St Johnstone: Richard Foster still "incredibly embarrassed" by Danny Swanson fight

Players from both sides broke up the short fight that was missed by the TV cameras

Richard Foster remains "incredibly embarrassed" by his altercation with St Johnstone team-mate Danny Swanson.

Both players were sent off for fighting on the pitch as the half-time whistle sounded at Hamilton on 1 April.

Nine-man Saints went close to holding out for a draw, with Accies finding the only goal on 89 minutes.

"I had to explain to my six-year-old son; 'daddy isn't playing because he was fighting'," right-back Foster told BBC Scotland.

Foster and Swanson served two-match bans, with the Perth club fining them each four weeks' wages.

"The club handled it very well, the manager and the chairman," added former Aberdeen and Rangers defender Foster, 31.

"We paid the price we were asked to pay and we've both moved on."

Foster explained that the pair quickly patched up their differences.

"Me and Danny had made up within five minutes in the dressing room," he said.

"We had to sit together in there and listen to the second half and it was obviously gutting when we realised Hamilton had scored a late winner."

Foster and Swanson sat side by side while suspended for the visit to Inverness Caley Thistle

Foster reckons the disagreement would have been handled differently had the flashpoint come moments earlier in the game.

"It was just the timing," he added. "The half-time whistle could not have come at a worse time because it allowed us to get close to each other.

"Tempers had flared and we were just right there.

"It's something that should have been dealt with in the dressing room, normally with an argument, shouting here and there, but it spilled out on the pitch.

"It makes my toes curl even now, thinking about it."

The duo were spared a tongue-lashing from manager Tommy Wright, who had to prepare his depleted side for the remaining 45 minutes, while team-mates were too dejected to comment following the 1-0 defeat.

"They didn't have to say anything," said Foster. "They came in after the game and you could tell they were raging. If Hamilton score in the 55th minute, you deal with it during the game but to come so close to getting a point.

"We obviously let them down but they worked so hard to try and dig me and Danny out of a hole."

Midfielder Swanson, 30, has agreed a move to Hibernian in the summer, while Foster is under contract at McDiarmid Park for another two seasons.

"Danny doesn't enjoy a tackle, so we'll see how that goes," Foster joked about them meeting as opponents next term.