Aluko finds an unlikely supporter in Pars chief Yorkston

Embattled Rangers winger Sone Aluko has found an unlikely ally in John Yorkston after the Dunfermline chairman said the player should not be hit with a potential two-game ban.

New Ibrox recruit Aluko will learn this week whether he is to be hauled before the SFA over the dive row that overshadowed the SPL leader’s 2-1 win over Dunfermline on Saturday. And the 22-year-old could be offered a two-match suspension from Hampden Compliance Officer Vincent Lunny if the lawyer decides there is enough television evidence to take action.

Aluko fell to the ground in the box even though footage shows there did not appear to be any contract between the midfielder and Martin Hardie. Referee Steve Conroy pointed to the spot and Nikica Jelavic converted what proved to be the match-winning goal in the 2-1 victory.

Dunfermline manager Jim McIntyre insisted Aluko dived and branded the decision “a disgrace”, but Yorkston believes Aluko should not be handed a stiffer punishment to compensate for what he perceives to be a costly mistake by Conroy. He said: “I think anyone who watched the incident on television is of the same opinion of the manager. We are obviously aggrieved just now, but the bottom line is that the referee makes the call. I do not see what this SFA panel thing is going to do, give the boy two games? If the referee had got it right all he would have got was a yellow card.

“If the boy is found guilty, all he should be given is a yellow card and not a two-game ban. If the player has committed an offence, he should not get a heavier penalty because the referee missed it. I just think the punishment procedure is incorrect. The bottom line is that if the referee had seen it as a dive, the player would have been booked, so how could you change it to a two-game ban because the referee missed it?”

Yorkston knows these kind of decisions could come back to haunt his club at the end of the season, especially with the team just one point clear of basement side Aberdeen. He added: “Whatever the SFA come up with, it’s not going to benefit Dunfermline and it’s not going to make it right for Dunfermline. We have lost the points full stop. We can’t chalk off the penalty and make it 1-1.”