Football: I SHOULD HAVE GIVEN A PENALTY; Ref admits he got it wrong.

Byline: By David McCarthy 

OLD FIRM referee Kenny Clark last night admitted he blundered by not awarding Celtic a penalty in Sunday's 1-1 draw with Rangers at Ibrox.

The whistler missed the foul by Ibrox left-back Steve Smith on Celtic skipper Neil Lennon just seconds after Thomas Gravesen had given the visitors a 1-0 lead.

And yesterday Clark held his hands up to the mistake and conceded he got the crucial "whistleblower" column in which referees have the right to make public the reason for decisions they make.

Clark said: "I got the opportunity to watch the incident for the first time last evening and, yes, it should have been a penalty kick."

"In penalty area situations a referee tries to take up the best position possible and as play developed from the left, I moved with it and thought I was well placed.

"From the angle I had at the time I saw the challenge but I obviously didn't think there had been an infringement.

"Having now had the benefit of seeing the incident from various camera angles, there certainly was contact."

SFA referee chief Donald McVicar agreed the decision was wrong but offered some sympathy to Clark.

McVicar said: "It's a pity that the debate is all about one decision because Kenny handled the game extremely well and contributed to what was an excellent advert for Scottish football.

"He used all his experience to manage and control one of the most passionate fixtures in football and got the balance right."

Lennon and Celtic boss Gordon Strachan were left fuming about the decision after the match in which Brahim Hemdani equalised for Rangers two minutes from time.