HIBERNIAN manager Mixu Paatelainen could be forced to watch next month's Edinburgh derby and the away date with Celtic from the stand after launching an appeal against his four-match touchline ban.
The Easter Road manager was originally suspended for the forthcoming matches against Dundee United, Hamilton, Rangers and Aberdeen after being dismissed during a dramatic climax to the 4-3 defeat to Morton 11 days ago.
The Finn was furious with tw
o crucial decisions made by referee Iain Brines in extra-time in the Co-operative Insurance Cup tie but has argued he did nothing to merit his 'red card'.
The SFA yesterday confirmed they have received Paatelainen's appeal but cannot consider it as planned on 16 September because Brines and fourth official George Salmond cannot attend in person that day.
A new date has yet to be set but it looks likely to be some time in mid to late October.
Should Paatelainen fail in his bid to overturn his ban, he could then be in danger of being absent from the dugout for the encounter with Hearts on 18 October and Celtic a week later.
An SFA spokesperson said: "We have received a letter from Mixu Paatelainen to say he is contesting his suspension, so the ban has been set aside pending the committee's decision. That should have taken place on 16 September but the match officials are not available and there is no new date set."
Paatelainen claimed he had been told he had been dismissed for throwing a towel to the ground as Hibs let slip a 3-2 lead over Morton to exit the cup.
He was incensed when Brines awarded a controversial penalty against Dean Shiels for hand ball and also when the official penalised Chris Hogg for an aerial challenge with Erik Paartalu, in which the Hibs defender himself had been victim of "an assault", according to Paatelainen. Morton won the tie from the free-kick and, to make matters worse, Brines had ordered Hogg to the side of the pitch after treatment but failed to make Paartalu leave the field after being attended to by the Morton physio.
Meanwhile,
Paatelainen insists he would have no objections should striker Steven Fletcher be pressed into national service twice in the space of 24 hours next week.
The Easter Road youngster was left out of the Scotland squad for this afternoon's opening World Cup qualifier against Macedonia but responded in perfect fashion by scoring a double for the under-21s on Thursday night.
National team manager George Burley watched Fletcher net his brace in the 3-1 victory over Slovenia, fuelling speculation that the 21-year-old could be drafted back into the full squad in the wake of a raft of call-offs.
However, with the under-21s facing a crucial final match against Denmark in their own European Championship qualifiers on Tuesday, it has been suggested Fletcher could remain with the youngsters before joining up with the A team for Wednesday's clash with Iceland.
Paatelainen was thrilled to see his misfiring marksman end a drought stretching back 15 competitive matches on Thursday. He said: "Fletch played really well on Thursday and it was good to see two very, very good finishes.
"Hopefully he starts scoring at club level now as well. He's had a sticky spell but I have no doubts he will get goals if he keeps playing the way he has.
"It was only a matter of time before the goals started coming his way. He's now got one match, or maybe two, to go with Scotland and then hopefully we'll see the benefits.
"But I don't think he'll play two full matches, so I have no objections."
The full article contains 628 words and appears in The Scotsman newspaper.
