Hutton on defensive over tackle

SCOTLAND and Aston Villa full-back Alan Hutton has ended his silence over the tackle which ruled West Brom striker Shane Long out of the Republic of Ireland’s Euro 2012 play-off earlier this month and insists he would never deliberately hurt any player.

Hutton came in for strong criticism over the challenge in last month’s Premier League clash from West Brom manager Roy Hodgson, who described the tackle as “vicious”. It sidelined Long for a month and forced him to miss Ireland’s play-off success against Estonia.

But, although sorry for causing the injury, Hutton has brushed aside Hodgson’s criticism and says injuries are a part of football. When asked about Hodgson’s response, Hutton said: “To be honest, I don’t even listen to it. Things happen in football but I would never go out and mean to hurt somebody. I went to win the ball. The follow-through wasn’t great but I would never go onto a pitch to hurt someone.

“It has happened to me before [getting injured] and I have just got on with it. Nobody means to go out and hurt anyone.”

Hutton added: “Injuries happen every week. In football, decisions are made in split seconds. I broke my leg in a tackle. I’m sorry that [Long] was hurt and he was out for the length of time he was.”