Falkirk boss John Hughes blasted the SFA for allowing rookie official Scott MacDonald to officiate in their game with St Mirren at Love Street.A wonderful Andy Dorman volley after 81 minutes gave the home side a narrow SPL victory over the Bairns on Saturday.

However, it was the controversial dismissal of Falkirk midfielder Arnau Riera for a challenge on the former New England Revolution player minutes earlier which, among other things, incensed Hughes.

MacDonald had only refereed five games previously this season with the trip to Love Street his second Scottish Premier League appointment.

The Bairns boss, who was spoken to by MacDonald after the game after an exchange of words in the tunnel, was reluctant to criticise the referee but questioned the wisdom and motives of McVicar, who is the SFA's head of referee development and former FIFA referee Dallas, the SFA's referee development officer.

He said: "I am not going to have a go at the referee but I will have a go at the system, your Donald McVicars and your Hugh Dallases and all these guys that put the referees out.

"Basically they are taking the mickey.

"We have worked very hard to get into this league of 12 and we have the same rights as everybody else.

"So you tell me why we are getting lumbered with rookie referees week-in, week-out.

"Are we getting used as a learning tool for these guys?

"Yes, they have to learn but that guy has had five games all season and he was flung in at the deep end today.

"He did okay. I think he got one or two decisions wrong especially the sending-off, but it's the system.

"If he is good enough to referee in the SPL, he should be good enough to referee anybody in the SPL."

St Mirren manager Gus MacPherson backed Hughes' view of the Riera incident.

However, he insists MacDonald got it right when he only showed a yellow card to his striker Craig Dargo in the final minute after he felled Falkirk defender Gerard Aafjes who had to be replaced by Chris Mitchell.

MacPherson said: "It wasn't a red card for Riera. It was just a challenge and he probably mistimed it.

"Craig's was a yellow card, no doubt about that but I don't think it was a red card offence by the standard of what we have seen in other games like the Old Firm game.

"I haven't seen a red card given for that in Scotland and we can't have rules for us and rules for others."

Dorman also added to the theory that Riera had been hard done to by saying: "I didn't really see it. I was looking at the ball and got hit but it was more of a barge so I was surprised to see him sent off. I thought it would be a yellow card."

On his goal, the midfielder said: "I don't think I have hit a better volley.

"My only thought was to keep it down. The ball was in the air for a long time which helped me because it was on my left foot and I had to concentrate."

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