Celtic 2-1 St Johnstone:Jan Vennegoor of Hesselink's double secured Celtic's place in the Tennent's Scottish Cup final - but only after they were pushed all the way by St Johnstone in a 2-1 victory.

The Dutch striker opened the scoring when he converted from the penalty spot in the 13th minute after being felled by Saints goalkeeper Kevin Cuthbert.

Martin Hardie's leveller hauled St Johnstone back into the game six minutes later, but a close-range header from Vennegoor of Hesselink in the second half put Celtic through to the final.

They will now face either Hibernian or Dunfermline, who contest Sunday's second semi-final.

After the game Vennegoor of Hesselink insisted he did not go down too easily to win his first-half penalty.

It was unclear how much contact there had been, however the striker told Sky Sports 1: "I think it was a penalty but I don't know how anyone else things about that.

"I wanted to get up, but the referee gave a penalty and I thought it was a good one."

He could finish his first season in Scotland with two trophies, with Celtic close to clinching the Bank of Scotland Premier League title and now into the cup final on May 26th.

"It's fantastic for us to play in the final," he added. "Defensive-wise they were very good and they made life hard for us."