Few Premiership afternoons have felt as charged as the 2-2 draw between Hearts and Celtic at Tynecastle. Celtic were reduced to ten men when Auston Trusty was sent off, and Hearts came back twice, with Stuart Findlay scoring early in the second half and Claudio Braga equalising late on. It was a result that kept the league leaders ahead but left plenty of unfinished business. (rte)
Predictably, the fallout was louder than the football. Celtic manager Martin O’Neill argued that the red card was no more deserving of a dismissal than a blue card would have been, and the club went on to appeal it. Derek McInnes, meanwhile, had his own views on the decision, and his remarks about Celtic not collecting red cards set off a fresh round of arguments. (stv)
Among those unimpressed was former Celtic player Peter Grant, who told Go Radio that McInnes’s comments were ridiculous and amounted to pressure on officials. He even called on the SFA to act and challenged McInnes to name the occasions when Celtic players should have been sent off. That call for action is where the “suspension” talk appears to have come from, and I found no sign of any charge. (67hailhail)
There was also a touchline flashpoint. McInnes stormed into the Celtic technical area after Benjamin Nygren’s opener, angered by a coach’s celebration. Celtic coach Mark Fotheringham later phoned to apologise, and McInnes confirmed he had been genuinely annoyed. (stv)
Whatever your view, the episode shows how much tension surrounds a title race featuring Hearts, Celtic and Rangers. Managers are under pressure, every decision is scrutinised, and one comment can dominate the week. Hearts took a hard-earned point, Celtic took a grievance, and Scottish football got another reminder of why these fixtures matter so much.
