They are both going for title triumphs this weekend but it will be fair to assume that James Forrest’s finger nails will be less gnawed and nibbled than those of his younger brother Alan, writes Nick Rodger.
Even if Forrest senior and his Celtic team-mates take a stumble against Rangers on Sunday, the champions-elect will still have another three games to put the tin lid on a seventh consecutive Premiership crown.
For Forrest junior, meanwhile, it’s a case of win or bust as Ayr’s hopes of leapfrogging League One leaders Raith Rovers hang in the balance heading into the final day of the season.
They may ply their footballing trade on different platforms but the youngest Forrest sibling can at least say he is a couple up on his brother. Well, for the time being at least.
While James has never scored against Rangers during his long stint with Celtic, Alan can boast of scoring twice for Ayr against them during a league game when Rangers were coming back up through the leagues and in a Scottish Cup tie back in February.
“He has mentioned it [the goals] a few times before but it is just a bit of banter,” said the Celtic Forrest, who has been nominated for the Player of the Year award. “Ayr have one game left and they can still get automatic promotion. It would be good if they can do it.
“My Dad has been saying that for the last few weeks [how unusual it would be for both of them to win titles] but Ayr have lost their last two games and it is out of their hands. Alan has had a good season, though.”
Forrest has had a pretty good campaign himself. There was a point a couple of seasons ago when the 26-year-old could have been heading out of the club he has been at for 15 years. As Celtic home in on a second successive treble of domestic prizes, though, Forrest underlined his commitment to the club.
“I always wanted to stay here,” he said. “Nowadays it’s less common for players to stay with the same club for their whole career but I’ve been here since I was a wee boy and I know how big a club Celtic is.
“You need to keep at it because Celtic don’t stand still. Everyone is replaceable but I want to be here for as long as I possibly can.”
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