THE momentum which has seen Celtic charge to the top of the SPL has been halted.

But there are no complaints from Parkhead boss Gordon Strachan because it is the international calendar, not any opposition, which has forced his players to mark time.

The bonus is that they can spend the down time enjoying the fact they are back in pole position in the championship, courtesy of the 4-0 demolition of Hamiton Accies and Rangers' failure to take even a single point against St Mirren.

Strachan's men can put a little more pressure on Walter Smith's side when they resume their domestic programme at Inverness a week on Saturday as Celtic kick off at lunch-time in this televised match and can go three points clear before Rangers get the chance to kick a ball.

The mid-day start has never been a favourite of Strachan's as he believes it is alien to players to go to work at that hour.

Allied to the enforced break for World Cup games - during which several of his stars will be doing their bit for their respective countries, including Shunsuke Nakamura and Scott McDonald, who must travel halfway round the world and back - this disruption to normal club service could be an irritant.

Given that Celtic have hit their stride domestically, their clutch of goals at the weekend taking their tally in the last five games to a very impressive 18, the preference would be to keep the action coming thick and fast.

But Strachan accepts there is little point in getting upset at things which are outwith your control.

Instead, he will attempt to make the most of the free time by inviting his players to recharge the batteries and prepare to go again when the green light comes on.

The opportunity will also be taken to allow a few niggles and knocks to be cleared.

In the case of Jan Vennegoor of Hesselink - who limped out of Saturday's game having damaged an adductor muscle in his groin after just 22 seconds - it may take a little longer than this two-week break to achieve full recovery.

But, even in his absence, the rest of the Celtic scoring machine confirmed it is firing on all cylinders with Shunsuke Nakamura, Georgios Samaras (naturally), Scott McDonald and Aiden McGeady all adding to their season's tallies against a beleaguered Accies side which was simply swept away by the incessant surges of attacks.

Strachan can only hope the edge has not been taken off his side when it regroups for the trip to the Highlands at the end of next week.

But he is pragmatic when considering the interruption -the second already this season - and said: "It's not a problem that we are stopping again for international matches.

"We know what is coming, and we are getting used to it now. The only problem is that we can miss out on quality time training.

"With clubs who don't have a lot of international players, they have everyone here and can enjoy some quality training without having a game coming up in three or four days.

"We have so many lads away that we don't get this opportunity.

"But I can't complain because I had that advantage when I was manager of Coventry and Southampton and I was preparing my team to play against a club like Manchester United or Arsenal.

"I knew their players were not going to report back to prepare for the game against us until the day before the match whereas I had a whole week - or even longer - working with my entire squad on how we were going to play in that match.

"And sometimes we got good results because of that preparation. But I am now of the mindset that I'm the manager of a top club with top players, so I just get on with it.

"And the players here have also got to accept they are playing with a top club and are asked to play a lot of games. So they just have to get on with it, too."

Strachan is more than happy with the attitude shown by his men this season, particularly when it has come to coping with the demands of mixing Champions League football with domestic commitments.

The victories either side of playing in Villarreal have offset the disappointment of losing against the Spanish league leaders.

And once again it has been the flexibility of his players and the options they have presented him with which have brought the real satisfaction.

A raft of changes from the midweek team did not upset Celtic's rhythm nor dull their goal threat, and Strachan was generous with his praise for his players.

He summed up what made it such a canter against Accies by saying: "It was sheer determination and ability against people who wanted to work.

"Unfortunately for Accies, at times we had more ability than them.

"They gave it their best shot. But we also gave it our best shot in terms of how you prepare for the game and how you are respectful to your opponents.

"Put that together and the skill will win. We had more of that, and we had more pace." NEED TO KNOW

Was it a good game? It takes two to tango, and Celtic led Hamilton a merry dance right from the outset, waltzing away with the points. It could easily have finished six or seven - there was enough good football from the home side to keep the fans entertained. Maloney's dribble to set up the final goal was worth the admission money alone.

Who was Celtic's best player? Several players had good spells, but it was more of a team effort. Crosas was given the sponsor's award and had a good match, while McGeady had a hand in two goals and scored. But Maloney moment near the end gets Shaun this vote.

Did any Accies player shine? James McCarthy was strutting this stage for the first time, and the precocious talent more than held his own.

Were Celtic worth their fifth home shut out of the season? The defence had little to do as Accies played with only one up, and the full-backs spent more time bombing forward than defending. Caldwell was harshly adjudged to have brought down James McArthur in the box, but Boruc saved his spot kick then his headed rebound.

Did the ref get anything else wrong? Steve Conroy was as much a spectator as the rest of us. His toughest task was to keep the score. He booked only one man, Caldwell, who can have little complaint as it was a heavy challenge on McCarthy.

Who's up next? After the international break, it's Inverness in the Highlands a week on Saturday.