call for ref to be strong

“We want the match officials to be strong,” said Hamilton. “If there are bad tackles then the right action needs to be taken.

“Against the bigger teams this season we have suffered with bad decisions.

“I am not wanting cards produced for the sake of it. I am not seeking an advantage, it is a simple case of doing the right thing if and when required.

“Crusaders are a physical side. In the League Cup final against Cliftonville they could have had three players sent off. That is not just me saying that, it was remarked upon in the TV coverage that they were lucky to have some players still on the pitch.

“We don’t want to be talking about the referee at the end of the game. Nobody was talking about the referee after our quarter-final win at The Oval .

“If we are beaten by the better team on the day I can accept that and say we were not good enough.

“It is going to be tough because Crusaders have quality in Paul Heatley, Gary McCutcheon and Chris Morrow, but we will go and give it our best shot.”