Celtic celebrated Scottish championship victory on Saturday as if it were their first title in ages when, in fact, it was only two seasons ago that they last performed the feat.

Back then, the celebrations were muted by brooding anticipation, confirmed when Wim Jansen left the club, and the acrimony surrounding the manager's departure was only accentuated by the difficulties in recruiting his successor.

Celtic's appointment of the highly respected Dr Jozef Venglos was a tribute to the club's powers of persuasion. But the stop-gap nature of the appointment underlined an uncomfortable fact - the notion of Celtic being a world power was simply a delusion.

Two ordinary European campaigns since are further corroboration. Celtic may have been the first British club to win the European Cup, but that was in 1967. As the title celebrations ebb, it is towards Europe that Martin O'Neill will be looking. Before and in the immediate wake of the slender 1-0 win over St Mirren, he was insisting that his side are far from the finished article.

"It was as satisfying a moment as I've ever had," said O'Neill about the championship victory. "I certainly do not want to diminish anything else I've done. When I was at Wycombe and we won the Conference I thought it was the greatest moment on earth. It didn't matter whether Real Madrid were winning the European Cup on the same night. But we've won a championship here in what has been a long season.

"We'll have to improve. The nucleus of the side is strong and will deal with European football. But I don't have enough on the periphery. We need a bigger and better squad."

O'Neill is also aware that there is not only Europe to think about but the likely re-emergence of their rivals, Rangers.

"Rangers will come roaring back with a vengeance," said O'Neill. "Could you tell [owner] David Murray not to produce any more money? I'm of the belief they have a lot of talented footballers. They will be massively disappointed. I expect Rangers not to take this lying down."

Hard cash is not, however, the stuff of legends. Of all the attractions of being at Celtic, the possibility of becoming a legend must figure highly in O'Neill's mind. In which case, he may be inclined to build steadily rather than risk failing wildly with someone else's money. That is why the celebrations at Celtic Park were so uninhibited on Saturday. This was not a chequebook victory. Integrity remained intact.

Understandably, O'Neill's name is being linked to the manager's job at Manchester United, which falls vacant when Alex Ferguson's contract expires next year. He is, after all, just a Scottish Cup win away from a domestic treble.

Imagine though, if O'Neill were to take over from Ferguson. Even if he were to win another Champions Cup he could end up no more than a keeper of the flame.

It is a happy coincidence that the championship should be won during the same weekend as the US Masters. Celtic should aspire to that level of detail which has the greenkeepers at Augusta tending their lawns with nail scissors. Celtic are a long way from that - on and off the field - which places O'Neill in an enviable position. Ferguson is Ferguson because of how far he developed Manchester United. O'Neill now has the chance to do the same at Celtic.

Billy Dodds missed a sitter and Arthur Numan rattled the crossbar as Rangers were denied a victory at Hibernian's Easter Road last evening.

The 0-0 draw suited Rangers better as it kept their Edinburgh challengers at arms length as the "race" for second place and the Champions League qualifying berth that goes with it continues at a snail's pace. These are the only two teams in it and Rangers kept their six-point and one-game advantage intact.