Bairns pay penalty over shirt-pulling

Three first-half spot-kicks awarded

ST JOHNSTONE 3 FALKIRK 0

Three first-half penalty awards may have been viewed differently from the rival McDiarmid Park technical areas, but Joe Shaughnessy is in favour of a crackdown on shirt-pulling this season.

The Perth defender, who rounded off a comfortable 3-0 Betfred Cup win with a close-range touch, backed under-fire referee Bobby Madden who awarded two spot-kicks against Bairns defenders for manhandling striker Graham Cummins.

While Liam Craig was thwarted by keeper Danny Rogers after Danny Swanson was downed by Tom Taiwo, Swanson twice punished the Bairns for subsequent indiscretions pinpointed by Madden.

Bairns boss Peter Houston and his players were fuming after being on the receiving end, with the third decision branded “a joke”.

Managers will be briefed early next month on any disciplinary issues, but Madden’s calls prompted speculation that the authorities want shirt tugging punished heavily this term.

In line with his manager Tommy Wright’s assessment, Shaughnessy said: “I think they were all penalties, and if Falkirk had got them they wouldn’t have been complaining.

“The incidents that happened were things that go on in every game.

“You try to get away with it but you know what the rules say; it’s just whether they get applied all the time. This weekend the ref decided to apply them strictly, and in my opinion it’s better if they’re like that because it will stop people fouling in the box.

“As a defender, it definitely gives you something to think about going into the next game.

“As long as the refs are going to be consistent with it and it’s the same in every box and every game, then it’s fine.

“All it will take is penalties to be given and then folk will stop holding and pulling shirts at corners. I think they’re going to clamp down on it in England this season, and obviously it’s going to be the same up here.

“As long as it’s the same for everyone then that’s fine. And if I get penalised for doing it then I’ll have to hold my hands up and say fair enough, because we’re all aware of the rules.”

Shaughnessy tapped home the third in the 69th minute, despite seeing Steven MacLean claim it, with the striker’s celebrations fooling the McDiarmid announcer.

He said: “It was definitely my goal, there’s no doubt about that.

“I saw Macca running away trying to claim it and even the Tannoy announcer gave it to him, but it’s mine. Strikers want to claim everything and will take anything that’s near the goal.

“It was a good performance from us. This was the toughest game we had in the group on paper, so we wanted to be strong. We have put ourselves in a good position to qualify now.”

All it will takeis penalties to be given and then folk will stop holding and pulling shirts at corners. JOE SHAUGHNESSY

Picture: Perthshire Picture Agency. Danny Swanson makes it 2-0 from the penalty spot.