SEND ON THE SUBS
Ex-ref Charlie’s used to lockdown after years under the waves – but he fears for game if whistlers can’t be safe
LIVING in lockdown is slightly less scary when you’ve spent years in isolation on a nuclear submarine before dealing with the loneliness of being a top-flight referee.
Charlie Richmond reckons his time in the Royal Navy was perfect preparation for jumping in at the deep end as an SPL whistler and he was an expert in dealing with subs and spotting a dive.
The little black book has been hung up but the current crisis has got him concerned about Scottish football’s plan to stay afloat, especially when it comes to the referees.
The former Grade One official has heard a lot of talk about players and fans but there’s been precious little said about how the SPFL could coordinate the group needed to govern the games.
He said: “I joined the Navy in July 1985 until May 1997. I spent the last four years at Faslane, on HMS Revenge Polaris and HMS Vanguard, a Trident Submarine. I spent four years on each. Isolation is no bother for me. At least now I can get out for a walk!
“Back then you’d be away for 12 to 13 weeks on deployment, underwater the whole time. You hadn’t a clue where you were much of the time then you’d surface back at Faslane.
“You just had to get on with it. It took some getting used to though. You’d just eat, sleep and work.
“At times you’d have the old movie reels in the canteen, you’d go and read, a lot of guys would do promotion exams or Open University courses.”
Richmond never had Netflix or mobile phones back then – but at least he still had football, even if it was 20,000 Leagues under the sea.
He said: “If you were on duty on a Saturday you’d tune in to BBC world service and you’d get the football results.
“It was a different way of life but it was great practice for the current situation.”
Richmond has been using the long hours locked up to keep tabs on the game and the attempts to get football back.
Germany have returned behind closed doors, England will follow this month and Scotland is targeting August.
The SFA/SPFL think tank is exploring all details, with matches in empty stadiums at hubs around the country all under investigation.
Richmond reckons we’re heading for choppy waters and we need to come up for a plan for refs or any comeback will be sunk.
He said: “There are an awful lot of hurdles for them to overcome. In England they are talking about quarantining officials for a period of time at St George’s Park but you’ve got to remember they are fulltime officials.
“It’s a different story in Scotland. Our guys have other jobs and it’s a difficult time for a lot of businesses.
“Are we going to ask our officials to take time off work to go in to isolation for weeks at a time to get games on?
“If we are just talking about our top division, it’s six games at a time, that’s 24 officials per match, make it 30 in case there are injuries.
“They are looking at playing in hubs, so we are thinking they might have to go to Perth or Dundee, shack up in a hotel for days, getting tested just like the players.
“It might not be feasible. They would maybe need to have teams of officials maybe doing three or four games on days in a row rather than all 30 in at one time.
“Even then it could be difficult, balancing it with their employers and families.
There are other issues as well. Changing facilities for officials are not always the biggest, that would need addressed, as well as the general safety.
“They will have 22 players around them, with not much chance for social distancing.
“Mind you, I would have liked to have had a bit of social distancing from players when I was out on the park!
“We’re looking at potential obstacles with insurance and so on. It’s a minefield. In England they have the huge TV finances but it’s not the case in Scotland and all of these measures won’t come cheap. “I hope they figure out a way to do it as we’d all love to see football back, as long as it’s safe to do so.”
Are we going to ask our officials to take time off work to go into isolation?
CHARLIE RICHMOND