Douglas Ross admits he did see the banner from Celtic fans directed at him in their Scottish Cup tie with St Mirren - but insisted his focus was solely on getting his decisions right.
The leader of the Scottish Conservatives was the subject of a banner which read "VAR DECISION: DOUGLAS ROSS IS A C***" as he ran the line during the first half of the Hoops' 5-1 win and footage went viral on social media appearing to show the politician glancing in the direction of it as St Mirren keeper Trevor Carson went to take a goal-kick.
He told Northsound News: "I saw the banner being unveiled, I don't think anyone could have not seen it given the size it was. But my duty at Celtic Park was to run the line, to be an assistant referee, and that's where my focus was for the entire 90 minutes."
When asked if it bothered him, he added: "Look, others are looking into this but my focus is to get my decisions right. On the day, I'm glad my decisions were correct. We had a good Scottish Cup tie, six goals, competitive up until a sending off, but my focus is on the pitch and others can make comments about my role as a referee and a politician. But for 90 minutes, my focus is on the football."
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