Hibernian 0 Celtic 1:Manager Tony Mowbray denied Aiden McGeady was a cheat after the Celtic star was shown a second yellow card for diving in the win at Easter Road.

Hoops’ striker Georgios Samaras put the visitors into the lead five minutes from the break when he headed an Andreas Hinkel cross past the helpless Hibs keeper Graham Stack.

However, the game’s most controversial moment arrived in the 62nd minute when Republic of Ireland international McGeady, booked in the first half for a foul on Derek Riordan, picked up a second caution from referee Dougie McDonald for taking a dive in a touchline challenge with Hibs defender Paul Hanlon.

The decision was made more significant given that it came at the end of a week in which Celtic had been victim of a diving incident involving Arsenal player Eduardo, who won and scored a controversial penalty during the Champions League play-off match at Emirates Stadium on Wednesday night.

Mowbray, who refused to look at the McGeady incident again on television afterwards, believed it was the furore surrounding Eduardo which led to McDonald taking action.

The Celtic boss fumed: “If the Eduardo situation had not been blown up so big nationally, 99 times out of 100, maybe even 100 out of 100, it would never have been a yellow card.

“I think the referee has been influenced by the diving situation. I don’t need to look at it again, it happened right in front of me.

“It was unfortunate for Aiden. It was a poor decision and we are in all in disbelief. You have to put it into the context of the boy travelling 50 yards before the incident. He went to ground because he was knackered.

“He skipped past the first and second tackle and seen the third tackle. He has to ride tackles otherwise players like Aiden will never play football.

“Is it a dive? Never in a million years. A dive is when you try to influence the referee, you throw your arms up and so on.”

Mowbray, who denied that he was aware of interest in Scott Brown, Scott McDonald and McGeady, all of whom have been linked with various clubs in recent weeks, insists the assistant referee had actually flagged for a Celtic free-kick.

“I am not going to criticise the officials but the linesman flagged for a foul for us,” he said. “If you give yellow cards for that then you will never have any players left.

“Unfortunately we have suffered a double whammy, from Eduardo on Wednesday night and today.”

Hanlon also denied McGeady was a cheat but insists he made no contact with the Hoops player.

“He’s not a cheat,” the Hibees’ left back said. “I saw him running at me at a fair pace. I tried to get my body out of the way and maybe he lost his footing but the referee saw it as a dive and you get a booking for diving these days so he had to go.”

Hibs manager John Hughes was reluctant to get involved in the McGeady debate.

He said: “You never wanted to see an opposition player sent off, especially Aiden, you want to see his class. To tell you the truth I thought at first that Hanlon was getting booked.

“We have one of the best referees in Scotland out there, Dougie McDonald, but you see these things at the beginning of the season and I’m sure things will settle down. But who would be a referee? They have a split second to make a decision.”