Coach in the stand following SFA ban
Accies boss accepts ruling after gambling lapse
Hamilton Accies head coach Brian Rice was this week two games into a 10-match ban following his betting scandal.
Rice received the punishment, of which five games are suspended, at a hearing at the Scottish Football Association last Thursday after admitting his gambling addiction.
It meant he was forced to watch from the stand during Celtic’s visit to Hamilton on Sunday and at St Mirren last night (Wednesday).
Hamilton Accies boss Brian Rice hopes to become a “better person” after receiving a 10game ban, five of which were suspended, following his selfconfessed gambling addiction.
The head coach’s fate was sealed at a Scottish Football Association disciplinary hearing panel last Thursday, weeks after writing to the governing body admitting that he had found himself “back in the grip of gambling addiction”.
Rice attended the panel meeting alongside Accies chief executive Colin Mcgowan and club chairman Allan Maitland, who both publicly backed the gaffer in the wake of the betting storm.
The panel heard how Rice had breached Scottish FA gambling rules, in particular rule 31, which states that “no club, official, team official or other member of team staff, player, match official or other person under the jurisdiction of the Scottish FA shall gamble in any way on a football match”.
Following the ruling, Rice told the Advertiser: “If my story coming out helps one more person, then it’s all been worthwhile.
“I’ve never been involved in anything like this before but it was a very fair hearing. I’ll accept my punishment and hopefully move on to be a better person.
“The club have been absolutely amazing, as have family and friends, colleagues, people who don’t know me. Everyone has been so supportive.
“Now it’s time for me to reflect, get my life back on track and start getting Hamilton up the league.”
Hamilton Accies assistant boss Guillaume Beuzelin will take charge of the team throughout Rice’s ban, with youth academy director George Cairns seeing to media duties.
It means Rice, who missed Sunday’s home match against Celtic, was also forced to sit out Wednesday’s away match to St Mirren, as well as Rangers at home in the Scottish Cup, followed by Aberdeen at home and Hearts away.
The ban will take him up to the Lanarkshire derby against Motherwell on February 22. The SFA imposed the sanction on “condition that Mr Rice continues to attend regularly at recovery meetings, does not breach Disciplinary Rule 31 and that on the last day of each month the club submit a certificate to the effect that as far as the club is aware, he has not gambled since October 17, 2019.”
On the SFA website they stated: “The tribunal chose to suspend one half of the sanction to reflect the genuine efforts it considered Mr Rice has made to ‘put his life and that of his family back together again,’ and to take account of his genuine expression of remorse for his breach of the rule and the effect that has had on his family, the club and the Scottish FA.
“It is the hope of the tribunal that the suspended element will not be imposed but will play some part in helping Mr Rice to avoid returning to the practice, which has so blighted his life.”
The tribunal chose to suspend one half of the sanction to reflect the genuine efforts Mr Rice has made SFA ruling