It just Saint right to put the boot in

NEIL LENNON last night took another pop at Tommy Wright’s St Johnstone as he demanded more protection for his players.

The Hibs boss is still seething over the rough-house treatment dished out by Saints during the 1-1 draw at McDiarmid Park before the international break.

Wright’s men committed 17 fouls and received five yellow cards in the 1-1 stalemate that prevented the Hibees from gatecrashing the top three.

The Easter Road men are the most fouled team in the top flight this season.

They have been on the end of 421 fouls – an average of over 14 per game – which has seen the Northern Irishman cut a frustrated figure at times.

And the clash with Saints pushed him over the edge.

Lennon said: “St Johnstone had five bookings so that’s half the outfield team.

“There were some very borderline tackles going in on the players. Some were crass and some were lunges, the combination of tackles should have resulted in at least one player being sent off.

“Brutality is the wrong word, it’s the coarseness of the tackling that has upset me.

“I don’t mind tackles or shoulder charges but the lateness and off-the-ball stuff and amount of fouls given

against my team. It’s up in the 20s most weeks when I come out and say we need more protection. We are the most fouled team in the league now.”

Blair Alston’s tackle on John McGinn enraged Lennon in Perth and the Hibs midfielder was also on the end of a hard challenge from Harry Cochrane in the Edinburgh derby.

Lennon said: “John has had two now – Cochrane and Alston – and to me they’re unacceptable.

“They’re not tackles, they’re just kicking a player off the ball to stop him progressing.

“John, being strong minded and a strong build, was probably pretty fortunate to go away with Scotland after his treatment on the Friday night.”

The standard of refereeing in Scotland has been a hot topic for Lennon this season.

In the biggest controversies, the officials failed to spot Oli Shaw’s shot crossing the line in a 0-0 derby draw and Hibs conceded a soft penalty in their 2-2 stalemate at Kilmarnock.

Lennon’s touchline rant at ref Kevin Clancy and his after-match comments at Rugby Park led to him copping a three-game ban.

But the Easter Road gaffer said: “This season we have pointed out four or five game-changing decisions and it’s the inconsistency that’s bugging me more than anything.”