Former Livingston player Keaghan Jacobs appears in court accused of playing part in betting scam

Jacobs is alleged to have attempted to cheat at gambling by picking up the yellow card on purpose during a game against the Hoops at the Tony Macaroni stadium in October 2019.

Court papers state the 35-year-old is said to have “acted in a manner whereby he would receive a yellow card for the purpose of enabling or assisting others to cheat at gambling”.

Jacobs - who now turns out for Lowland League club Gala Fairydean Rovers - lodged a not guilty plea to the charge when he appeared in person in the dock at Edinburgh Sheriff Court on Wednesday.

Sheriff John Cook set down a date for trial in October and issued a bail condition that Jacobs, from Edinburgh, cannot approach or contact his co-accused Conan McDiarmid.

Jacobs lodged a not guilty plea to the charge when he appeared in person in the dock at Edinburgh Sheriff Court on Wednesday. | PA

McDiarmid, 40, is facing a charge of allegedly placing bets, and arranged for others to place bets, on Jacobs receiving the caution from referee Willie Collum during the high profile match. He is alleged to have placed bets “in the knowledge that it had been arranged that Jacobs would act in a manner whereby he would receive a yellow card during the match”.

McDiarmid, from Bonnyrigg, Midlothian, pleaded not guilty to the charge at a court hearing last month and will stand trial alongside Jacobs at the capital court in October.

Both men are being prosecuted under the Gambling Act 2005, Section 42, 1A. The match involved in the alleged betting scam saw Livingston beat Celtic 2-0 win at the Tony Macaroni stadium on October 6, 2019.

Celtic midfielder Ryan Christie was shown a straight red card in the 25th minute before second half goals from Scott Robinson and Lyndon Dykes clinched the points for the Lions.

Jacobs played the full 90 minutes and was shown a yellow card by referee Willie Collum for an illegal challenge on winger Jonny Hayes in the 95th minute.

Jacobs is a South African national who had two spells with Livingston between 2007 and 2015 and again between 2017 and 2022. The midfielder played a total of 252 times for the West Lothian club scoring 23 goals and has also played for Falkirk, Arbroath and South African outfit Bidvest Wits.

Jacobs is believed to have made football history when he played alongside his three triplet brothers - Kyle, Devon and Sheldon - in a Scottish Third Division match between Livingston and Albion Rovers in April 2010.

The 2-0 win in front of just over 600 supporters is said to be the only time four brothers have turned out for the same professional senior team in the same match. McDiarmid played as a defender with a number of amateur clubs including Edinburgh United and Whitehill Welfare before he retired in 2020 and moved into management.