Newcastle United boss Joe Kinnear blames Hull City counterpart Phil Brown for their bust-up.

Kinnear, banned from the touchline when he took over at St James' Park, is already facing two FA misconduct charges and now looks certain to notch up a third after his head-to-head row with Brown during Newcastle's FA Cup defeat by Hull on Wednesday night.

He said: "I don't really know what it was. The referee came over. We didn't lock horns as people are saying. I've seen the tape and we were that much away."

Kinnear, who indicated a measurement of centimetres, added: "Yes, we had plenty to say to each other. He was starting on Chris Hughton, not me.

"What he did that got up my nose was when one of my players got a yellow card he had the cheek to start clapping and ranting like, 'Send him off, referee, do this, do that'. That stuff is just not acceptable.

"I objected to what he had to say about our players. I don't know a manager who applauds the referee for giving players yellow cards. He must be the only one.

"But I didn't see any reason for him to get involved in that way and when Chris told him he was out of order, he decided to abuse him. I wasn't going to accept that.

"It's part and parcel of how I feel about it. If you've something to say you have to say it. I didn't attack him in any way or anything like that. We just had lots of verbals. He had plenty to say to young Chris that wasn't very nice so that's when I interrupted and gave him a few words and gave him a few challenges. That was it really.

"You never win saying anything about referees. I don't know how the referee got involved in it. There must be some sort of rule that says you can't have a ruck with an opposing manager. That's all I saw it as - a ruck with an opposing manager which he started. I finished it but he instigated it."