McCoist blasts Aluko verdict

Rangers manager Ally McCoist has furiously hit out at the decision to hand Sone Aluko a two-match ban for diving. The 22-year-old was found guilty of simulation after winning a penalty in Saturday's 2-1 win over Dunfermline in the Clydesdale Bank Premier League. He was issued with a notice of complaint by the SFA's compliance officer Vincent Lunny and offered a fixed suspension of two games, which was swiftly rejected by the Scottish champions. The matter was referred to the judicial panel before a fast-track tribunal was convened on Thursday, which decided that the sanctions should stand, meaning Aluko misses SPL games against Hibernian and Inverness. And McCoist reacted angrily to the verdict and believes his player has now been branded a "cheat" and a "liar". He told www.rangers.co.uk: "I have to say that I am absolutely shocked and extremely angry at the fact this committee has upheld the decision to give Sone a two-game ban. The meeting was chaired by a former referee and I have to say his decision making hasn't improved any since he stopped refereeing." "The three gentlemen on the panel have effectively called my player a cheat and a liar, neither of which he is. What they've effectively done is they have said the player has cheated to get the penalty. "It's an absolutely incredible decision given that the referee [Steve Conroy] is literally five yards from the incident. He has a better view than anybody in the stadium and they have gone not only against the referee but the player as well. "The thing that stuns me is that the panel agreed there was contact, so for them to uphold the decision and go against their own referee, who had a particularly good game, is ridiculous." When contacted by Press Association Sport on Thursday, the SFA said they had no official comment to make in response to McCoist's quotes. However, chief executive Stewart Regan tonight attempted to explain the process behind the decision on his Twitter account. "Important to stress our compliance officer simply presents the case to a panel," Regan said. "The panel then consider the evidence and decide if a sanction is warranted. In the case heard [on Thursday] the verdict was simulation. "There will always be those who do not like the outcome. But the new process is there to deal swiftly with those who have offended. Separate panels sit for every case and consider the evidence. You cannot compare one case directly against another."

Source: PA