http://celticfc.net/newsstory?item=5182Celts score in every single league game of 2013
IT was one year ago today, January 2, that Celtic played their first game of 2013 when Motherwell visited on league duty.
The match itself was fairly uneventful apart from two dramatic moments late in the game just three minutes apart.
In the 77th minute, the Fir Park side were awarded a penalty but Fraser Forster reacted magnificently to save Tom Hateley’s strike.
Then, just three minutes later, after a neat interchange with Georgios Samaras, Gary Hooper slotted away what would prove to be the only goal of the game – and he kick-started a rather unique sequence.
For Celtic have scored in every single league game they played in 2013 – 36 games in all and divided equally 18 each between the second half of Celtic’s 2012/13 championship win and the first half of the undefeated bid to defend their title.
In those 36 games there have been 27 wins, six draws and only three defeats with the party-poopers being Motherwell (twice) and Ross County.
The Hoops scored 94 goals during their net-bulging feat and lost only 32 at the other end while claiming no fewer than 14 clean sheets.
Sometimes the record teetered on the brink of meltdown as in 12 of the games the Hoops scored only a solitary goal.
However, on other occasions the goals just flowed in as the Celts scored twice in eight games, scored three in four games, hit four goals an amazing eight times, scored five on three occasions and hit six once.
Those six goals came in the 6-2 win over Dundee United, a game that also produced the most goals scored by both teams with those eight strikes narrowly edging out the 4-3 in over Aberdeen and the 5-2 win over Kilmarnock.
There were no fewer than 13 doubles netted by scorers during the run with Gary Hooper and Kris Commons netting three each with Anthony Stokes and Joe Ledley hitting two braces while Adam Matthews, Georgios Samaras and Virgil van Dijk also struck doubles.
Twice there were two doubles in the one game while the one and only hat-trick was scored by Samaras in the 5-2 win over Kilmarnock.
Commons has weighed in with the most goals by knocking in 17 while the other top scorers were Stokes and Hooper with 11, Samaras with 10 and Ledley with eight.
Here is a rundown of the games:
Jan 2 Motherwell (H) W 1-0
(Hooper)
Jan 19 Hearts (H) W 4-1
(Hooper 2, Samaras, Lassad)
Jan 22 Dundee United (A) W 4-0
(Hooper 2, Wanyama, Brown)
Jan 30 Kilmarnock (H) W 4-1
(Ledley, Matthews 2, Stokes)
Feb 9 Inverness CT (A) W 3-1
(Commons, Gershon, Miku)
Feb 16 Dundee United (H) W 6-2
(Ambrose, Commons 2, Ledley, Stokes 2)
Feb 19 St Johnstone (A) D 1-1
(Ambrose)
Feb 24 Dundee (H) W 5-0
(Ledley 2, Forrest, McGeouch, Hooper)
Feb 27 Motherwell (A) L 1-2
(Samaras)
Mar 9 Ross County (A) L 2-3
(Mulgrew, Hooper)
Mar 16 Aberdeen (H) W 4-3
(Commons, Hooper, Mulgrew, Samaras)
Mar 31 St Mirren (A) D 1-1
(Commons)
Apr 6 Hibernian (H) W 3-0
(Lustig, Commons 2)
Apr 21 Inverness CT (H) W 4-1
(Hooper 2, Ledley, Samaras)
Apr 28 Motherwell (A) L 1-3
(Hooper)
May 5 Ross County (A) D 1-1
(Stokes)
May 11 St Johnstone (H) W 4-0
(Ledley, Mulgrew, Forrest, Wright og)
May 19 Dundee United (A) W 4-0
(Commons, Samaras 2, Stokes)
Aug 3 Ross County (H) W 2-1
(Stokes 2)
Aug 17 Aberdeen (A) W 2-0
(Commons, Forrest)
Aug 24 Inverness CT (H) D 2-2
(Mulgrew, Matthews)
Aug 31 Dundee United (A) W 1-0
(Stokes)
Sep 14 Hearts (A) W 3-1
(Commons, Stokes, Pukki)
Sep 21 St Johnstone (H) W 2-1
(Pukki, Mulgrew)
Sep 28 Kilmarnock (A) W 5-2
(Commons, Samaras 3, Balde)
Oct 5 Motherwell (H) W 2-0
(Stokes, Commons)
Oct 19 Hibernian (A) D 1-1
(Forrest)
Oct 27 Partick Thistle (A) W 2-1
(Samaras, Balde)
Nov 2 Dundee United (H) D 1-1
(Mulgrew)
Nov 9 Ross County (A) W 4-1
(van Dijk 2, Ledley 2)
Nov 23 Aberdeen (H) W 3-1
(Commons, Boerrigter)
Dec 6 Motherwell (A) W 5-0
(Commons 2, Amrose, Stokes, Atajic)
Dec 14 Hibernian (H) W 1-0
(Pukki)
Dec 21 Hearts (H) W 2-0
(Commons, Forrest)
Dec 26 St Johnstone (A) W 1-0
(van Dijk)
Dec 29 Inverness CT (a) W 1-0
(Commons)