SFA clarify Kyle Lafferty ‘sectarian language’ situation after comments from Kilmarnock boss Derek McInnes

THE SFA have moved to 'clarify' the situation surrounding Kyle Lafferty's disciplinary hearing after comments from Kilmarnock boss Derek McInnes.

The striker is facing a huge TEN match ban after being charged over his alleged 'sectarian language' video.

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Lafferty was issued with an SFA notice of complaint by the compliance officer after a video surfaced on social media that appeared to show him using the term "fenian b******" when pranked by a Celtic fan in a nightclub.

After the video came to light, Kilmarnock launched an investigation into the matter.

And a week ago, the Rugby Park outfit slapped the 35-year old with a fine after concluding their looking into the matter.

Lafferty returned to action in Killie's 2-1 win over St Johnstone last night.

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While the club's investigation into the situation is at an end, the SFA's hearing doesn't take place until October 20th.

McInnes had previously stated he was 'surprised and disappointed' at the time it was taking for the governing body to deal with the situation.

He said last week:  “As a club we were more than a bit surprised and disappointed that the SFA hadn’t dealt with it quicker.

"We were hoping that would be the case, because ultimately we’ve fined Kyle and put our punishment towards him. We were expecting the SFA to follow suit.”

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However, in a fresh development, the SFA have released a statement seeking to "clarify" the situation in the wake of the Killie manager's words.

Chiefs say that the club DID have the chance to bring forward the date of the hearing but DECLINED to take up that option.

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A Scottish FA statement said: "Following the latest comments from Derek McInnes regarding the Notice of Complaint issued to Kyle Lafferty, the Scottish FA seeks to clarify that the club were offered the opportunity, under rule 10.2.5 of the Judicial Panel Protocol, to bring forward the date of the hearing from October 20 but declined to do so.

"The timescales applied under the Judicial Panel Protocol are intended to give those issued with a Notice of Complaint appropriate time to respond to the charge(s) and fully consider their case prior to the hearing date."

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