Clark calls on SFA to use England’s ref system
LEE CLARK believes the standard of refereeing in Scotland would be considerably enhanced if the weekly performance-rating system by managers used in England was implemented by the SFA.
Referees are back under the spotlight after major blunders last weekend by Craig Thomson and Andrew Dallas.
Thomson wrongly awarded Celtic a penalty against St Johnstone when he thought Keith Watson had handled the ball, while Dallas booked Hearts midfielder Malaury Martin when, in fact, Louis Moult had tripped his Motherwell team-mate Lionel Ainsworth.
The embarrassed officials contacted Tommy Wright and Ian Cathro respectively to apologise for their errors.
Clark knows innocent mistakes can be made, but he thinks the rating system has made English referees sharper.
The Killie boss said that after every game down south, each manager fills out a form detailing how the match official has performed.
Then they get feedback from the Professional Game Match Officials Board, run by Mike Riley, and Clark feels it has led to more professional dialogue and better decision-making.
Clark said: “The main difference between Scotland and England is the type of feedback from managers. There is a marking system on a game by game basis and a relationship with the referees’ body.
“Down south we marked the ref for various different parts of his performance. We also had a direct line to the boss of the referees whom we could get feedback from.
“What it did for me was it reduced the risk of emotions taking over and managers getting carried away. You got it dealt with in a professional manner.
“If there was anything contentious or anything you were not happy with they would ask for footage to be provided. Then you had the feedback from the referee via his boss.”
“I think it is the way forward without a doubt. I think it is beneficial because you get a relationship and you also get that improvement.”