Hamilton boss Canning: MacKinnon’s failed Panenka penalty was poor decision

Posted Wednesday, July 18, 2018 by PA

Hamilton manager Martin Canning admitted Darian MacKinnon’s failed Panenka-style penalty was a poor decision after the Accies captain squandered the chance to claim a Betfred Cup bonus point against Livingston.

With the scores tied ahead of the 10th penalty, MacKinnon chipped the ball over the crossbar as Livi goalkeeper Liam Kelly dived to his side.

After two more penalties were missed, Jack McMillan netted for Livingston and Kelly saved from Darren Lyon to earn the visitors a 6-5 shoot-out success at New Douglas Park.

It was some much-needed drama after a goalless 90 minutes but Canning could have done without MacKinnon’s flourish.

Canning, whose side have one point after two matches, said: “We should have won the shoot-out. Darian has made a bad decision and I said that to him.

“If he scores, you can say it’s a good decision but when you miss that type of penalty you know you are going to come in for criticism, especially at that stage.

“It was a real poor decision from an experienced player.

“He put his hand up, he knows he has made a mistake. He does that in training from time to time but I think he’s probably not allowed for adrenaline, when you are doing it in a real-life situation in a game.

“When your adrenaline is high you can put a bit too much on it and end up knocking it over the bar.

“He shouldn’t have tried it. At that stage, to win the game, you just need to put your foot through it and make sure, if you are going to miss, the goalie is going to make a great save.”

Livingston player-manager Kenny Miller was pleased with the result, saying: “I’m delighted with the clean sheet. We probably had three or four opportunities to score too.

“The bonus point was crucial, it keeps the momentum going and it puts the group into our own hands. We win the next two games and we win the group.”