Hibs icon explains why ref got both penalty calls right as ex-Hearts man backs up 'lazy' verdict

Pundits Marvin Bartley and Neil McCann are in agreement that Mykola Kukharevych was ‘lazy’ for Hibs against Dundee United. The striker was sent off near the end at Easter Road.

David Gray’s side were leading 1-0 after Lewis Miller’s impressive first-half header. However, they ended up drawing 1-1.

Hibs striker Kukharevych was booked for a foul earlier on in the match before he was given a second yellow after pulling Emmanuel Adegboyega’s shirt on 90 minutes to give away a penalty. The spot-kick was then dispatched by Sam Dalby.

Bartley said on BBC Sportscene: “Yeah, listen it is a yellow card all day long. He actually does really well here because he backs up Martin Boyle to press the goalkeeper but he becomes lazy. Rather than showing him back inside the pitch he let the defender run across his body and then he pulls to bring him down. It’s a yellow card all day long and the referee makes the right decision there.

“Then obviously this leads to the penalty. It’s not the first ball you can affect, it’s the second. So if that ball is headed back in there and you allow the attacking player to run forward then he can affect the second ball. For me, the shirt pull is fall too long. That’s the difference between the two, we’ll see the other one later on. There is no need to do it either, (Warren) O’Hora is behind him marking the man. It’s almost lazy, it’s like ‘I’m going to grab this guy’s shirt and stop him from moving’. When you do that, you run the risk of giving a penalty kick away. It’s the right decision for me.”

‘Spot on’...

Meanwhile, ex-Hearts man Neil McCann said: “First of all, (Sam) Dalby sticks the penalty away really well. For me, I don’t think it is enough for a penalty. I know what Marv’s point is, absolutely - the holding on to the jersey for far too long, but I don’t think that’s enough for (Emmanuel) Adegboyega to go down. He’s been really clever. As soon as he’s felt a hand pull, and there’s two of them at it, he knows it is going to be reviewed. After the referee goes to the monitor, of course he’s going to give it.

“You’re spot on Marv about Kukharevych being lazy because that’s a zonal situation. You’re responsible for where you stand and what is in front of you so just let O’Hora deal with that one behind and try and be clever. He must know it’s the final minute of the match and he’s got a big hold of a jersey. As soon as he falls, he must know ‘I’m under pressure here’ and of course, we all know the result of that.”

Hibs had their own shout for a penalty in stoppage time but it was waved away. Bartley said: “The difference for me is that there wasn’t enough time for the jersey being pulled. Yes, it looks like a pull of the shirt but as Neil said, if you do that on every single set play or corner it’s going to look like a foul. I don’t think he has hold of his shirt for long enough for it to be a foul.”

Gray’s men are back in action this weekend against St Mirren at home. They remain bottom of the table after one win from their first 11 fixtures.