Greig Spence has timed his return from injury as perfectly as his runs into the penalty box.
The former Alloa striker grabbed a hat-trick on Saturday against Motherwell as Celtic clinched the SPL title and is looking to make it a double tomorrow night against Rangers in the final of the SFA Youth Cup at Hampden.
Spence returned to action earlier this month and didn’t take long to break his scoring duck- finding the net ten minutes into his return against Hamilton Accies from his favourite distance- six yards out.
“This game will be massive, we won against Rangers last season but it will be a totally different game this time,” he said.
“We’ve learned a lot from last season’s final, if we work hard and play our game I feel that we’ve got a good chance but we know how hard it will be.
“Last season we got caught up in the atmosphere and playing in a big stadium, this year we’ll know what to expect. I waited a few minutes to get a touch last year and it’s important to get an early kick to calm your nerves.
“There’s a few of us that were in the double winning squad last season and now we’ve got a bit more experience. There will be some nerves in the dressing room but when we go on the pitch we believe in ourselves and that’s important.”
Spence added: “It’s fantastic to win the title but a cup final at Hampden is a special occasion for all of us.
“Clinching the title on Saturday was a great feeling for everyone involved and scoring a hat-trick was fantastic
“I should have taken a few other chances but I’m happy with three. The team creates a lot of chances and it’s my job to put them away.”
After a storming end to last season Spence had high hopes for the new term but a pre-season injury ruled him out of action for eight months.
Despite the frustrations of that knee injury and the desire to get back as soon as possible Spence showed great maturity to hold back his comeback until he was 100% fit.
“I took extra time on my rehab coming back from injury,” he revealed. “I never rushed myself back.
“At a team like Celtc you get the opportunity to do that, at other teams you might get rushed back when you are not ready and pick up niggles if you get pushed back too quickly.
“The club has taken time with me, got me into good condition and you can see that on the pitch.
“Ian Coll (fitness coach) has looked after our fitness brilliantly, the recovery sessions that we get are great for us. Everything off the pitch is spot on and that’s helping us a lot.
“Most of the boys went to Turkey in January and got a really hard second pre-season, I don’t think many teams did that and we’re getting the benefits now as you could see in the run in to the league.
“Hopefully that will show against Rangers at Hampden and we can lift the cup.”
CELTIC U-19’s CLINCH SPL TITLE
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