ROBERTSON FACING DOUBLE WHAMMY

The praise for his team following the Bank of Scotland Premier League win over Kilmarnock on Saturday will be followed by a preview of the Tennent's Scottish Cup replay against, you guessed, Kilmarnock on Wednesday.

But the Tynecastle boss faces a tough decision for the day after the fourth round game at Rugby Park - which disciplinary meeting will provide the bigger punishment?

The former Inverness Caledonian Thistle boss faces a double whammy of his own after attempting to plot a second success over Killie.

While the Scottish Football Association will be looking at Robertson's comments about referee John Rowbotham after the cup draw with Killie, UEFA also have a date with the Tynecastle boss and the rule book.

Indeed, the Hearts boss has been making his mark across the continent during almost four months at the club.

In December, his clash with Ferencvaros coach Csaba Laszlo provoked the European governing body into this week's action when the Hungarian boss accused Robertson of kicking him after the UEFA Cup tie at Murrayfield.

His predecessor, Craig Levein, was never short of a word or two where match officials were concerned - just ask Dougie McDonald.

The "I lost count of the mistakes that were made when it reached 97" line in May 2003 following the dismissals of Andy Webster and Austin McCann at Kilmarnock will live long in the memory.

The long-running saga over the non-payment of a subsequent SFA fine which followed was, however, less amusing as the prospect of a high-profile court case was narrowly avoided.

But Robertson's belief that the SFA were picking on his club in the wake of such incidents was simply astonishing.

A petted lip from one or both of the Old Firm clubs is nothing new, but the outburst from Robertson was beneath a man who deserves praise for his handling of the Edinburgh club as the takeover bid rumbled on through the crucial transfer window.

You never bite the hand that feeds, true.

But how much of Robbo's sentiments were based on the frustration of 2005 to date?

Nobody is going to ask Robertson to curb his enthusiasm for the club where he is adored by fans in a mutual arrangement.

But, with two disciplinary cases on the same day, even the Jambos' boss must be questioning the wisdom of his open passion towards his club.

Taken from sportinglife.com