McDONALD HITS OUT AT ‘ARROGANT’ OFFICIALS

MOTHERWELL striker Scott McDonald branded referee Euan Anderson and his assistant Stuart Stevenson ‘arrogant’ and ‘deplorable’ after he was booked for simulation during the Lanarkshire derby. The former Celtic forward fell to the ground in the second half, claiming he had been poked in the eye by Hamilton’s Gramoz Kurtaj. But Anderson flashed a yellow card at both players and McDonald claims he was then told to ‘shut up’ when he asked why he had been cautioned. While admitting Anderson got most decisions correct — including a first-half red card for Motherwell’s Lee Lucas — the Australian was unimpressed by the attitude shown throughout by the match officials. ‘He (Kurtaj) poked me in the eye and I was booked for simulation,’ insisted 33-year-old McDonald, who will leave the decision to appeal the booking up to his club. ‘If the referee wants to do that, then fair enough. They got the red card decision right, so we can’t complain. ‘But in terms of trying to talk to them, they were the worst I’ve had this year. The arrogance of them was incredible. In terms of trying to speak to them, the linesman was deplorable at times. Awful. ‘You don’t mind the officials having a go back because you do give them a bit of stick. But if you get asked a question, answer it! You’re not asking much of them. But they run away and tell you to shut up. ‘I asked the ref what he booked me for and he wouldn’t tell me. I wanted to know why he’d booked me. I didn’t understand. It wasn’t nice all game.’ McDonald’s day did have a happy ending, though, when a move involving him ended with Carl McHugh crossing for Louis Moult to rescue a last-gasp point for Motherwell in the 1-1 draw. That sparked euphoric celebrations, with goalkeeper Craig Samson running the length of the pitch to join in the Hogmanay pile-on. ‘It was a bit like a cup final celebration,’ grinned McDonald. ‘If you go into the winter break having lost that game, then Hamilton get a little bit closer to us. ‘We were down to ten men for the majority of the game but we worked hard. They never killed the game and we grew in confidence. ‘We fought to the last minute for every ball and we won it back a couple of times before the cross for the equaliser. ‘That just shows the desire of the team. We were delighted with that. It almost felt like a win.’