Sydney defender Shannon Cole has been fined by his own club for diving in Sunday's A-League match against Gold Coast United.
Cole went down in the penalty area when under pressure from a defender in stoppage time before admitting Monday there was only minimal contact between the pair and he had done the wrong thing.
Sydney fined Cole an undisclosed amount under its No Diving Policy.
''I acknowledge that we have a policy of no diving and we all support the club's stance on this matter,'' Cole said in a statement. ''I knew I did the wrong thing as soon as I hit the ground so I got up without asking for a penalty and ran straight back into position. I was expecting to be fouled when he came across but after going to the ground I realized straight away he had not fouled me.''
Club chief executive Dirk Melton backed Cole's honesty and integrity, but reinforced Sydney's desire to uphold its fair play policy.
''As a club we all support the No Diving Policy and Shannon has been courageous enough to acknowledge his actions were wrong and accepted the punishment,'' Melton said.
