We've had confirmation from the FA on Michael Symes punishment following his red card at Mansfield Town.

The Town striker will miss three games after being dismissed for violent conduct following a clash with the Stags Alex Baptiste. The pair clashed just before half-time and Symes seemed to push Baptiste after he was unhappy with a challenge from the Stags player, ref Russell booked Baptiste but then produced a straight red for Symes.

Town manger Gary Peters has reviewed the incident over the weekend and is disappointed to be losing Symes but thinks the ref had no option but to send him off: "It was just stupidity, if you've got the hump with someone and you retaliate then at least make it worth while.

"It was handbags and he's got sent off for hardly touching the fella with a slight push.

"The ref had no other option though but it is ridiculous to get sent off for that."

The news means Town will be missing their inform striker for the games against Bury, Boston United and Notts County. It does mean that Peters can get Symes on a programme of improvement over the coming weeks: "A straight red means three games suspended and that will cost Symesy.

"It'll cost him in his pocket but more importantly it will cost him in his time but we try and turn a negative into a positive.

"The fact that Michael Symes can't play in the next three games means that he can train more. We've had to be careful about the amount of work we give Michael because he's been out injured with a hernia problem for a long while before he came here.

"It now allows us to sit down and work out a programme that he can work to and gain improvement to his play. We feel that there are things that he needs to do better in his play and we haven't had enough time in between games to work on that as we need to treat him with kid gloves.

"Over the next two or three weeks we can work Michael harder in doing the things to make him a better striker."