Ref admits Old Firm mistake

Referee Kenny Clark admits he was wrong to deny Celtic a penalty during Sunday’s Old Firm derby.

The official ignored the pleas for a spot-kick when Neil Lennon was fouled in the box by Rangers full-back Steven Smith.

Celtic were leading at the time through a Thomas Gravesen goal but were held to a 1-1 draw when Brahim Hemdani netted for Rangers with three minutes to go.

Lennon and Hoops boss Gordon Strachan were both fuming about the penalty incident after the game, which could have allowed them to win the match and extend their SPL lead over Rangers to 19 points.

After watching the incident again on television, Clark admits he called it wrong.

Speaking on the Whistleblower section of the Scottish Football Association’s website, he said: “I got the opportunity to watch the incident for the first time last evening (Monday) and, yes, it should have been a penalty kick.

“In penalty area situations a referee tries to take up the best position possible and, as play developed from the left, I moved with it and thought I was well-placed.

“From the angle I had at the time, I saw the challenge but obviously didn’t think there had been an infringement.

“Having now had the benefit of seeing the incident from various camera angles, there certainly was contact.”

The SFA’s head of referee development Donald McVicar also admits Clark made the wrong decision.

But he insists the incident should not overshadow the referee’s otherwise impressive handling of a potentially explosive fixture.

He said: “It’s a pity that the debate is all about one decision because Kenny handled the game extremely well and contributed to what was an excellent advert for Scottish football.

“He used all his experience to manage and control one of the most passionate fixtures in football and got the balance right.”