Former SFA ref Des Roache explains why Kilmarnock were denied a penalty vs Celtic

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Ex-SFA referee Des Roache has explained why he was happy for play to continue after Kilmarnock’s pleas for a penalty against Celtic were turned down.

Celtic beat Kilmarnock 3-2 in dramatic fashion after Julian Araujo’s last-minute Rugby Park winner sealed all three points for the Bhoys.

But the game could have taken a turn for the worse had the referee awarded a penalty for this challenge by Celtic captain Callum McGregor on Brad Lyons in the Hoops’ penalty box.

The claim was instantly dismissed by Celtic hero Chris Sutton but what did former SFA referee Des Roache make of it?

• READ MORE: How Not Another Penny has affected Celtic’s matchday and merchandise revenue

Kilmarnock told ‘this is not volleyball’ as Des Roache dismisses penalty claim vs Celtic

Granted, at this point, the game was sitting at 0-0, but seeing as Kilmarnock then went on to take a 2-0 lead shortly afterwards, this could have had a significant effect on the result.

But Roache was not having any of it as the former SFA man threw out the penalty appeal.

Roache told The Ref’s View, “I think there’s a very similar incident that we’re going to come to. We’re going to come to it. On first looking at it, you think, okay, has he tried to buy something there?

“For me, I think it’s just a natural coming together. There is contact, yeah, but not every contact’s a foul. So I’m quite happy that the game continued.

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“No issues really, and we’ll come to the other one as well. So yeah, no, I don’t think it’s a penalty.

“And football is a contact sport. We’re not playing basketball here, we’re not playing volleyball.

“We’re not separate sides and can’t touch. So no, I’m okay with that.”

Celtic’s next three crucial Scottish Premiership fixtures

Celtic are in the midst of a tight title race with Hearts and Rangers with just three points separating third from first place.

And Celtic’s next three fixtures will have a crucial bearing on who could win the title:

• Sunday 22nd February: Celtic vs Hibernian
• Sunday 1st March: Rangers vs Celtic
• Wednesday 4th March: Aberdeen vs Celtic

Win all three and the likelihood is that Celtic will go top heading towards the crucial top-six split in April.

What a psychological boost that will be to Martin O’Neill and the Celtic first team.