LESS than 20 minutes on the clock and – boom! – Daizen Maeda's best Henrik Larsson impression electrified the Hoops faithful who packed out Hampden Park in their quest to see Martin O'Neill's side hoist the Scottish Cup once more.
And when Arne Engels' long-range effort fizzed into the bottom corner, leaving Aston Oxborough bewildered and picking the ball out of his net for a second time, it was safe to say the trophy engraver was having an early shift. For a 43rd time, Celtic's name was placed on the world's oldest footballing silverware.
It was far from plain sailing despite the scoreline 3-1 scoreline as Neil Lennon plotted to pip his former master and claim the spoils for Dunfermline on Saturday afternoon. If not for the goal-saving heroics of Liam Scales, the game may have played out in a very different manner.
The first 45 minutes had the double firmly in the bag as Celtic utterly dominated proceedings. In truth, while Celtic were confident and classy, there wasn't much stopping them from turning it on as Dunfermline were like rabbits in the headlights. But they emerged energised and enterprising for the second-half and set about pegging back that two-goal deficit with real purpose. But when Kelechi Iheanacho's flashing feet allowed him to hypnotise the Pars defence and slot into the net for the third, Hoops fans began the celebrations behind the goal.
Lennon's side were without a doubt the better side in the second period, and if not for small margins they may have put some serious pressure of the Champions. Unfortunately for Lenny, his side's fightback, which saw them peg a goal back with 10 minutes to go, was not enough to spoil the party.
Speaking to Celtic TV after the game, Martin O’Neill said: “I feel ecstatic. I never thought that I’d manage Celtic again, but to end up winning the double is just the best feeling in the world.
“It was lovely to get on the field there and see the Celtic fans, and us winning the game, which was a culmination of the second part of the season, and we ended up winning the league a week ago, and you just couldn’t make it up.
“I thought we had a lot of possession in the first half. Daizen scored again, and I thought we should have pushed on more strongly when we got the first goal.
“We didn’t and we took the sting out of the game, which was absolutely fine. Then we got the second goal and you feel you’ve got a bit of a cushion.
"We took that into the second half but I knew Neil Lennon wouldn’t lie down but would come roaring back, and the first 10 or 15 minutes belonged to Dunfermline.
"Iheancho scored the third goal, and he’s become a cult hero, so we were able to withstand the goal that Dunfermline scored.
“It does actually feel great, I must admit. I genuinely does. To come back and manage Celtic is like something I could never have dreamed of, but to come back and be part of a winning team is just brilliant."
The final whistle at Hampden Park blew time on a terrific end to a season which was an absolute rollercoaster of a journey for fans – a nerve-shredding adventure which ended in glory, none of which would have been possible without Martin O'Neill and Daizen Maeda.
I've argued for a statue for the Derry man for quite some time now, and I am certainly not the only fan, writer, pundit or player to have suggested erecting a statue outside the stadium in homage to Celtic's greatest manager (after Jock Stein, of course).
But if I may be so bold, here's a plea for a second statue to be added this summer, and I mean this in the most sincere manner plausible: Build one for Daizen too. Not because he's the best, but because he gave us the most extraordinary finish to a season most of us will ever see.
Saturday's expertly lobbed finish was just another one of the remarkable moments the Japanese enigma has produced in the past seven games. He struck NINE goals, shattering a 24-game goal drought in an explosion of talent and intent.
Most Celtic fans are aware of the Player of the Year curse, which stems back to the early 2000s when Gordan Strachan's era began. Regularly since then, the Celtic POTY has gone on to struggle the following year: I cite Kris Commons 2013/14; Stefan Johansen 2014/15; and Daizen Maeda last season.
He struggled for large parts of this season and it's believed his poor form for large parts of the campaign was down to frustration at Celtic denying him a move to the Bundesliga.
But all that was put to the side as that overhead kick against Rangers brought him legendary status amongst the Celtic fanbase and his incredible goalscoring exploits post-split proved too much for Rangers and Hearts.
He's nowhere near Larsson, of course, in the Celtic Pantheon, but there is at least one valid comparison as the King's last game was also a 3-1 cup win against Dunfermline. But in my mind Daizen has surpassed the likes of Odsonne Edouard and his countrymen Furuhashi Kyogo and Shunsuke Nakamura.
What next for Celtic? That's the question on fans' lips now the dust has begun to settle.
This summer will see the final chance Scottish Champions have to compete in the play-off round of Europe's most prestigious competition, the UEFA Champions League.
The breakdown of who we might face is something I may or may not have already delved deeply into – given my nerdish love affair with the European knockouts I'll leave you to make your own mind up about that. Throw in the fact that Celtic still have no idea who will be the man in the dugout come the flag's unfurling in August and it's clear an important couple of months lies ahead.
But let's enjoy this week, a frantic, thrilling and – yes – hate-soaked week which saw the cream rise to the top once again.
Title 56 is in the trophy cabinet, and all summer it will be kept warm and cosy by Scottish Cup number 43.
A lot of work, a huge overhaul and a big reset are required this summer. The powers-that-be can't be allowed to pull the wool over our eyes again. We've seen those tricks before, and it's cost us dearly.
Some say we got away with one this season, and that might well be true. But for now, as fans, let's enjoy the success as these days are never guaranteed. A World Cup summer approaches, but also a summer of massive import at Celtic Park. Let's pray we can get it right this time around.
