Once again when Ibrox squeals Maxwell bends the knee.

Isn’t it amazing how the Ibrox club can say and do whatever it wants in relation to referees, and yet there are no refereeing strikes, and nobody ever gets bent out of shape? The governing body acts as if it isn’t happening, even if it means throwing their own officials under the bus now and again.

After Sunday’s game, the best interpretation I heard for why Diomande was sent off was that he raised his hand, and whether he made contact or not was irrelevant. Whether the contact was significant or not didn’t matter.

The claim was that he attempted to strike another player in the face, and that’s a red card offence. Nick Walsh certainly believed it was, as he didn’t even let his VAR officials convince him otherwise.

Well, yesterday, Nick Walsh was thrown overboard, in the same way the VAR officials were after the League Cup final.

He won’t be punished in any meaningful sense, despite hysterical demands for that to happen, and we know he won’t be punished because the SFA is expert at covering its own tracks and ensuring that its people never face adverse consequences, even when they’ve made mistakes.

There’s no clear indication that this was even a mistake, although the decision has now been overturned on appeal.

Because another thing the SFA is very good at is pandering to its enemies. Sometimes, the media plays its role as the SFA’s antagonist, particularly when the Ibrox club is screaming about an injustice. In those circumstances, the media suddenly demands accountability and other high-minded principles it usually doesn’t care about.

The governing body can keep on doing this, but it makes them look weak. They look weak because the Ibrox club is seen as having won this one, just as they’re seen to have won the battle over the cup final VAR guys.

And yes, I’ve argued before that the Ibrox club is actually the one that’s weak—but don’t underestimate the importance of perception.

In the eyes of many within that club and fanbase, they’ve won the last two battles. It may be delusional thinking, but don’t assume that it doesn’t have consequences. They now believe they can take on the SFA anytime they like.

They now think that all they need to do to secure apologies, clarifications, and overturned decisions is to make enough noise and lean on their media allies. And with that, any chance of meaningful reform in the game—of stripping away the cultural advantages that club has long held—is gone.

This decision should have been one of the easiest for the SFA to stand by, no matter how much outrage there was. Walsh had it absolutely right on the day. The player raised his hand. He tried to slap the other guy in the face. That’s a red card—it’s in the rulebook. All the SFA had to do was say, “That’s what the rulebook says. It might seem harsh, but those are the rules.”

Instead, they’ve opened the door to mitigating factors for slapping another player. Did the Ibrox club really walk into that room and argue that a little pushing and shoving somehow justified their player’s actions?

Did they seriously try to claim provocation as a defence? Of course they did. It’s the same excuse they used after Hibs beat them in the Scottish Cup final, when their fans invaded the pitch and started a riot.

“But our fans were provoked,” they said.

I read similar nonsense from Ibrox-minded people after the George Square riot, where they blamed heavy-handed policing. This, despite the police standing back all day, letting countless crimes unfold before finally stepping in—only to face violence in response.

Provoked, of course. Naturally.

The game here has endured years of Ibrox-related absurdity. Some of it boggles the mind. But a blatant violation of the rulebook, overturned because they were upset about it? Because the media, either ignorant of the rules or indifferent to them, took their side? And then people called for Nick Walsh to be punished?

Over the years, Celtic has suffered plenty of inexplicable decisions, truly outrageous ones. That’s why I support reform, and part of reform is ensuring that officials face consequences when they screw up.

But where’s the mistake here? This isn’t about looking through green-tinted specs; this is basic. The rules are either for everybody, or they’re for nobody. And if they’re for nobody, we’re playing in an anarchic, lawless game.

That might suit the club across the city just fine. But for the rest of us? We should be livid, because this isn’t how it’s supposed to be.

Photo by Rob Casey/SNS Group via Getty Images

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