Wallace stunned as Hearts suffer another penalty turnaround

BARRY ANDERSON
LEE WALLACE admitted today that he has never known a club to have two penalty awards rescinded in the same season, a fate which befell Hearts on Saturday during the Homecoming Scottish Cup defeat to Falkirk.
Referee Dougie McDonald changed his mind shortly after the hour mark having pointed instantly to the spot when Andy Driver fell under Dean Holden's challenge from behind. Following consultation with his assistant Chris Young, McDonald performed a U-turn and awarded Hearts a corner.

The incident mirrored that of last October, when the same assistant referee was responsible for convincing Steve Conroy that he had wrongly given Hearts a penalty against Aberdeen. Michael Stewart fell when challenged by Jamie Langfield in the penalty area and Conroy pointed to the penalty spot before Young intervened to argue otherwise.

Wallace revealed his frustration to the Evening News that such a scenario should occur twice against his team, and more pertinently involving the same assistant referee. While choosing his words carefully after incurring a retrospective red card at Pittodrie last December for foul and abusive language to Iain Brines, he conceded that Hearts are powerless when it comes to the influence of SFA officials.

"A lot of folk said after the game that they've never seen that before in football. I've certainly never seen it," he said. "If the referees can make this happen it looks like there's nothing we can do about it.

"I'd admit that surely we have a right to say something but, from my point of view, I can't really mention anything because of my past references to referees. If folk were going to mention specifics, I'm sure they would have the right to do so. When the referee, or an assistant, or a fourth official, makes a decision then it's final and you have to live with it. That's something I've learned this season. We'll just have to get on with it and look to get as far up the league as we can now."

Both sides finished the match with ten men as Hearts defender Marius Zaliukas received his third red card of the campaign for punching Falkirk substitute Carl Finnigan. Scott Arfield was dismissed in the dying minutes for two bookable offences. However the Lithuanian is now likely to incur a lengthy ban from the SFA having only recently returned from suspension.

Taken from the Scotsman