Hoops browned off by appeal verdict

Published: 04 Mar 2010 - 15:50:56

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Referee Dougie McDonald upheld his own decision to show Scotland midfielder Brown a straight red card for his clash with Kyle Lafferty during Celtic's late 1-0 defeat by Rangers on Sunday. Brown will now miss a total of three matches through suspension, including Sunday's SPL trip to Falkirk. After a club source had revealed their frustration and concern over damaging decisions by referees in the build-up to Sunday's game, Celtic had claimed no "fair-minded" person would agree Brown deserved to be sent off. Now they have reacted with shock at McDonald's decision to throw out their appeal and criticised the SFA's procedures, which do not allow any decision to be reviewed unless the referee changes his mind on viewing television evidence. In a statement on their official website, a Celtic spokesperson said: "We are amazed at this decision and believe it is the wrong one. "Given the general consensus that the initial decision was incorrect and the availability of supporting video evidence, at the very least, the incident should have been referred to a separate review panel. "Naturally, we are very disappointed that this simple opportunity was not taken. "Clearly, it is also very disappointing that Scottish Football Association rules do not permit this decision to be appealed." With the red card adding 12 points to Brown's disciplinary record, the Celtic skipper will also miss two additional games following his immediate automatic one-match ban. The 24-year-old, who netted the only goal in Scotland's friendly win over the Czech Republic last night, will sit out SPL games against St Johnstone at Parkhead and St Mirren in Paisley later this month. A Scottish Football Association statement read: "In accordance with the provisions for claims of wrongful dismissal, the referee, Dougie McDonald, was requested to review the circumstances of Scott Brown's sending off against Rangers. "The referee has indicated that he is content with his decision." The SFA last week confirmed they had entered into discussions with Celtic officials over refereeing standards but the club's latest statement has further fuelled an already-simmering row. A statement on the Hoops' website hours after the Ibrox loss, which left them 10 points behind the SPL leaders, appeared to question McDonald's impartiality after Lafferty's role in the skirmish went unpunished. Both players grappled with each other but the Scotland star moved his head into the chest of Lafferty, who fell down dramatically before getting up quickly. He later admitted the sending-off was "harsh". The statement on www.celticfc.net read: "It immediately seemed to be a controversial decision to everyone in the ground and, certainly, any fair-minded person looking at the incident at the time or subsequent TV replays could see it wasn't a red card. "Certainly, the Celtic support in the Broomloan Road Stand and beyond were left mystified and angry at yet another refereeing decision in a derby game this season which has gone against the club. "In the first derby match of this season at Ibrox back in October, Celtic were denied a blatant penalty by referee Craig Thomson, who admitted after the game that he had made a mistake. "And in the game against Rangers at Celtic Park, referee Steve Conroy disallowed a Marc-Antoine Fortune goal, though replays showed that there was nothing wrong with the goal." Falkirk v Celtic. Click here to bet.