Paul Hartley has hailed Celtic's never-say-die attitude after they ground out a late victory against Hamilton in the Clydesdale Bank Premier League at the weekend.

Gordon Strachan's side proved once again that they had the determination and the fight necessary to retain their league crown after Rangers cut their lead to a single point with a win over St Mirren 24 hours earlier.

Behind to an early Richard Offiong goal at New Douglas Park, the champions were struggling as the home side continued to outplay them for large parts of the first half. However, with the aid of a disputed penalty decision, converted by Shunsuke Nakamura before half-time, Celtic piled forward in search of the winner as the game went on and were rewarded with just four minutes to go when Hartley grabbed the decisive goal.

The midfielder is well aware it was a far from convincing victory but insists a battling attitude is the mark of winners.

"With the spirit we've got in the team we keep going to the end," he said. "We knew if we could get one chance that hopefully we would take it and that is what happened.

"Sometimes you have difficult days at the office and this was one. But we have to give Hamilton credit for playing very well. Sometimes you just have to grind out results. It's not always going to be pretty but that's what makes you a good team."

Nakamura's continued contribution is indicative of that spirit. The Japanese midfielder has been suffering the effects of ankle and knee problems for more than a year but he revealed that he will continue to play on for both club and country.

Nakamura said he will play for Japan they take on Qatar in a crucial World Cup qualifier today. "For the past couple of months, I have had a problem with my knee and my ankle has also been aching a little," he said. "I've even been playing with the national team in pain, which probably isn't a good thing. I need to learn to put the brakes on sometimes because my ankle isn't so good. But, with so many important games, it's not easy."

Nakamura will win his 79th cap for Japan in today's encounter.