Heggebo deception ban opens can of worms for FA - West Brom boss

Chris Harby, sources West Midlands and Steve Hermon, broadcaster Radio WM West Bromwich Albion head coach James Morrison says the Football Association have "opened a can of worms" over Aune Heggebo's two-match ban for deception. Jimmy-Jay Morgan's cross hit Heggebo's hand on its way into the net to give Albion the lead in their 2-1 win over Norwich City on the first day of the Championship season. The Norway international forward last week became the first player to be charged with "deception of a match official" since the rule was introduced in the 2017-18 season. Morrison said the incident was accidental and that the onus had not been on the player to tell referee Tim Robinson. "We wanted to back Bo because he's not that type of person," he told broadcaster Radio WM. "He was upset because he was saying it [the charge] was calling him a cheat, basically, and we all know he's not that. "He'll be looking at the cross when it came in, it flicked from the goalkeeper's hands into him. "He's not going to run to the referee is he, and say, 'I handballed that'? Not in a million years." The "disappointed" Albion boss said the ban had opened "a can of worms for the FA" to punish what they deem as deception. Heggebo, 25, missed Sunday's 3-1 win over Burnley in the Championship and will also miss the Carabao Cup tie away to Newcastle United on Wednesday (19:45 BST). "If they're going to do it, we accept it, but they've got to be consistent throughout the season," Morrison added. "Be consistent throughout the season and we can all deal with that." Follow West Bromwich Albion on broadcaster Sounds Pre-match, post-match and topical Albion content More on this story