Holt hits out at Mcleish over Tierney call-off
Livingston boss Gary Holt has slammed Scotland boss Alex Mcleish for blaming Kieran Tierney’s international call-off on his club’s plastic pitch. Mcleish claimed the surface at the Tony Macaroni Arena aggravated the Celtic left-back’s tight hamstring when he played there last Sunday.
Holt believes the artificial surface is getting an unfair reputation.
He said: “Let’s be honest, I think they will blame Brexit on Livingston’s pitch these days
“In fact, I think the other boys who played would all be stiff after the game, considering the amount they have played.
“It’s an excuse, that’s what it is. It’s people looking for excuses.
“The boy is tight. But he’s played a lot of games, so maybe that is the reason for it.
“You can’t turn around and blame somebody’s pitch.
“It obviously makes things easier for him because he doesn’t have the headache of who does he play, Robertson or Tierney?”
Holt says his own squad aren’t suffering too much because of the surface, and they play there more than any other side in the Premiership.
He went on: “You ask our players after they play midweek then play on a Saturday or Sunday.
“No matter what pitch they are on, you are tight and stiff so you just have to deal with it.
“For somebody in a position like Alex to come out and say our pitch is to blame, I didn’t know he was a qualified doctor or physio that can make these assumptions.
“It’s pretty poor, rather than concentrating on playing football.”