James Forrest ban remains as Celtic appeal thrown out

Celtic midfielder James Forrest has lost his appeal against the red card he picked up against Hamilton earlier this month.

The Scottish Football Association's review panel dismissed the claim for wrongful dismissal submitted by the Parkhead club after Forrest was ordered off in the match at New Douglas Park on 12 January.

Forrest will now serve an automatic one-match suspension, with 12 penalty points added to his disciplinary record.

The decision was taken by an independent three-man panel made up of an ex-referee, former manager and an ex-player.

Forrest, 19, was sent off for a late challenge on Hamilton full-back David Buchanan, while Accies duo Jim McAlister and Simon Mensing were also shown red cards during the SPL game, which ended 1-1. Celtic manager Neil Lennon was critical of the performance of referee Willie Collum afterwards but initially appeared to accept the sending-off. However, Celtic confirmed their intention to appeal the red card the following day.

Meanwhile, Celtic fans are ready to back the club in its on-going dispute with the SFA by refusing to buy tickets for away matches to hit other clubs in the pocket. The Celtic Supporters Association wants its 3,000 members and other Celtic fans to boycott away games, starting with the match at Kilmarnock on 2 March.