Hearts captain has melee punishment reduced
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Hearts captain Michael Stewart today succeeded in his appeal against his red card at Hamilton after it was reduced to a caution by the Scottish Football Association.
An SFA review panel examined footage of the midfielder's sending-off for violent conduct in Sunday's 2-1 Clydesdale Bank Premier League defeat at New Douglas Park and determined it warranted only a yellow card for "adopting a threatening and/or aggressive attitude".
Stewart was dismissed in the 48th minute for tangling with Accies skipper Alex Neil, the first of six red cards shown during and after what was a chaotic game.
The Jambos skipper appealed the verdict and referee David Somers admitted he had been unhappy with his original decision, referring the matter to the review panel.
Stewart therefore escapes a three-match ban and is available to play in tomorrow's game with Dundee United.
The appeal verdict came 24 hours after Hearts boss Csaba Laszlo called for referees to be held accountable for their mistakes after revealing he had written to the SFA asking for a "formal explanation" for the performance of the officials at New Douglas Park.
Laszlo expressed his "serious concern" about the displays of Somers and his assistants, particularly regarding the sendings off of Stewart and defender Ismael Bouzid, as well as the decision not to award the visitors an injury-time penalty.
Those incidents were overshadowed by the post-match mayhem which saw Somers issue a further four red cards following a mass brawl in the tunnel, something Laszlo claims could have been avoided if the referee had made the correct calls during the 90 minutes.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments