Hibs striker Marc McNulty has been handed a retrospective ban for two games for a stamp on Hearts attacker Sean Clare in a move which highlights the inconsistency in the Scottish disciplinary system.
The Hibs forward undoubtedly deserved to be cited for the stamp, which was missed by Rangers fans’ favourite referee Kevin Clancy in the Jambos’ 3-1 win at Easter Road.
Compare that to Celtic’s Leigh Griffiths, who saw absolutely no citation for a stamp on Hamilton Accies’ Sam Wood during a 4-1 Celtic win in early February.
Rival supporters will also point to the now infamous incidents involving Rangers striker Alfredo Morelos at Ibrox last season.
Celtic midfielder Ryan Christie was also retrospectively banned for grabbing Morelos’ testicles in the Celtic Park win.
When it comes to the Old Firm, these sorts of incidents never seem to go smoothly with the retrospective panel regularly lambasted into silence by outside fan pressure.
It means that the panel – unlike in this case – has largely been found to be unfit for purpose in the wake of big decisions in the past.
In a desperate attempt to appease rival fans, the retrospective system shoehorned the celebrations/gestures of Alfredo Morelos and Ryan Kent in the Celtic Park win into a Rangers charge.
The club was left incredulous [Rangers] for what they believe is a breach of double jeopardy rules, given Morelos was supposedly given a third yellow card for his part in the incident in December.
There’s little doubt that the system here needs a desperate shake-up and referees need more support.
It might sound strange criticising the system on the rare occasion it gets something right, but it only serves to highlight the inconsistency of the entire thing.
Especially when it involves Rangers and Celtic.
As a result of woeful decision making and the ongoing discussion over referees and retrospective action, Rangers have repeated calls for VAR to be introduced in Scotland.
