REFS HUNG OUT TO DRY
little or no appetite among the officials to call for industrial action and wreak havoc on the most competitive top-flight campaign in years.
But we have learned of serious unhappiness behind the scenes over the actions of recently appointed compliance officer Clare Whyte and in particular her treatment of two of the most high-profile whistlers in the game – Willie Collum and John Beaton.
Collum came under fire earlier this season after sending off Rangers winger Daniel Candeias in the closing seconds of a dramatic late win at St Mirren.
The Ibrox outfit then turned their guns on Collum by releasing a withering statement in which they referred to unexplained “underlying issues” which need to be addressed.
And Beaton and his family are under round-the-clock police protection after the fallout from last month’s Old Firm derby. After the 1-0 defeat, Celtic released a statement demanding the ref explain why Rangers striker Alfredo Morelos stayed on the pitch despite being involved in a string of controversial flashpoints.
But Record Sport understands Collum and Beaton – along with a number of sympathetic colleagues – believe they have been made scapegoats by their Hampden bosses with Whyte’s handling of their cases coming under the microscope.
And a number of major concerns have been raised regarding what appear to be blatant anomalies and discrepancies in the way both incidents were dealt with.
Record Sport has been told that, in the aftermath of Collum’s controversial decision in Paisley, the whistler admitted to Whyte he may have called it wrong when he issued Candeias with a second yellow after an off-the-ball clash with St Mirren defender Anton Ferdinand.
But, according to our sources, Collum was then shocked when the SFA subsequently claimed the ref had spotted Candeias making gestures to Ferdinand moments before the defender grabbed him in a headlock.
And Beaton is believed to have been equally bemused and let down by the fallout from the December 29 clash at Ibrox – and the SFA’s decision to announce Morelos only escaped punishment because the referee had seen all three incidents when they occurred.
We understand Beaton did confirm he had a good view of Morelos’s skirmishes with Scott Brown, Anthony Ralston and Ryan Christie during the game. But that Beaton was then denied the opportunity to retrospectively review those incidents despite having the chance to study them more closely on video replays.
One source said: “It’s fair to say both Willie and John feel they have been badly let down by the compliance officer.
“Willie has had his impartiality called into question when in fact he was the first one to hold his hand up afterwards and admit he hadn’t seen the Candeias incident properly at the time of making his decision.
“He knew nothing about the statement which was later released in which the player’s gestures were used to vindicate that yellow card.
“As for John, he and his family are paying a horrendous price for the whole Morelos mess.
“When he confirmed he had seen the incidents during the match he also fully expected to be asked if he had any reason to change his mind having watched them all back on TV.
“Having said that, the SFA’s disciplinary department had already made it almost impossible for referees to deal with these incidents.
“Remember, it was them who rescinded the red card Morelos was given at Pittodrie for kicking an opponent on the first day of the season at Pittodrie and then failed to punish Steven Naismith for stamping on Celtic’s Jonny Hayes a week later at Tynecastle.
“Whether John would have changed his mind only he knows for sure.
“But it does look very much like he was denied that chance and, a result, the SFA were able to pin the blame back on him.
“Referees have to put up with a lot of abuse in this country and they realise that’s part and parcel of the job.
“Most of the guys would acknowledge also that far too many mistakes have been made over the course of the season so far.
“But what they do not expect is for their own employers to throw them under a bus whenever the heat is on.
“As a result, relations between the officials and the compliance officer are extremely strained at this moment.”
But reports elsewhere claiming the whistlers are on the verge of a walkout have been roundly dismissed.
Another unnamed source said: “Going on strike is the last thing the guys are thinking about. There are always one or two loose cannons with more militant views but the general feeling across the board is there would be no appetite for such drastic action and no benefit.
“The refs expected things to become a lot more pressurised the moment the top flight became competitive again. We’ve got a genuine competition this season so the stakes have been raised accordingly.
“But can you imagine the levels of hostility towards them if they took action and interrupted the campaign at this stage when everything is still to play for?”
Our sources, though, also revealed the officials feel let down by what’s been described as a leadership vacuum on Hampden’s sixth floor.
Another source said: “With all the issues and high-profile incidents this season they need a bit of guidance and coaching but it’s not been forthcoming.
“The last two video clips they received concerned the keeper moving off his line at Scott Sinclair’s penalty in the League Cup Final and another telling refs that, when a corner is being taken on the opposite side from the linesman, they must check first to make sure the ball is inside the arch.
“You would have thought the SFA would have had more to worry about than that given the way the season has been going.”
Both John and Willie feel they’ve been badly let down by compliance officer