St Johnstone will discover on Thursday if they have been successful with their appeals against bookings handed to Graham Cummins and Chris Kane for diving. 

Both players were cautioned for simulation by referee John Beaton during Saints' 1-0 victory over Hearts on Saturday. Cummins - who scored the Perth side's second-half winner - was accused of taking a tumble following a challenge by Igor Rossi 14 minutes in, while substitute Kane was also shown yellow late in the game after hitting the deck. 

McDiarmid Park boss Tommy Wright has decided to challenge the decisions after reviewing footage of both incidents. The cases will be heard by the Scottish Football Association's judicial panel on Thursday.

Wright said: "We fully support the game's authorities as they attempt to clamp down on this aspect of the game but in both these cases we feel that the players have been wrongly cautioned."

Image source, SNS

Alasdair Lamont
BBC Sport Scotland in Iceland

Scotland Women end their Euro 2017 qualifying campaign in Iceland later (18:00 BST) knowing their place at a first major tournament is already assured.

Having won six of their seven matches, the Scots are guaranteed to finish as one of the six best runners-up going to the Netherlands next year.

Anna Signeul's side lost 4-0 at home to Iceland in June.

Iceland, who have yet to concede a goal in the campaign, will finish top unless Scotland can better that score.

"We want to do ourselves justice, to make ourselves proud as individuals and as a team and that will be a great start to this preparation for the Euros," Signeul told BBC Scotland. 

Read more 

Image source, SNS

Chris Cunningham: What like Celtic are second best to most English championship clubs? Time to take Scotland CL place away. They are only good enough for the early rounds of the Europa League  

Here's something that brings together three elements of what's making the news in Scottish football this week: Joey Barton, Rangers and gambling.

Barton's horse "Wearethepeople" (a chant sung by Gers fans) is the 10-3 favourite in the 5.50pm at Ffos Las racecourse. 

Now, the allegations that Joey Barton bet on a football match, though not one involving his team, follows four other high-profile cases in Scottish football that were proven.

September 2013: Rangers midfielder Ian Black became the first player in Scotland to be punished for breaking gambling rules, receiving a 10-match ban, seven of which were suspended until the end of the season. He was also fined £7,500. He was accused of gambling on 160 matches over a seven-year period while at Inverness CT, Hearts and Rangers, including betting against his own team on three occasions. He did not play in any of the matches concerned.

February 2014: Ayr United striker Michael Moffat was suspended for six games, later reduced on appeal, for placing seven bets on six matches involving his own team. He avoided a fine but was also found guilty of placing an additional 150 bets on other games. There was no evidence to suggest Moffat has been involved in match-fixing or influencing results. 

April 2015: The Scottish Football Association was unsuccessful in appealing against what they saw as the "unduly lenient" punishment given to Rangers goalkeeper Steve Simonsen for betting on games. The 35-year-old was given a two-match ban - one suspended until the end of the season - after being found guilty of betting on 55 games. Simonsen bet on 18 matches in season 2013-14 and 37 the following season. None of these fixtures involved Rangers, and the former England Under-21 international claimed he had misunderstood the SFA's rules governing players' gambling.  

May 2015: Partick Thistle midfielder Steven Lawless was banned for six matches, four of which were suspended until the end of the following season, for betting on 513 matches between December 2012 and March 2015. Lawless was not involved in any of the matches. 

Image source, SNS

Here's what the former Rangers and Scotland captain Barry Ferguson told BBC Radio Scotland's Sportsound programme last night:

"I think Celtic are a better team at this time, but I don't think there is the huge gulf that everybody was going on about after the Old Firm game. 

"Do I think Celtic will win the league? Yes.

"Do I think Rangers will finish second? I do think Rangers will finish second. 

"If you look through the teams, Rangers have good quality. They've still got good players. I just don't think he (Mark Warburton) knows his best team just now."

Image source, SNS

Chris McLaughlin
BBC Sport Scotland

Few would now argue against the feeling that Joey Barton's career at Rangers is over but it appears to be ending in quite spectacular fashion. 

Less than 24 hours after he was suspended by the club following a training ground bust up, today a front page story suggesting he broke football gambling rules by betting on a match. 

If the club is gathering evidence to prove the 34-year-old is in breach of contract, it certainly goes some way to helping their cause, if true. 

Just a day before the launch of his book, for the publishers, it's the perfect storm. Add into the mix a few lines from the man himself about his regrets at signing for Rangers and claims that Celtic tried to sign him first, and you have the Joey Barton circus in full swing.

Peter Lawwell has dismissed claims from Joey Barton that Celtic made moves to sign the midfielder before he joined Rangers. 

Barton claimed that an agent working on behalf of Lawwell approached him for signing talks. 

The Celtic chief executive not only disputes that version of events, but says he was approached about the possibility of signing Barton. 

 "I think Joey's been had by a bit of a matchmaker here," Lawwell said. 

Read more here.

Image source, SNS

Meanwhile, former Rangers, Blackburn and Scotland midfielder Barry Ferguson has been describing the Aberdeen-Rangers fixture in less than glowing terms.

"It is a place you go to and you don't feel very welcome," said Ferguson of his trips to Pittodrie ahead of this weekend's Premiership fixture.

"There is a nastiness about the fixture."

Read the full story

Image source, SNS

Here's the section of the SFA's judicial panel protocol rules, external that Joey Barton is alleged to have breached.

Section 31: "No club, official, Team Official or other member of Team Staff, player, match official or other person under the jurisdiction of the Scottish FA shall gamble in any way on a football match."

Share your thoughts on the biggest stories in Scottish football on Twitter to @bbcsportscot, text using "Scottish football" at the start of your message or visit our Facebook page. 

The Scottish papers, as you might imagine, have column inches running into miles on Joey Barton's dispute with Rangers. Here's what is greeting readers and making readers greet this morning, as summarised in our gossip column:

• Barton reveals in his autobiography "No Nonsense" that he turned down an approach from Celtic at the end of last season because he had already agreed to sign for Rangers.
• Barton is being probed over claims he broke football betting rules. The suspended Rangers ace, 34, is believed to be facing an SFA charge of punting on games since coming to Ibrox.
• Mark Warburton responds to criticism by former Celtic striker Chris Sutton by saying he has "absolutely zero interest" in his opinion.
• Jack Ross distances himself from the managerial vacancy at Championship club St Mirren, saying he enjoys the job he is doing at League One Alloa