Celtic's Craig Gordon urges more SFA transparency over disciplinary decisions
- Published
No retrospective action was taken against Rangers' Allan McGregor for kicking out at Celtic's Kristoffer Ajer
Celtic goalkeeper Craig Gordon thinks there needs to be more transparency at the Scottish FA to prevent people questioning the allegiances of those on its disciplinary panel.
It follows a number of contentious rulings this season.
Aberdeen manager Derek McInnes also spoke out on Tuesday at the "incompetency" of the appeals process.
Gordon said: "It seems quite a clouded subject on how they get to these decisions."
He added: "As far as I'm aware, it goes to three referees. There's no comeback and you don't know who they are. It's a strange system.
"You never know who the referees are, who their allegiances might be."
Asking for guidance
Gordon's comments come as the SFA seeks clarification from world governing body Fifa over what constitutes a red card.
It has sent a video package to the football authorities of controversial incidents looking for guidance.
This season, Aberdeen and Kilmarnock have failed in attempts to overturn red cards shown to, respectively, Michael Devlin and Gary Dicker.
Celtic goalkeeper Craig Gordon
Rangers striker Alfredo Morelos did have a red card overturned on appeal, while team-mate Allan McGregor did not face retrospective action after a similar kick out against Celtic's Kristoffer Ajer.
"I think everybody was surprised by the decision," Gordon said of fellow Scotland goalkeeper McGregor. "I don't think anybody thought that would be the outcome.
"We just need to know exactly what's happening, what is violent conduct, what's not and then everybody abides by those laws and we get on with it.
"It's happened now, that's the decision. We move on. It's no big deal."
'We always have trust in those making the calls' - Rodgers
Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers echoed the sentiments of his goalkeeper, saying more transparency in the process would be welcomed.
"It would be nice to know the panel, what their thoughts are and obviously then how they would come to that conclusion," he said.
"Let's hope there are not too many incidents of it but certainly we want the game to be governed in the safest possible way for the players. That's important and like I say that will hopefully be the case.
"We always have to trust that people are looking to make the best calls and the best judgements in the best interest of the game."
How does the process work?
If Scottish Professional Football League clubs decide to appeal against a decision, they must prove that an obvious error has been made.
They have until 13:00 on the first working day after the match to lodge their intention to appeal, with their case needing to be submitted by 17:00 the next day.
The player or any other personnel cannot attend the hearings, which will be a video conference between a tribunal of trained, independent judicial panel members.
As of this season, the Scottish FA's compliance officer plays no part in the proceedings.