Former Referees Say Hatate Should be Banned After Saturday Incident

In the aftermath of Celtic’s match against St Mirren on Saturday, former referees Des Roache and Steve Conroy are calling for Celtic midfielder Reo Hatate to face a two-game suspension for what they perceived as a dive during the game.

The incident, which occurred in the 18-yard box, did not result in a penalty as the referee chose not to award one, waving play on instead.

The call for retrospective action was voiced through a tweet from the Behind the Whistles podcast account, managed by Roache and Conroy, stating: “If we want to get this kind of thing out of our Game the Governing Body needs to bring in retrospective sanctions like a 2 Game ban.”

This statement comes amidst a week of heated discussions regarding Fabio Silva’s diving during the last Glasgow Derby match.

Minimal contact led to a dive that was initially punished, then overturned to a penalty after VAR intervention.

Hatate’s fall in the penalty area was a result of a mere coming together with an opponent,  the midfielder did not appeal for a penalty. There was contact, but it did not warrant a penalty, aligning with the referee’s decision during the match.

The former referees’ call for a ban is wild and an overreaction, there were no such claims last week.