LEIGH GRIFFITHS, the Celtic striker, could face a suspension of two matches or more after being caught on camera singing a song mocking Hearts' financial plight.
Griffiths was filmed singing "Hearts are going bust" in a pub full of Hibernian supporters prior to Sunday's Edinburgh derby at Tynecastle, prompting the Scottish Football Association to issue a notice of complaint to the 23 year-old.
Griffiths has been accused of breaching disciplinary rule 86 by "not acting in the best interests of Association Football by singing in public about Heart of Midlothian FC in administration".
If found guilty at an SFA hearing on April 24, the top-end sanction available to the disciplinary panel would be an eight-game suspension, with a four-game ban considered mid-range and two matches the lower-end punishment.
Following the citing, Celtic revealed in a statement on their website that Griffiths had been fined for his actions, and that the club had said sorry to Hearts, an apology which had been accepted by the Tynecastle club. Griffiths has also publically apologised for his behaviour. Celtic will take no further action and plan on defending the player at his tribunal.
Gary Locke, the Hearts manager, was asked about the incident at his pre-match conference ahead of the visit of Aberdeen and admitted he hadn't seen it."Obviously you read about it and according to reports I've heard he is not a very good singer," he added.
Michael Stewart, the former Hearts player, felt that Griffiths was within his rights to go and watch his team but had to be a bit "cuter and wiser" in the way he went about it.
"I don't think there is anything wrong with it per se," he said. "But you need to know that people will be filming these things especially when you have all this social media.
"I don't see a huge issue with him going to watch his old club but I think you have to be a bit smarter about it, and not attract too much attention to yourself while doing it."
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