Neil Lennon takes stock after his ‘greatest moment’

CELTIC manager Neil Lennon cut a composed figure as he yesterday dissected “the greatest moment in my professional life”.

Validation brings its own serenity. And the Irishman was entirely mindful of the place his team’s 6-0 demolition of Kilmarnock has erected him in the now nine-strong pantheon of league-winning managers at the club.

“I feel vindicated now. I felt like I was on probation, but now I feel like I am a Celtic manager,” said Lennon. “I was walking behind Martin [O’Neill] and Gordon [Strachan] and Wim Jansen and Davie Hay, and Billy McNeill and Mr Stein, and now I can step out from behind them and walk alongside them. It is a fantastic feeling for me. You are judged, ultimately, on championships; cups aren’t enough.

“This is a young squad, but I don’t have any problems with them apart from puberty and acne. The criticism was merited but it has been washed away now. We are champions and we deserve to be champions.

“The fans are what makes this club special. It is more than a support, it is family and you can see what the Celtic family means today. In the last four years we’ve gone through difficult times. But today is for the supporters more than anyone else. To win a championship in your country is special. I’ll tell you how hard it is, we haven’t done it for three years, to win it today is a great day for the club, the supporters, and a great day for the Lennon family as well.”

Earlier, speaking in a radio interview, Lennon had been coy about his future. Having endured death threats and been sent parcel bombs, and then witnessed the sudden death of his close friend, advocate Paul McBride, the Celtic manager was perhaps understandably hesitant to commit. “Like every season, I’ll assess my position in the summer and see what the future holds for myself,” he said. “It’s a young team and we’re building something we think is special. But there are other things outside the football that have affected my life and it’s not always an easy thing to deal with.”

Lennon described his afternoon at Rugby Park as a day that eclipsed any he enjoyed as a player during an eight-year stay with the club to 2007; a period in which he won five titles and became the most decorated Celtic performer in the post-Stein era. “When you are a player you are part of a team. When you are a manager it is a lonely job. You have to make the decisions, you get criticised for them and praised for them but you have to keep the middle ground and keep a level head. I am only young in this job, it is only my second season, and it is a huge job with huge expectations.”

It was an achievement Lennon said he had dreamed about. It was secured with a performance at Rugby Park to match.

“It doesn’t get much better than this, really,” he said. “I am so proud, it is hard to put into words sometimes what you are going through. Today was the epitome of the team – it was class, pace, there was a swagger about them. It was easy to let the season peter out and it looked for a couple of weeks as if they were just starting to tire a wee bit mentally but they found their energy and their mojo again today and I couldn’t feel more happy for them.

“Some of our counter attacking play in the second half was magnificent. [I am] so happy for the players – they are babies in terms of football. They have come in for what I think is unjustified criticism. They have proved beyond doubt they are the best team in the country and they will grow. They are not anywhere near their peak yet. Georgios Samaras is the oldest player in the team at 27. At times there is a naivety about them which I totally comprehend, but to win the championship over 33 games is a fantastic achievement.”

Lennon’s precocious side may have missed out on a treble but will next week have a Scottish Cup semi-final against Hearts in pursuit of a double.

“I always felt we would find our consistency but I was worried that it might be too late,” Lennon said. “But we found it and put a fantastic run of 17 league wins together. To play today with the style and quality they did cements the fact that they are the champions without any question of doubt whatsoever.”