Celtic 5 Buckie Thistle 0: Plucky Buckie enjoy their Celtic Park day
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Buckie Thistle did the Highland League proud at Celtic Park with a stubborn performance on the biggest footballing day of their lives.
A Scottish Cup shock was never going to be on the cards, though Buckie did create one good chance to score at the home of the champions.
However, former England keeper Joe Hart spread himself to save well from Aviemore's Josh Peters in the 40th minute to prevent the Moray side getting back into the game by making it 2-1.
Celtic went straight down the other end and scored to make it 3-0 and kill the game.
The Hoops' class proved too much in the end, scoring five times and having four more strikes disallowed for offside.
Not one member of the 2500-strong travelling green and white army cared too much about the scoreline - it was all about the occasion.
And what an occasion it was for those fans, and the part-time players at the club who rubbed shoulders with top internationals on a dreadful day of weather in Glasgow.
The rain never stopped pouring down the whole afternoon, but couldn't dampen the enthusiasm of the cheering Jags followers when they acclaimed the entrance of their favourites on to the famous turf.
Jags fought manfully to resist Celtic’s relentless forays in the first quarter of the contest.
The first VAR decision in Buckie’s history went their way less than two minutes in, as Darryl McHardy seemed to bring down Liel Abada but an offside was spotted in the build-up.
With the chants of 'Oh when the Jags go steaming in' being heard across the stadium, the visitors perhaps began to believe they had a chance when Kyogo uncharacteristically slipped a simple chance wide of the target - he was ruled offside in any case.
The travelling supporters were certainly enjoying their day, particularly when Celtic had a goal ruled out for offside – again VAR making the call.
The resistance was finally broken by a moment of class on 25 minutes, Paulo Bernado elegantly chipping over Buckie keeper Stuart Knight.
Jags fans were on their feet when Max barry took the game to Celtic with a probing run and a pass to Peters, whose drive was deflected out.
A first corner for Jags? Sadly the flag was up.
VAR was proving popular with those of a Buckie persuasion, ruling out Kyogo’s goal on the half hour.
Celtic’s pressure was almost continuous and goal number two arrived on 33 minutes, Norwegian Odin Thiago Holm working a slick one-two before firing home via a post.
The frequency of the home raids was frightening and the Buckie crossbar was rattled by a Liam Scales header.
But what about the Buckie scoring opportunity on 40 minutes?
Peters - denied the chance to play against his cousin Stephen Welsh due to Brendan Rodgers’ team selection – latched onto a great through ball and got a decent strike away with a defender in close attendance.
But Hart thwart Peters’ netbound effort with his legs – and that was to be the closest the Highland League team was to come all day.
Mercilessly, Celtic broke up the field and Abada teed up Kyogo for an easy finish to make it 3-0.
It could easily have been more that three at the break, as Kyogo had yet another strike disallowed for offside – the third disallowed goal of the half for the homesters.
A fourth goal chalked off for Celtic arrived just after half time, Abada this time ruled out.
Luis Palma soon crashed in a fourth for the home side on 49 minutes.
Up at the other end, Buckie fans roarded for a penalty when Peters went down in the area – but the number nine was giving as much as he was getting and this time VAR went against the Jags.
Peters was taken off in the 72nd minute having ploughed a lone furrow up front for most of the time and having to drop in front of the visitor's beseiged rearguard on regular occasions.
Rodgers brought on his cousin Welsh in the 78th minute from the bench.
There was just one more Celtic goal, fired into the roof of the net by sub Rocco Vata on 75 minutes.
