Motherwell have written to the SFA seeking clarity on how their players can tackle opponents without using excessive force.
On Saturday Mark McGhee was furious at the sending off of Carl McHugh against Hearts by Andrew Dallas with the Motherwell boss promising to appeal against the red card.
Yesterday the club issued a statement saying: “The recent experience with Scott McDonald’s appeal for a similar sort of offence, with the onus being on the club to prove an obvious refereeing error, convinced management that, although we greatly respect the process and the individuals involved, any further appeal would not only be futile, but also a waste of the club’s time and money.
“The club has subsequently written to the Scottish FA’s Head of Referee Operations to seek clarity on the guidelines surrounding serious foul play and in particular, ‘excessive force’.”
The statement added: “A number of challenges in various SPFL Premiership matches (and high profile matches in other major leagues) over the last few weeks would more than meet the criteria both Scott McDonald and Carl McHugh were judged by, and subsequently ordered off for, but only cautions were issued.
“This causes a great deal of confusion and frustration for our playing staff, coaching staff and supporters, and it is making it increasingly difficult to say with any certainty what is and isn’t a red card offence when talking about ‘excessive force’.
“Everyone involved in football understands that, at times, clubs will be on the end of honest mistakes or incorrect calls, it is part and parcel of the game. In addition, it is also acknowledged and accepted that match officials do not set the laws of the game, only enforce them.
“However, that means they need to be applied consistently across the board and any law or criteria that allows for such a broad scope of individual interpretation is, in Motherwell FC’s view, a flawed one.”
Willie Collum was responsible for McDonald’s red card against Sevco with the player feeling that the appeal hearing was a waste of time.
Motherwell’s statement comes at a time when referee’s are coming under greater criticism than ever with the same officials routinely involved in controversy.
Following the Motherwell v Hearts match referee Dallas phoned Ian Cathro to apologise for the yellow card issued to Malaury Martin by mistake.
Despite being within five yards of the incident Dallas booked the Hearts man when it was clearly seen that Louis Moult tripped over the foot of team-mate Lionel Ainsworth.
The Motherwell v Hearts match was shown live on BT Sport, the SFA have appointed Dallas to take charge of Sunday’s Scottish Cup tie between Sevco and Morton which will be shown live by Sky Sports.
