CELTIC left Perth last night relieved to have taken a point from their 0-0 draw against a vibrant St Johnstone.

Ronny Deila's men were held by an energetic Perth side who twice hit the woodwork in the course of the 90 minutes and who made off into the night feeling somewhat hard done by.

Tommy Wright's side created a glut of chances, especially in the opening period where they seemed adept at finding many holes in what was a makeshift Celtic defence.

Visiting keeper Lukasz Zaluska, in for Craig Gordon, made a string of impressive stops to keep the Saints at bay - enough to earn him the man-of-the-match award - but in the final stages of the game both teams had cracking chances to seal all three points.

St Johnstone substitute James McFadden hit the woodwork with a header, but if the playmaker was left to rue the chance that went abegging, it was nothing to how James Forrest must have felt immediately afterwards.

As Celtic broke forward following St Johnstone's woodwork effort, Forrest's pace carried him through a deserted Saints defence.

He rounded keeper Alan Mannus, but somehow contrived to spin his effort wide of the gaping goal, much to the 23-year-old' s horror.

Face-down on the turf, the winger seemed to take an age to rouse himself to his feet. It has been a forgettable season in many respects for the player and what appears to be a brittle confidence at the minute will not have been helped by the final minutes of the game in Perth.

Celtic skipper Scott Brown turned down the offer of a rest to feature and snapped and snarled at team-mates and opponents alike.

Not even Celtic's talisman, however, could snatch a victory last night.

The midfielder's crack at goal in the final minutes was a wild effort that flew high over the bar.

Yet, for all St Johnstone's impressive attacking play, the first indication of the game was that Celtic would pick up where they left off last Sunday when they won 1-0 at Aberdeen.

A Stuart Armstrong corner was headed goalbound by Efe Ambrose, but although Leigh Griffiths was swift to stick out a foot to connect, the chance was smothered by Mannus.

IT was far from a sign of things to come, though, with Zaluska then made to work for his money.

His first action of the night was stopping a Murray Davidson effort and he was by far the busier of the two keepers as the game wore on.

Had Wright's side had a little bit more conviction in front of goal they would have headed into the interval in a commanding position.

Instead, a mixture of good goalkeeping and sloppy finishing meant they did not take full advantage of the raft of chances they created.

In particular, Michael O'Halloran had ample opportunity to make a dent in the Celtic defence.

On another day, the striker would have had a hat-trick, but his profligacy left the Parkhead defence unbreached.

The St Johnstone forward has gone 11 games without scoring and, on this evidence, it wasn't hard to see why. Celtic were not without their chances. Kris Commons lashed one attempt wide of the target, but his mates found themselves in an open contest in which their hosts were keen to take the game to them.

Zaluska had to make a sharp double save from David Wotherspoon and Davidson, and the same story continued in the second period as the Perth side tried to maintain their tempo.

Celtic brought on Charlie Mulgrew for Jason Denayer, the former's first appearance for the club this year. The versatile player was injured in December and has been out of action ever since. His return to fitness just as the season nears its end may not be ideal for him on a personal level.

However, Deila will be relieved that one of his more senior and experienced players will be fully fit and available as the club prepare for Champions League qualifying games in July.The Celtic manager has repeatedly praised both Brown and Mulgrew for their professionalism and the fact they were crucial dressing-room players in the difficult early months of his reign.

Having both available this time around for the qualifiers could be critical for Celtic - Brown was injured last summer and missed the debacle of their qualifying ties.

Mulgrew was one of the few who looked fresh in the Hoops side last night.

Perhaps it is the psychological aspect of knowing that the league has been won and the tools can effectively be downed now for the next couple of weeks, but there was a lack- lustre look about Deila's men.

The Norwegian was keen to ensure his side kept the momentum going between now and the end of the season, but a team with nothing to play for up against a team with something still to fight for - fourth place in the Premiership could still open the door to European football this season for St Johnstone depending on what happens in the Scottish Cup final between Inverness and Falkirk- was always going to ask a question of Celtic.

The volume of games played by the club - most members of the first-team squad have now played in excess of 50 this term - has given them a jaded look in recent weeks.

The league trophy will be presented following the game against Inverness next weekend. Aside from the fact that Celtic Park will host a party in the match's aftermath, there will also be the aspect of trying to atone for that Scottish Cup semi-final defeat against the Highlanders.

In any case, it would be expected that there might be a bit more life in Celtic next weekend as they bring the curtain down on their season.