Barry Ferguson reckons that Rangers goalkeeper Allan McGregor’s challenge on Aberdeen’s Lewis Ferguson has been blown out of proportion.
He says that this particular challenge would not have even “raised an eyebrow” ten years ago, let alone the judicial panel receiving a complaint about it – and believes that challenges such as these are “part and parcel” of the game.
Ferguson said he spoke to McGregor about the incident, who told him that it was not deliberate and that he did not mean to cause any harm to the Dons player.
“Here we are more than a week later and we’re still banging on about a challenge by Allan McGregor on Lewis Ferguson which wouldn’t have raised an eyebrow ten years ago never mind a complaint to the judicial review panel,” he said in his Daily Record column.
“I actually bumped into Greegsy on Sunday in Glasgow City centre and I asked him if he meant to deliberately catch Lewis. Remember, this is a guy I’ve known and played beside for years so I know when he’s telling the truth or not.
“And the truth of the matter here is that he came out to collect the ball and used his feet to protect himself from any impact. It wasn’t a question of trying to do any damage to his opponent. It was about making sure that none was done to him.
“Yes, if that means Lewis takes a wee whack on the shins then so-be-it. That’s football. And I’m saying that as family. I could be running around with my hair on fire screaming for retribution because it was my nephew on the receiving end but people have to realise this is all just part and parcel of playing the game.
“We shouldn’t have to go running to the authorities to tell tales every time someone loses an eyelash out there.”
OPINION
Challenges have been flying about all over the place in Scottish football recently, and we are certainly not going to hear the last of it before the season ends. This challenge involving the Rangers keeper and Lewis Ferguson is just the latest in a long line incidents that have happened this season, and it is the latest to go to the judicial panel. As Ferguson points out, why does everyone have to go running to them after a challenge has happened? He says that an incident like this would not have shocked as many people ten years ago, and the fact it has been complained about shows how far the game in Scotland has come over the last few years. McGregor even clarified the incident to Ferguson, and it now makes a whole lot more sense than it initially did. If he did not mean any damage by it, what harm has been done? Yes, Ferguson may have got a little bit hurt, but that is all “part and parcel” of the game.