On an afternoon more suited to ice cream and swimming in the sea the Celts slipped out of the FA Cup with a performance that must have had Jim Harvey close to overheating.

With the Bower Fold thermometer touching 90 degrees Celtic blew decidedly cold in failing to deal with their visitors’ astute game plan.

There was nothing fancy about the way Guiseley went about their business with their every action designed to break up any rhythm Harvey’s men attempted to establish, but it was noticeable that there seemed to be no Plan B as the Celts elected to bash their heads against an unyielding brick wall for the full 90 minutes.

Things could have been very different though if Lloyd Ellams’ sixth minute snapshot had gone in off the post instead of screwing away to safety.

Indeed, had the Celts taken the lead at any time they would no doubt have gone on to win the tie but once Lee Ellington put the Lions in front on 24 minutes – the ex-Celt heading home unchallenged – there was a depressing feel about things from a Celtic point of view.

That the home team toiled mightily is not in dispute but there was a sense of naivety in the way they tried to break down a solid and resolute Guiseley rearguard in a second half in which chances were scarce.

Probably the best one in a Celtic sense fell to substitute Craig Hobson, but he hesitated when put in by Phil Marsh and the door slammed shut yet again.

With Celtic increasingly frenetic in their search for an equaliser the inevitable gaps appeared.

When Gavin Allott broke away in injury time there was nothing Rhys Meynell could do as Jan Budtz’s parry cannoned into him and rebounded into an unguarded net.

Marsh’s 12th of the season, an acrobatic finish seven minutes into stoppage time, was a mere consolation as Celtic lost for the first time in 19 games – the first time at home since January 11.

Attendance: 493

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