The 2004/05 Scottish Premier League season remains one of the most nerve-shredding and exciting final days of a campaign that continues to live long in the memory of the royal blue half of Glasgow.
The destination of the title in Scotland had gone right down to the wire on five previous occasions, with Rangers prevailing in 2003, 2009 and in 2011 while Celtic ran out last-day winners in 2008. The title was won rather than lost on those occasions.
The dramatic events which unfolded on of May 22, 2005 became known as ‘Helicopter Sunday’ due to the aircraft changing direction in mid-flight as the identity of the trophy’s winners altered suddenly.
Alex McLeish took his Rangers side through to Edinburgh for a match against Hibernian at Easter Road requiring a victory to give themselves an outside chance of winning the title, while Martin O’Neill’s Celtic arrived in North Lanarkshire to face Motherwell as league leaders.
A grandstand finish would leave both sets of supporters on tenterhooks, eagerly awaiting news and reguarly refreshing phones to learn their team’s fate. In the end, it was Rangers who clinched the silverware by a solitary point - their 51st Scottish title.
Here, GlasgowWorld looks back on the twists and turns of that thrilling final day 18 years ago...
1. The story behind the dramatic 2005 Helicopter Sunday in 15 photos
Rangers would clinch the title by a single point at the expense of their bitter Old Firm rivals.
2. Title fate in Celtic’s hands
The state of play heading into the final round of fixtures saw Celtic hold a two-point lead over Rangers at the summit. It turned into an afternoon that Scottish football will never forget...
3. Rangers take championship race to final day decider
Many had felt that the championship race was over by late-April after Rangers slipped to a 2-1 defeat to Celtic at Ibrox with just four games left to play. The Hoops moved five points clear but the Light Blues managed to cut the gap and sent up a tense final day of drama.
4. Celtic have one hand on trophy
Celtic remained strong favourites and their mission was clear; beat Motherwell and the title was in safe keeping. It seemed that would be the case when Chris Sutton opened the scoring for Martin O’Neill’s side after 29 minutes.