Scottish FA open ‘can of worms’ after new announcement on Rangers
Rangers are fuming over the Scottish FA’s decision to sanction them over comments made by former player John Brown.
Brown called a refereeing decision “corrupt” during Rangers’ 2-2 draw with Hibernian, after Nicolas Raskin appeared to have put them two goals ahead at Easter Road.
Raskin’s goal was not given despite replays showing the ball had crossed the line, with Brown left bewildered while commentating on Rangers TV.
After the Scottish FA fined Rangers £3,000 for the incident alongside several statements, Gary Keown has now weighed in on the debate, which has opened a can of worms.
Scottish FA can of worms emerges over Rangers
Raskin addressed the controversial Rangers incident after the full-time whistle, replying to a video on X which showed the ball had crossed the line.
The midfielder sarcastically said, “Not a good image, no goal then, play on boys,” clearly venting his frustration, which didn’t lead to any further action.
| Nicolas Raskin’s statistics v Hibernian (17 May) | Total |
| Minutes | 81 |
| Goals | 1 |
| Assists | 1 |
| Touches | 81 |
| Accurate passes | 52/60 (87%) |
| Key passes | 4 |
Indeed, he is not the only one who has aired his thoughts, with Keown sharing his point of view in the Scottish Mail on Sunday (22 June, page 90).
He said: “The debate now seems to be moving on to why the SFA have opened up this whole can of worms.
“Why other incidents, such as former Celtic captain Tom Boys suggesting referee John Beaton, one of ’12 men’ the Parkhead side were up against, would be welcomed in ‘his’ Rangers-supporting pub after failing to give a penalty against Dunfermline, or author Irvine Walsh branding Alfredo Morelos a ‘sticky bun’ – rhyming slang for ‘Hun’ – on Hibs TV and claiming he should be ‘macheted into small pieces’ escaped financial punishment.”
Scottish FA set tone for future comments
After sanctioning Rangers for the comments made by Brown during live commentary, the Scottish FA have indeed opened up a can of worms.
Of course, Brown’s comment of “corrupt” was always going to cause a stir, given the strength of his chosen word. However, the Ibrox club and Keown are right to point out remarks made by others that have gone unpunished.
The fact that the comments on Morelos somehow went unpunished is particularly baffling, given just how threatening they were.
It feels that the Scottish FA have chosen the wrong moment to sanction a club, and it is fair that it has been met with such a backlash.
For commentators, crossing the line that Brown has is bound to happen from time to time, given the live nature of the job.
And, naturally, commentators should be punished when they say something out of line, as Brown may well have done.
However, there are evidently occasions when worse remarks have been made, and the Scottish FA must act with consistency.
This debate will likely never end, but the Scottish FA have done itself zero favours.
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