Martin O’Neill: I got ‘strange’ explanation against Celtic’s appeal for penalty

Celtic manager Martin O’Neill felt he got a “strange” explanation for why his team did not get a penalty during their 2-1 William Hill Premiership defeat to Hibernian.

The 10-man Hoops lost to an 87th-minute goal from Kai Andrews after Auston Trusty had received a VAR-assisted red card for an off-the-ball incident.

However, Liam Scales felt he should have had a penalty from referee Matthew MacDermid after having his shirt pulled by Jack Iredale at a corner, immediately after Trusty’s 74th-minute red card.

Video assistant Grant Irvine did not deem it worthy of a review despite a lengthy check.

O’Neill said: “The referee’s words were he didn’t hold on to him long enough, but it seems a wee bit strange.

“He’s grabbing someone’s shirt as he’s making a move to get the ball. Some years ago it was a penalty. But VAR, they’ve passed that one on.”

Trusty was sent off after pulling Jamie McGrath’s arm with one hand and striking down on it with the other.

“I’ve just had a word with the referee,” O’Neill said. “He said he was going to have a word with the two players then VAR intervened and said it was violent conduct.

“You can’t do this if that’s the rules now. It doesn’t matter if someone is holding on to you. You can’t thrust in the manner he did to get away.”

On-loan Brentford defender Benjamin Arthur came on for his debut following Trusty’s dismissal and the 20-year-old could now feature against Rangers at Ibrox next Sunday if Celtic do not successfully appeal. O’Neill hinted they would not.

“The referee has explained to me that’s what VAR said,” he added. “It was violent conduct, so I don’t think anyone will change their minds.”

The defeat was O’Neill’s first domestic loss this season and left third-placed Celtic six points behind Hearts, with a game in hand on the league leaders.

“It’s a setback,” the 73-year-old said. “We are far from finished. Domestically, it’s a tough ask for us, but we’re still there fighting.

“We played some really fantastic football. We went in 1-1 at half-time and we should probably have been in front.

“The sending-off has a big affect. We had the momentum at that stage. We had some chances second half and if you don’t put them away, there’s a possibility at the other end.”

Hibs head coach David Gray hailed his players for ending a 16-year wait for victory at Celtic Park.

“You have to truly believe you can do it,” Gray said. “It took the complete performance. We had to defend and soak up pressure from Celtic.”

Gray felt the red card was justified but admitted relief that the penalty claim failed.

“You can’t lift your hands with that aggression,” he said. “That’s violent conduct and a clear and obvious red.

“Jamie has an issue with his shoulder and almost put it out so it shows how hard he’s hit him.

“The penalty, I’ve seen it from one angle. If it gets given on the field it probably doesn’t get overturned. It went with us on the day.”