'Surprise, surprise!' - James McFadden and Shelley Kerr deliver verdict on controversial Rangers penalty vs Aberdeen

Pundits James McFadden and Shelley Kerr have defended the decision to award Rangers a controversial penalty in their 2-2 draw against Aberdeen on Wednesday night.

Having initially fallen behind by two goals, Steven Gerrard’s men fought back to rescue a point against the visitors, but had to rely on a late spot-kick to secure the result.

Referee John Beaton awarded the penalty after Fashion Sakala went down in the area under pressure from David Bates, and the decision drew criticism from some quarters, with Dons boss Stephen Glass saying after the match: "It is not a penalty kick. It is a little bit of coming together, but it isn't a penalty kick.

“It’s massively frustrating, the boys put in a performance like that, the work rate, effort and Rangers have a brilliant group of players, but we get undone with that and it is very disappointing.”

Speaking on the BBC's Sportscene show, however, former Motherwell star McFadden said: "I have to say that initially I didn't think it was.

"I think when you see the contact, David Bates is trying to catch him and puts his arms around Fashion Sakala.

"And then when you see it, he does have a hold of his shirt and steps across him.

"He gets the wrong side and you have to say that, in the end, it's a good spot.

"Tavernier steps up - not Kemar Roofe - and slotting it away, you have to say that it's a fantastic penalty."

Ex-Scotland Women’s manager Kerr agreed, pointing out that Aberdeen skipper Scott Brown was seemingly the only player who argued with Beaton over the decision.

She added: "I think it was hard to see in the first angle but you can usually tell with the reaction of the players.

"The only one that was complaining was Scott Brown, surprise, surprise!

"That's what Scott does, he's a leader, but for me it was a penalty."

Last night’s result means that Rangers hang on to their spot at the top of the Scottish Premiership, but Celtic’s 3-1 win over Hibernian allowed the Hoops to close the gap on their Old Firm rivals to just two points.