Celtic Park green light for Buckie Thistle manager Graeme Stewart as red card won't see him banned for Scottish Cup clash

Buckie Thistle manager Graeme Stewart won't be banned for his team's massive Scottish Cup match at Celtic on Sunday.

Stewart was sent off during his team's Highland League match against Huntly last weekend after stepping on to the pitch to calm down an incident, and knew a suspension was coming.

Fears grew that he would serve his penalty for the next match against Celtic, which would see him excluded from the dressing room and technical area before, during and after the game.

But the Scottish FA have confirmed that red card offences for team staff, and not players, does not instigate an automatic ban.

Scottish FA compliance officer Martin Black had the option to take no action, issue a one-game ban or serve a Notice of Complaint normally applying to more serious offences.

A Scottish FA spokesperson said: "These bans are not fast-track so there’s no strict time scale when the offences are dealt with."

The compliance officer gathered some footage from the match along with additional information, and referee Harry Bruce's report on the incident.

The outcome was a one-match suspension for Stewart.

"Under protocol, the club has three working days to accept or appeal the ban," the spokesperson added.

This allows Buckie to wait until Monday to decide their response to the sanction, freeing Stewart up to be part of their big day at Celtic Park.

Should the Victoria Park club accept the ban, Stewart will miss the following Saturday's league match at home to Banks O' Dee.

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