Livid Lennon losing faith in referees
HIBERNIAN manager Neil Lennon last night launched a scathing attack on leading official Kevin Clancy and the entire SFA refereeing and disciplinary system.
Lennon was sent to the stand after complaining about the penalty kick that allowed Kris Boyd to earn a 2-2 draw for Kilmarnock at Rugby Park when an Alan Power shot was adjudged to have hit Ryan Porteous’ hand and insisted:
SCOTLAND’S referees are getting worse and worse amid a system that is ‘amateur’ and ‘Mickey Mouse’.
CLANCY has a personal vendetta against him and should not be allowed to referee another Hibs game this season.
HE is losing faith in the entire system under SFA head of refereeing John Fleming.
REFEREES should be sent off when they are ruining a game the way Clancy did.
Lennon criticised Clancy after his side’s 2-1 loss to Rangers in December when he failed to give a stonewall penalty after David Bates had handled in the area.
He is almost certain to face a
ban when applauding in the referee’s face after being sent off yesterday and he did not hold back when commenting on the decision to punish Porteous.
‘I’m probably looking at a ban and that is down to incompetence and guesswork,’ he said. ‘It’s impossible for him to give that. I think he’s guessed. It’s hit Ryan here (gestures to chest). The ball is going a mile wide as well. We’ve seen it again and he can’t see it from the angle he’s at.
‘This is the same referee who didn’t given us a clear handball against Rangers at Easter Road.
‘As for me being sent off without really being overcritical of the decision at the time, he’s made it personal because I criticised him after the Easter Road game.
‘Why can’t we send referees off when they are so blatantly ruining the game? I don’t want him refereeing us again this season. But I probably won’t get my way on that.’
Lennon also mentioned his side having a perfectly good goal disallowed in a goalless draw at Tynecastle in December and insists he has lost all hope in the system.
‘You ring John Fleming on a Monday and you get the same “Yeah, yeah…”,’ said Lennon. ‘You go round in circles and I’ve lost a lot of faith in it to tell you the truth.
‘That’s why I’ve not really got on the wrong side of the law this season. It’s amateur. Mickey Mouse stuff.
‘The standard needs to get better. They (the referees) are not good enough.’
Lennon also took a moment to slaughter the artificial pitch at Rugby Park.
‘The pitch is abysmal. It is impossible to play football on it. It’s dangerous, players are slipping, losing their balance, falling over,’ he said.
Killie boss Steve Clarke said: ‘I was disappointed to drop two points in a game we should have won because we were the better team almost from start to finish.’