Flashback Never a dull moment!
Gus MacPherson speaks his mind – St Mirren fans know that.
And back in his time in the Saints dugout he was embroiled in his fair share of arguments with the authorities.
He came close to landing himself in trouble in 2008 as he issued a media ban on his players and staff after trying to have one of the match officials for a Scottish Cup clash with Dundee United replaced.
St Mirren had asked for the unnamed official to be removed from his duties at Tannadice – but that request was turned down by the game’s governing body.
As a result, MacPherson took the extraordinary step of banning his players from doing any publicity work for the fifth round replay.
MacPherson insisted he wouldn’t discus the cup tie – and placed a gagging order on all his players to make sure they followed suit. Meet Gus
St Mirren FC is a club with a proud tradition — and a history to match.
They have been at the centre of the Scottish game since their formation in 1877.
Today, we look back at Gus MacPherson’s time with Saints - which proved lively to say the least.
The SFA appointed Alan Freeland as referee for the game, with Keith Sordie and Craig Young pencilled in as assistant referees and Steve Conroy.
But MacPherson would not comment on which of the officials the club was objecting to.
He said: “There will be no talk of the Dundee United cup tie from anybody at this football club.
“If you want to know the reasons why, then you need to talk to the SFA, as they are fully aware of why this has happened.”
It’s understood St Mirren’s objection to the SFA’s choice of match officials for the cup tie was discussed by Hampden top brass before being rejected.
This was not the first time MacPherson had gone head to head with the SFA over the delicate subject of match officials.
The year before, he got involved in a verbal exchange with a linesman at Tannadice in a Scottish Cup third round tie – a game Saints lost 3-2 after staging a brave comeback from 2-0 down.
At the half-time interval of that game, MacPherson had approached the referee Charlie Richmond to ask for an explanation of one of his decisions – only for linesman James Bee to intervene.
Afterwards, MacPherson claimed Mr Bee made an “arrogant remark” to him, which led to a £500 fine after the Buddies boss was hauled over the coals by the SFA.
SFA bosses later confirmed they had turned down St Mirren’s request for the line-up of match officials for the match to be changed.
A spokesperson said: “The SFA received a request from St Mirren FC asking for a review of the appointment of the match officials for their Scottish Cup fifth round replay against Dundee United. “This request has been denied.” In the end the ref didn’t matter a jot as Andy Dorman struck the winner for the Buddies at Tannadice.
This was not the first time MacPherson had gone head to head with the SFA