Dunfermline have decided against appealing the red card that marred Victor Wanyama’s dramatic debut for the club.
The former Celtic, Southampton and Spurs star was a shock signing for the Pars last week on a short-term deal.
The one-time £12.5 million player followed his former Hoops manager, Neil Lennon, in agreeing to join the Fifers for the rest of the season.
However, neither could help the Championship club reverse recent fortunes on their debuts as they went down to a 3-0 defeat away to Ayr United on Saturday.
Still some way short of fitness, Wanyama was thrown into the mix at Somerset Park with around half an hour to play and the score already 1-0 to the Honest Men.
With Ayr then extending their lead following a Kyle Benedictus mistake, Wanyama was shown a straight red card with six minutes remaining.
The 33-year-old slipped around 25 yards out from his own goal under pressure from Mark McKenzie and reacted by throwing out an arm to handle the ball on the ground.
Referee Iain Snedden ruled him to have denied an obvious goal-scoring opportunity and dismissed the Kenya internationalist.
Lennon: ‘Decisions went against us’
With team-mate Jeremiah Chilokoa-Mullen moving across to cover had Wanyama not intervened, many observers thought a yellow card would have sufficed.
Dunfermline did look at footage of the incident again, with Lennon saying after the match, ‘with Jeremiah there, I didn’t think the guy would have been clean through’.
The former Celtic and Hibernian manager, who was booked earlier, also said: “Listen, I’m not happy with the referee… [It was a] very, very strange performance from him.
“I’m not going to blame the referee for losing the game but I think some decisions went against us in big moments.”
However, it has been decided not to launch an appeal to the Scottish FA over the sending off.
It means Wanyama will sit out Wednesday night’s rearranged meeting with Livingston.
But, with the offence carrying a one-match suspension, the midfielder will be available again for Saturday’s crucial meeting with relegation rivals Hamilton Accies.
It will be hoped he can work hard on his fitness this week to be ready to play a bigger part if needed against the Lanarkshire men, who currently sit two points ahead in the safety of eighth place.
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