Beaten by the ref? NOT A CHANCE
Barrie: Hearts should have been more clinical after Kyogo’s dodgy opener
BARRIE McKAY insists the big screens at Celtic Park proved in an instant that the officials had boobed at the Hoops’ winner on Thursday.
But it was the big chances spurned by Hearts that concerned the forward even more as he replayed the 1-0 defeat back in his head.
McKay has urged his side to find their shooting boots at Livingston tomorrow after a third defeat in five games saw the Tynecastle side fall further behind at the top of the Premiership.
It could have been different had Stephen Kingsley and Gary MackaySteven not failed when glaring opportunities presented themselves for an equaliser – with McKay himself firing wide after
Mackay-Steven had stumbled at the key moment.
Boss Robbie Neilson was adamant his side were beaten by the officials rather than the Hoops after Bobby Madden and assistant Alan Mulvanny failed to rule Kyogo Furuhashi offside for the only goal of the game.
McKay was frustrated at the manner of the winner too. But he was also looking closer to home for reasons why his side left Glasgow empty handed.
He said: “You could see it on the screen in the stadium that he was offside and then you see it again after. The way our defenders reacted you could see they knew and then you see it on the screen.
“You can’t change it after the ref has made the decision, you need to move on. That’s what we did in the second half, we put it to the back of our minds and played our own game.
“There’s disappointment. We obviously had chances to get something from the game. They had chances as well and Craig Gordon has pulled off some great saves.
“We went out there after half-time and we chased the game. We go into every game looking to win and that’s what we tried to do in the second half. You take confidence from the way we played and the chances we created. We want to play to our strengths and we’ll look to do that on Sunday.”
Mackay-Steven was presented with the best chance for a late equaliser only for him to stumble just as he was about to shoot.
McKay, who was hit by a plastic bottle while taking a corner, said: “When I played Gaz through I fancied him to score but he lost his footing and it fell to me.
“It was just past the post and probably summed up the chances we had. We just couldn’t convert.”