Nakamura goal caps Celtic cup win

GLASGOW, Scotland -- Scottish Cup holders Celtic cruised into the fifth round as Japanese midfielder Shunsuke Nakamura marked his comeback from injury with a goal in the 3-0 win at home to second-tier side Stirling Albion on Saturday.

The Premier League champions will next face a trip to either fellow SPL club Kilmarnock or Airdrie United, who play in the third division.

The Airdrie-Kilmarnock tie was one of seven called off on Saturday due to freezing cold conditions.

Playmaker Nakamura, who had been out since the end of October with a knee problem, received a standing ovation after being replaced by Jim O'Brien immediately after firing in the third goal in the 75th minute.

Celtic beat Stirling 8-0 in the League Cup in 2001, but it took Gordon Strachan's side 37 minutes to break the deadlock as Dutch striker Jan Vennegoor of Hesselink headed home Lee Naylor's cross.

Naylor was also the provider as top scorer Scott McDonald made up for his earlier misses by sidefooting home the second goal in the 70th minute.

Nakamura then wrapped up the scoring from the edge of the box with a ferocious left-foot drive.

Motherwell, in the club's first match since the death of skipper Phil O'Donnell, came from two goals down to draw 2-2 at Hearts and earn a replay -- with the winner to host non-league Huntly or Division One Dundee.

Deividas Cesnauskis volleyed Hearts ahead on 10 minutes and striker Andrius Velicka made it 2-0 seven minutes after the interval.

But Chris Porter finished off two superb moves to delight the club's 3,500 traveling fans -- who unveiled a huge number 10 jersey emblazoned with "O'Donnell" and "brave as a lion," a description coined during commentary of Motherwell's 1991 Scottish Cup final win when a teenage O'Donnell netted a courageous diving header.

Falkirk earned a replay against SPL rivals Aberdeen after twice coming from behind to earn a dramatic 2-2 draw, with three goals scored in the first 10 minutes.

New Hibernian manager Mixu Paatelainen made a winning start to his return to the Edinburgh club where he had starred as a player, with midfielder Dean Shiels netting a hat-trick in the 3-0 victory against Inverness Caledonian Thistle.

In Saturday's other games, St Mirren beat Dumbarton 3-0 while bottom SPL side Gretna were held 2-2 by Morton despite leading by two goals after 49 minutes.

Queen of the South beat Junior side Linlithgow Rose 4-0, while Hamilton and Brechin will go to a replay after their tie finished goalless.

Scottish Cup fifth-round draw:
Morton or Gretna v Queen of the South
Falkirk or Aberdeen v Hamilton or Brechin
Airdrie Utd or Kilmarnock v Celtic
Hearts or Motherwell v Huntly or Dundee
Livingston or Cowdenbeath v Partick or Dunfermline
Hibernian v Rangers or East Stirlingshire
Cove Rangers or Ross County v St Johnstone or Raith Rovers
St Mirren v Clyde or Dundee United E-mail to a friend

All About Celtic FC • Shunsuke Nakamura