Scotland could play Celtic in John Kennedy testimonial

Published on Thursday 18 March 2010 12:03

SCOTLAND could be set to play Celtic in a testimonial to raise money for the stricken John Kennedy.

• John Kennedy

The possibility of arranging a benefit game for the 26-year-old, who was forced to retire following a serious knee injury while on international duty, is being discussed by the Scottish Football Association and the Parkhead club.

May 16 – the day after the Active Nation Scottish Cup final – is reportedly the date under consideration for the fixture at Celtic Park.

Kennedy retired last year after losing his long battle against cruciate ligament damage suffered during his Scotland debut against Romania in March 2004.

The defender was the victim of a horror tackle by Ionel Ganea less than 15 minutes into the game, leaving his knee shattered.

He went under the knife three times but, despite returning briefly under Gordon Strachan, he was eventually forced to concede his professional career was over.

Kennedy, who made 28 appearances for Celtic, is now working in the club's scouting department.

Any testimonial would give him the chance to bid farewell to supporters, while allowing Craig Levein another opportunity to field his Scotland players ahead of their European Championship qualifiers in September.

However, anyone involved in the Scottish Cup final would almost certainly be unavailable for the game.