Kinnear in hot water again

Joe Kinnear has been hit with the second disciplinary charge of his short Newcastle career after being charged by the Football Association over an outburst at the referee in Saturday's 2-2 draw with Stoke.

Kinnear, 61, was charged with using abusive and insulting words towards a match official after going ballistic over the free-kick which led to Stoke claiming an injury-time equaliser.

Referee Mike Riley duly sent Newcastle's interim manager to the stands and he will inevitably be watching a few more of his side's matches from the expensive seats following Monday's charge.

Kinnear has been in charge of Newcastle for less than three months but already he has notched up a hat-trick of run-ins with the FA's disciplinary chiefs.

He was given a warning as to his future conduct over an expletive-rich outburst at journalists which found its way into the media and has yet to respond to an improper conduct charge arising from his description of Martin Atkinson as a “Mickey Mouse referee” following his side's 2-1 defeat at Fulham on November 9.