Celtic’s persistence paid off as they ground out a 1-0 victory over St Mirren, so says Brendan Rodgers.

Substitute Luke McCowan was Celtic’s hero on Sunday, as his 87th-minute goal proved decisive.

McCowan’s deflected shot beat Shamal George in the St Mirren goal to send Celtic Park into raptures, with the hosts having been frustrated by a disallowed goal and several attempts hitting the woodwork.

The Bhoys registered their fifth consecutive opening day win, having now won 17 of their last 18 Scottish Premiership openers.

3 points on flag day!
#CELSTM | #CelticFC pic.twitter.com/X9jH670h4J

— Celtic Football Club (@CelticFC) August 3, 2025

Speaking to Celtic’s official website, Rodgers said: “We’re very pleased. It’s always nice to win at home on Flag Day. To play as well as we did makes me really pleased for the team.

“St. Mirren are so well organised and you see the results they get at home and away, and how difficult they are to play against.

“We had to be patient when moving the ball at speed and with tempo, and we did that.

“You always have the belief, especially at this club. That’s what this club is about, we go right to the very end and beyond.”

In quotes reported by BBC Sport, Rodgers said: “Naturally, we wanted more goals, but I think we played their system very well.

“The goalkeeper has maybe kept the scoreline down and, whilst we didn’t score, we didn’t get disappointed and played some fantastic football. It was an excellent win.

“We just had to stay persistent and we were able to do that. For the first game of the season, I’m really pleased.”

Celtic had 14 shots and landed six on target, though the impressive George pulled off five saves.