Lenny in ‘agenda’ question
BY ALAN MARSHALL NEIL LENNON has questioned if there’s an agenda at play after Steven Gerrard escaped an SFA rap while Steve Clarke didn’t.
The Hibs boss jumped to the defence of his Kilmarnock counterpart who has been charged for hitting out over the failed Gary Dicker appeal.
But Lennon can’t understand the inconsistency from the SFA after Gerrard claimed refs have had it in for Rangers for years.
The Hibs boss said: “I don’t understand it. They do that there and they’re doing something else here. Then all of a sudden you think, ‘Is there an agenda here?’
“I get that because it’s really difficult to differentiate the two.
“The Dicker one stands out for me. We’re taking the art of tackling out of the game. It was a strong tackle but it wasn’t dangerous and it wasn’t high. For me he got plenty of the ball.
“I can understand Steve’s frustration. If it was me I would be exactly the same.
“Some managers are mild mannered, some are outspoken. I certainly wouldn’t put Steve in that latter category. He is very articulate, he’s very calm, so there’s a frustration from Steve there.
“And I didn’t think there was a lot wrong with his statement either. So why he is getting hauled over the coals I do not know.
“I’m sure he will go there, defend himself and not retract anything.”
‘To say the anonymous referee panel should be unmasked and who they support made public is a dangerous road to go down’
is criticising this three-man panel of former referees. It seems to me officials are getting off scot-free.
“If they got decisions correct in the first place then we wouldn’t have all this hullabaloo.”
said: “It’s time to out source Old Firm games to foreign referees. It doesn’t matter who officiates this game as their integrity and allegiance will always be questioned.
“Celtic and Rangers are there to play football and they should get somebody in from outside who has no previous dealings with the fixture. That might bring an end to the petty squabbling and blame game that the Old Firm supporters lay at every referee’s door when their team has suffered a loss.
emailed: “All the players who have been red-carded recently have been done so under the banner of using excessive force, brutality or endangering the safety of an opponent.
“It’s time that the authorities looked at introducing a more appropriate wording for lesser offences that is more encompassing such as ‘malicious intent’.”
emailed: “I wonder what would have happened if Scott Brown had made a ‘McGregoresque’ kick during the Old Firm game? A two-match suspension? We all know the answer.” Still on the subject of Broony,
rang in to say: “I noticed in comments about serious foul play people have failed to mention Brown’s favourite use of the elbow on the opponents. Are those callers wearing green-tinted glasses?”
Finally said: “I can’t understand Barry Ferguson’s staunch defence of Kenny Miller in his column.
“Miller ran about like a headless chicken more often than not. I still believe there’s more to the Miller episode than meets they eye. There are two sides to every story.” CALL THE HOTLINE TOMORROW FROM 11 TILL 12 NOON on: 0141 309 3306 or email us: hotline@dailyrecord.co.uk