Motherwell's Richard Foster given six-game ban for comments on Rangers goal

Motherwell head of coaching Richard Foster has been handed a six-match touchline ban for comments made about a Rangers goal.

Foster was working as a pundit for the BBC when discussing a controversial goal scored by Cyriel Dessers in Rangers’ win over St Johnstone last month.

St Johnstone players, and manager Craig Levein, believed referee Matthew MacDermid had signalled for a Saints free-kick before Dessers scored but the goal stood and Rangers progressed in the League Cup with a 2-0 win.

When the broadcaster read out an explanation from the Scottish FA on air, Foster disagreed with their account of events, saying: “Lies! It’s a lie. Unless he puts the whistle to his mouth for no reason.”

A week later he did apologise for his comments, saying that he had been caught up in the heat of the moment and had spoken “more as a fan rather than a pundit”, “shouldn’t have implied that there was anything going on with the SFA statement” and that he regretted his choice of words.

Since Foster is a member of staff at a club, the outburst brought a disciplinary charge from the governing body.

At a disciplinary hearing on Thursday, an independent panel decided he had not “acted in the best interests of association football” and handed him a six-game ban.

The Motherwell coach will serve a four-game suspension immediately, with the remaining two match ban being applied if he breaches the same rule again this season.

Scottish FA head of refereeing Willie Collum discussed the controversial goal on the governing body’s new VAR Review show on YouTube.

He revealed that an audio recording confirmed match official MacDermid had not blown his whistle before the goal was scored but admitted his body language was misleading.

“Here, the referee probably doesn’t display good body language,” Collum said. “His body language when the challenge is made is edging towards a free-kick.

“But he correctly delays the whistle, he correctly communicates so the VAR is aware of what he intends doing if a goal is scored and, when the ball hits the net, he then blows his whistle for what he deems to be a defensive free-kick.

“VAR checks and realises the Rangers player hasn’t committed a foul and they therefore recommend an on-field review.

“Apart from the body language, the correct process was followed and ultimately the correct decision was reached.”