In the blink of an eye – the time it took Jan Vennegoor of Hesselink to head the ball past Neil Alexander – just over a minute before referee Kenny Clark brought an end to the match, Celtic seemed, by popular consensus, to have been transformed from deadbeat former champions to lively contenders for another league title.

In the same instant, Rangers suddenly appeared to be viewed as a cheap imitation of the formidable, virtually impregnable force who would sweep to triumph in four tournaments, this new version of themselves now more likely to falter disastrously on the run to the prize-giving as a result of irreparable damage to their morale.

Smith's usual after-match sangfroid was clearly disturbed when he was asked if the defeat was likely to have a serious psychological effect on his players (hinting strongly at an imminent nervous collapse) and whether the set-back was a reminder that winning the championship would not be as comfortable as was previously thought. The Rangers manager gave a response that was at once humorous and withering.

"What's it to be?" he asked. "A little while ago, according to you, the Celtic manager (Gordon Strachan] was to get the sack. Celtic lose a game at Ibrox and have a manager who's under pressure. Now we lose a game here and we're the ones who are under pressure.

"Nobody at Ibrox ever thought we'd go through to the end of the season without a setback. Nobody here ever thought that winning anything would be comfortable. Have you made your minds up on who is actually in trouble?" It was a challenge that passed unanswered.

Despite his obvious puzzlement over the media's fickleness, Smith graciously returned to the press room to inform journalists that his own player, David Weir, and Celtic's Gary Caldwell had been summoned by referee Kenny Clark to be informed that they would be reported for violent conduct during the scuffling that occurred after the match.

In the process, he provided a service that should be a matter of routine, but has, instead, been scandalously neglected by the SFA.

When Shakespeare wrote of the seven ages of man, they would not include the present, communications era. In this respect, the SFA seem to prefer how things were in the early 17th century. After the kind of events that occurred at the end of the Old Firm match, there should be no need for reporters to rely on a team manager's goodwill for information.

In such circumstances, a referee should be empowered to communicate to the media – perhaps through the home club's press officer – what action has been taken. This is not a demand for an explanation of a contentious decision or the betrayal of secrets, but simply the seeking of legitimate news, in which the majority of Scottish football supporters – i.e. the many thousands who follow the Old Firm – are deeply interested.

To be dependent on the kind of piecemeal, non-systematic filtering of information that applied at Celtic Park is anachronistic to an unacceptable degree.