MIKE Whitlow has spoken emotionally in defence of his professional integrity and personal pride, insisting Blackburn boss Graeme Souness was wrong to call him a "cheat" and a "play-actor".

Sitting alongside his own manager Sam Allardyce, who said he was "disgusted" by Souness' astonishing and unwarranted public attack, the defender pointed to five stud marks in his leg as proof of the injury he suffered when Rovers' striker Andy Cole stamped on him in Saturday's relegation derby.

"If my pain threshold is not as high as Mr Souness' used to be then that's my downfall," Whitlow said pointedly of the former Liverpool and Scotland "hard man".

"But he is wrong in what he has said and it is sad that he has chosen to say it.

"He can say what he wants, though, because I know I'm not a cheat, my team-mates know I'm not a cheat and my manager knows I'm not a cheat. The marks are on my leg and yes, it did hurt a wee bit. Okay I was all right after and played on later but I was sore yesterday and I'm still sore today.

"It was a silly tackle but Andy Cole at Manchester United would have got up, 'nutmegged' me, put two goals in the back of the net and laughed at me."

Whitlow says he has no bad feelings towards Cole but he is clearly upset at being the target of such a scathing attack as Souness launched after the 1-1 draw.

The Rovers' boss conceded referee Paul Durkin was right to show Cole the red card for retaliating after Whitlow's tackle from behind - for which the Wanderer received a caution - but he claimed Whitlow was "winking at his team-mates asking 'has he been sent off yet?'".

Whitlow vehemently denies the accusation and claims Souness called him "a donkey".

"The only person who said anything to me was Garry Flitcroft (Rovers' captain) who told me to get up and said he (Cole) hadn't really caught me," he explained.

"I told him where to get off and to look at my calf. I got up, took the yellow card and went back.

"He (Souness) has repeatedly said I winked at him and smiled at him while I was on the ground - another load of nonsense. I admit I did wink at him in the second half but he was walking up the touchline calling me a donkey and a cheat.

"If he thinks that's being a good manager then that's his choice. But he's wrong in saying I'm a cheat. And if he watches the video he'll see that there was not one of our players in the vicinity of me.

"Where all my team-mates suddenly appeared from amazes me. And this business about me lying on the floor saying 'has he sent him off?' ... it never even crossed my mind!"

Whitlow has invited Souness to examine the facts and withdraw his remarks.

He added: "If he wants to send an apology then, with pleasure, it will be accepted because he's wrong with what he's said.

"I've been a pro long enough now and I know emotions are high after a game but what's been said since is a load of nonsense."

Allardyce, who previously defended Whitlow, reckons: "Somebody has told Graeme something, maybe to get themselves out of trouble rather than accept the consequences.

"But the strong views and the words they have used are disgusting. He (Souness) should worry about his own players and his own team and stop talking about my players as he has done.

"That's very unprofessional on his part. There's a lot of other dirty washing I could air today but I won't come down to his levels.

"Emotion does run high in any game and more importantly in a huge game as we had but we've been deemed the villains here and we are not the villains. We are the ones that were wronged. Andy Cole conducted himself in the wrong manner and reacted violently to a situation and the rules and regulations say there is no option for the referee but to send him off."

Allardyce also hit out at journalists who followed Souness' lead in suggesting Whitlow over-reacted.

"It was a great shame to pick up the papers on Sunday and on Monday and see some of the reaction of some of you claiming Mick Whitlow did over-react," he told reporters at the media conference.

"You've got sucked into what Graeme says and you are implying as well that Mick was wrong.

"But if Andy Cole decide to stamp on somebody, do you expect him not to react if he's got stud marks on his calf."

Whitlow prickled at reports claiming he was "built like a brick outhouse" and had "a reputation" himself, adding: "I've found it a bit comical that from being 3ft 6ins wet through, I'm suddenly the biggest fella you've ever seen with a reputation and all that stuff!

"Very sad!"

Whitlow admitted there was an 'incident' with Cole in the tunnel at half-time but it was not a full-blown confrontation.

He claimed: "Andy shouted at me about the tackle, but I just walked past him.

"At full-time I went straight into the dressing room, and nothing was said then."