Football: Skelton refuses to blame referee after goalless draw

Published on Monday 20 April 2009 10:05

GAVIN SKELTON refused to point the finger of blame at the referee for failing to award Kilmarnock a penalty in the 0-0 draw against Dundee United.

And the Killie midfielder admits it was probably his own fault that he was not given the spot-kick which could have won them the match at Tannadice.

Skelton appeared to be tripped in the box by Garry Kenneth in the first half of the Clydesdale Bank Premier League clash but no penalty was forthcoming from match official William Collum.

And, although boss Jim Jefferies and his assistant Billy Brown both reacted in the dugout, there were no appeals from the Kilmarnock players, including Skelton.

Asked whether his reaction may have influenced the referee's decision, he admitted: "Probably because you would expect to get a reaction from a player.

"It was a major decision in the game but I'm not going to criticise the referee. I would have to see it again.

"I didn't claim for it straight away and I think I was disappointed in myself. I took a bad touch and I was more disappointed in myself for not scoring."

The goalless draw was enough to keep Kilmarnock six points clear of bottom side Falkirk and out of the danger zone for now.

With the teams in the bottom half of the table now set to play each other in the five remaining games after the league split, the Rugby Park side must now avoid being dragged any further into a relegation scrap.

"When you're in the bottom six, you play each other all the time so I'm not going to say that we need this or we need that," said Skelton.

"You just put pressure on yourself. I thought this was a good point, they are a good side and we just have to pick up as many points as we can."