Kyle Lafferty handed ten game ban by Scottish FA

Kyle Lafferty has been handed a ten game ban by the Scottish FA.

The Kilmarnock striker faced a hearing for the use of sectarian language after an online clip showed him reacting when a man posing for a photo with him says "Up the Celts".

Lafferty had been accused of not acting in the best interests of football and breaching a rule which forbids the use of insulting language which includes reference to the likes of ethnic origin, race, nationality, religion or belief.

Scottish FA rules state the punishment for the latter is a mandatory minimum 10-match ban which can only be reduced "where exceptional circumstances are established".

Kilmarnock have accepted the ban which will rule Lafferty out until the middle of January.

The Rugby Park side had launched their own investigation into the incident and the striker was handed a 'substantial fine' by his club.

However, Lafferty continued to play for Kilmarnock and scored in Tuesday's Premier Sports Cup quarter-final win against Dundee United.

The Northern Ireland international will now miss their five Premiership matches before the World Cup break and will be unavailable when they return to action at the end of December.

A statement from Lafferty read: “I want to deeply apologise to the club, supporters and my family for the distress caused over the past month. I totally acknowledge that my reaction to the incident was completely out of order. There is no excuse, it’s something that I immediately regretted and have been embarrassed about ever since. I absolutely accept that I should not have responded to provocation in that manner.

“I placed myself in a position that has been very difficult to deal with, so I’m now determined to work with Nil By Mouth to ensure that others, particularly the youngsters at the club, learn from my mistake and avoid putting themselves in any type of similar situation in the future.”

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