Celtic coast to St Mirren victory

Scottish Premiership leaders Celtic took another stride towards the title with a comfortable 4-1 win over St Mirren at Celtic Park this afternoon.

Ronny Deila's team took the lead when Scott Brown fired home from Anthony Stokes's deflected cross inside the opening five minutes, but St Mirren were level on 10 minutes as Sean Kelly volleyed home from a free kick.

Celtic retook the lead when John Guidetti controlled a long ball forward and played in James Forrest, who sent a neat finish beyond Mark Ridgers from a tight angle.

Brown then grabbed his second of the game with a first-time strike, and the lead could have been even greater had Stokes's goal from Guidetti's cross on 51 minutes not been ruled out for offside.

The fourth goal finally came when Stefan Johansen won possession deep in the St Mirren half and teed up Stokes, who blasted home off the post.

Substitutes Callum McGregor and Stefan Scepovic then combined nicely to carve out an opening for the Serbian striker, but he fired narrwloy wide late on.

The result leaves Celtic six points clear of Inverness Caledonian Thistle at the top of the table, while St Mirren remain rooted to the bottom.