Jim McLean fell foul of the law when Duncan Ferguson gave Dundee United a knockout Boxing Day victory against Celtic in 1992.
The 1-0 victory in Glasgow left title-chasing Celtic looking like turkeys during a Christmas period that was an unmitigated disaster for Liam Brady.
Incredibly, it marks the last time United won at Celtic Park.
So what happened back in 1992?
Celtic went six points behind Rangers after losing to Hearts 1-0 at Tynecastle on December 19 1992 and Brady wielded the axe following the Edinburgh upset.
Jim McLean’s men were on a five-game unbeaten run in the league but were given a free Saturday by the postponement of the trip to play Motherwell at Fir Park.
Scott Crabbe used his free Saturday to watch his old Hearts team-mates and the 1-0 win left him in no doubt that United could win at Celtic Park for the first time since 1989.
McLean agreed.
He said: “In the past we always loved playing Celtic, but recently they have enjoyed taking us on and they have had the upper hand in the last couple of seasons.
“Today’s game is a vitally important one for us – a real four-pointer with European places to be fought for.
“It is a chance to prove our point that we are capable of competing with the best and with no injuries we won’t have any excuses if we don’t take it.”
Crabbe signed for United from Hearts for £250,000 in October 1992 and had scored four goals against Celtic in 10 appearances for the Edinburgh side.
“They are a very exciting team to play against and I relish taking them on,” he said.
Celtic: Bonner, McNally, Boyd, Galloway, Mowbray, Collins, Miller, McStay, Payton, Creaney (Grant 89), Slater (Vata 77).
United: Main, Krivokapic, Malpas, McInally, Van Der Hoorn, Welsh, McKinlay, John O’Neil (Clark 89), Crabbe (Connolly 85), Ferguson, Perry.
The break didn’t stop United’s momentum and they came flying out of the traps.
Duncan Ferguson headed a Scott Crabbe cross narrowly over the bar on three minutes.
Celtic were dangerous and created the better first-half chances with Alan Main keeping out Tony Mowbray’s powerful header and Andy Payton’s effort from the rebound.
McLean was none too impressed with proceedings before the interval.
The United boss left his seat in the main stand to have a chat with the linesman and was ushered back up the tunnel by a stern-faced police sergeant.
McLean looked somewhat upset to be sent back to where he came from by Glasgow’s finest but saw his side open the scoring by the time he returned to his seat.
Jim McInally played a decisive role in proceedings.
First, he denied Celtic the opening goal when he hooked a Tony Mowbray header off the line and then he dispossessed home skipper Paul McStay in midfield.
McInally made a 60-metre run from his own half before finding Crabbe on the right.
A fine overlap by John O’Neil gave Crabbe a yard of space and he used it to send over an inch-perfect cross for Duncan Ferguson to head home at the back post.
It was the classic sucker punch after a spell of Celtic pressure.
After going a goal down on 45 minutes, neither the players nor the home fans in the 23,000 crowd seemed to show any real hunger to retrieve the situation.
In fact, it was the visitors, after a bright restart, who got the ball into the net again when Crabbe and Ferguson reversed roles for the former to punch the ball home.
The 24-year-old was given a yellow card for his Hand of God moment!
Crabbe was given plenty of running to do up front and chased hard when Celtic were in possession and held on to the ball intelligently when United were outnumbered.
The match-winning goal was just one of several occasions that Crabbe and Ferguson linked up to cause the Celtic defence problems throughout the 90 minutes.
Mark Perry summed up the will-to-win attitude of the United players when he received several stitches in a head wound following a clash with Gerry Creaney.
Celtic were booed off the field at full-time.
The United players linked arms and raised them in the direction of the away supporters to show their appreciation after finishing their 1992 campaign on a high.
So what were McLean’s thoughts on the victory?
“A most pleasing result,” he said.
“We may have been a wee bit fortunate at times but we again showed the attitude I have been looking for.
“We have come quite a way in the last few weeks, but there is still room for improvement.”
Liam Brady was struggling to take it all in and his side was now trailing champions Rangers by eight points with an Old Firm New Year derby up next.
Two points for a win, remember, in those days.
“To go in 1-0 down was quite unbelievable,” he said.
“It allowed united to contain us in the second-half and left us struggling to find penetration. We realise it is going to be hard for the championship.
“We just have to keep plugging away.”
The legendary Doug Baillie gave his take on proceedings in The Sunday Post.
“I’ve seen United playing in Glasgow more often than some folk have had turkey dinners and as often as not I’ve left with disappointment written all over my face.
“I don’t know what the bold James put in their Christmas puds this time around but the secret ingredient certainly worked wonders.
“The Tangerine Terrors have rarely performed better here.
“So how come the scoreline was tight? That’s easy. Celtic played well too.
“The big difference was the Brady brigade made half-a-dozen chances and failed to notch while United made a couple and took one.
“It all added up, of course, to a splendid afternoon’s entertainment.
“I don’t suppose that will be of any consolation to anybody concerned with Parkhead.
“Any lingering hopes they may have had of the Premier League title must now have bitten the dust.
“A great pity at such an early stage.
“But if you can’t do the business at home, point-collecting is very difficult.”
Celtic finished the season third with 60 points.
Brady’s side were 13 points behind Rangers and four behind Aberdeen while United finished the campaign fourth with 47 points and qualified for Europe.
McLean retired after 22 years in charge at Tannadice.
Brady carried on for longer than he should have and things didn’t improve the following season. He was replaced by Joe Jordan after resigning in October 1993.
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