credited with the goal inside the stadium after swinging his left foot at it, but it was Commons who spun to make the contact that lifted the ball high to Samson's left.

Scorer then turned creator eight minutes thereafter when clever footwork took Commons to the bye-line on the right before he chipped the ball with great delicacy and accuracy to pick out Griffiths whose introduction had itself been a clear declaration of intent and the substitute headed the ball into the ground to send it bouncing away from Samson to the 'keeper's right.

Commons, with a shot that was well saved by Samson, Denayer, with another free header from a corner and both Griffiths and Johansen in the same move had chances to wrap things up before Griffiths effectively secured the win with a thunderous strike, Brown laying the ball back for him to strike it left footed with a touch of swerve, but it was mainly the pace which beat Samson such was its ferocity.

Gordon was given the chance to show his quality when Nathan Eccleston wriggled way into the box and forced him into a fine one-handed save before, moments later, Griffiths timed his run perfectly to run onto Van Dijk's flighted pass, took a touch to bring the ball under control then unleashed that lethal left foot once again as he raced into the box on the left, the ball flashing past Samson before hitting the inside of the far post on its way in.