Bertie Auld: Scott Brown ban could be the difference for Old Firm in SPL race

Brown, who has been shortlisted for the Players' Player of the Year award, will be forced to sit out the final Old Firm game of the season at Ibrox on May 9.

And Auld, who has little doubt that the £4.4million signing from Hibs has been both Celtic's and the Scottish games top player this term, pinpointed Brown as a key component in the Hoops team. Jock's trophy landmark CELTIC'S absence from this weekend's Scottish Cup stage has left Hoops legend Bertie Auld saddened and frustrated.

Especially as today marks the 44th anniversary of Jock Stein's lifting his first trophy as Celtic manager.

Stein, who died tragically of a heart attack after his Scotland side's match against Wales in September 1985, tasted silverware at Celts for the first time in a 3-2 victory over Dunfermline in the Scottish Cup final just over 20 years earlier.

Auld scored twice in that final and served under the Big Man on the game's greatest platforms. And he has no doubt over the manager's place in the pantheon of coaching greats.

Auld said: "Jock had been manager of Hibs right up until the semi-final stage when they were beaten by Dunfermline.

"And even to this day, the Hibs boys from that team maintain that if he had still been their manager, they would have gone on to win the cup.

"Jock made all the difference - he knew what Celtic stood for and his man-management was second to none.

"Jock took a group of talented individuals and he made us into a team that became the best in Britain.

"I don't think British football would have gone on to dominate European football the way it has if it had not been for Jock.

"I have always felt that he has not had the recognition or the honours that he deserved and I deeply regret not saying that on enough occasions.

"He has had the biggest single influence of any one person on Celtic football club."

Auld added: "As for the final that day - well, I scored two and I would have had a hat-trick if big Billy McNeill hadn't shoved me out of the way!"

The Lisbon Lion said: "Scott has improved tremendously at Celtic. When he first arrived we knew he had a great dynamo and a real determination and will to win, but he has developed massively in his two years at Celtic Park.

"It is a nightmare that with the Old Firm so evenly poised in the title race we will be losing him for what will be the biggest game of the season at Rangers.

"I think Scott has shown an ability to really make the difference in the big games this season, like the Co-Operative Insurance Cup Final, and that will be a big blow for Celtic."

Brown's absence will come as a result of the 18-point disciplinary hangover from last season, which when repeated in a consecutive season adds up to a second game's suspension.

And Auld believes the system is glaringly wrong. The Parkhead legend said: "When a season is gone then everything from it should be done and dusted. There is no way that what happened to you last season should then come back to bite you the following season.

"For me that just doesn't make sense and it is really unfair on Scott. I would be saying that about whoever was being made to pay twice for something. It is not right and the system should be changed."

But as he assessed the qualities that have made Brown the top man in Celts' midfield, Auld is certain that the 23-year-old has his best years ahead of him.

The Hoops hero said: "One of the things I like about Scott is that he is a bit fiery and a little bit impetuous. That is something you can tone down in a player but also something you just can't add.

"He gets himself into some tremendous positions and has two great feet and I just wish he would back himself and have a go more on his own. He only has the seven goals from midfield this season and for a player of his firepower he should be into double figures.

"But I think the Celtic midfield as a unit do not look to have a shot from outside the box enough.

"It is all about passing the ball and looking to get into the box and that is fine, but shooting seems to be a dying art. With someone who has a dig like Scott Brown I'd love him to let fly."

Brown's absence from Celtic's trip to Aberdeen on Saturday week- which precedes the final Old Firm showdown of the campaign a week later - will be keenly felt.

But when it comes to filling the gap left by the Scotland star's suspension Auld has, as always, some interesting suggestions.

The Celtic great said: "Whoever comes in, this is the type of opportunity they must use to make a real impression and try and cement their position in the side. I know that Massimo Donati has not received a good press, but I like the boy.

"He has loads of ability and that is what the game is all about for me. So I would love Donati to be given the chance and then it is up to him to show he could run the game for Celtic.

"He hasn't played since the Scottish Cup tie with Queen's Park back at the beginning of February and I just think if given the chance he could deliver.

"But Celtic are not short of options and you could also look at the young lad Willo Flood, who also strikes me as a player of real ability. Of course, you have Paul Hartley and Barry Robson, too."

With the now banned Brown facing midfield competition for the first Player of the Year gong in the shape of Rangers midfield duo Pedro Mendes and Steven Davis, as well team- mate Gary Caldwell, Bertie has no doubt that Brown is the nation's top midfield dog of war.

The former Celtic midfield great said: "I know Mendes has great ability and class and he showed that when he first came to Rangers, but since then he has pretty much faded.

"Steven Davis is another who has become crucial to Rangers, but he has had a spell where his presence seems to have diminished.

"For Celtic, Scott Brown is essential and when the going gets tough he gets going. In the first cup final of the season he dominated the midfield area and he gets my vote."