I knew life wouldn’t be the same again ..
Beaton opens up on the fallout from fiery Old Firm clash in 2018
The pressure is incredible. It’s such a unique rivalry
JOHN BEATON has revealed the huge personal impact of the storm that followed his Old Firm refereeing performance in December 2018.
The referee spoke out in an SFA interview as part of Mental Health Awareness week and reflected on the ugly events that spiralled after a 1-0 win for Rangers over Celtic at Ibrox.
During the match, Beaton refrained from showing a red card to Alfredo Morelos following incidents involving Scott Brown, Ryan Christie and Anthony Ralston. The SFA then opted not to pursue any retrospective disciplinary action against the Colombian because the flashpoints had been seen by the match officials at the time.
Celtic issued a statement that eventually led to a refereeing summit and also called for Beaton to be allowed to publicly explain his decisions.
It later emerged that the 38-year-old’s mobile number had been posted on Twitter, prompting abusive calls and texts that led to court action against the perpetrators.
Against that worrying backdrop, Beaton’s first assignment after the Ibrox fixture saw him walked into Ayr United’s Somerset Park by SFA head of security Peter McLaughlin.
Asked about the experience of that period, Beaton said: ‘It was a tough time for me and had a massive impact.
‘It was probably a turning point in terms of seeing the scrutiny that we are put under in games like that.
‘The pressure on those games is incredible and it’s such a unique rivalry. It’s about survival for the referees, players and managers. You have to manage your way through those games as best as possible.
‘The feeling immediately after the match was that it had gone well for us a refereeing team. But clearly the media fallout was such that the perception of my performance had very quickly changed.
‘I was due to referee Ayr United v Falkirk at the height of the difficult period and I remember speaking to John Fleming, the Head of Refereeing at the time, who said I could have the weekend off. I said no to that offer as I felt it was really important for the younger guys coming through that they saw me fulfilling that appointment.
‘It was important to do the game and show I wasn’t going to lie down to the criticism.
‘I don’t remember anything about the game at Somerset Park — it was just about getting through the 90 minutes. I was glad I did it.
‘It was a while before I was back involved with either of the (Old Firm) teams, but I took charge of the Aberdeen v Celtic match in April 2019 that saw Celtic clinch the league title.
‘That was a real show of faith from the Scottish FA and a boost for me personally to be appointed to the match and to do well in it.
‘Before that period in my career, there had been a real separation between my private life and being a referee. All of a sudden, I had a situation where they merged into one. That will never go away now, but like everything in football, things move on and I’ve refereed both Celtic and Rangers multiple times since with no issues.’
Beaton admits that criticism is par for the course for a referee, but has developed strategies to cope with the incessant flak that can rain down from the stands.
‘The way I see it is that they are not shouting at me as a person, it is just a figure in the middle of the park. I could be wrong about that, though,’ he continued. ‘The referee is seen as a person that you can just shout abuse at and we just need to deal with it. To be honest, you sign up for that when you become a referee and you expect boos from the crowds at certain times.
‘I think it’s important the younger referees see that we have to deal with the mental health side of things and set an example for them coming through. They can come and speak to the more experienced ones. I’ve never not had anyone I could speak to.
‘You can get really down about things if you’ve made a mistake on the Saturday and then you’re waiting for Sportscene on the Sunday for people to criticise you. I’ve got better with that, though, and find ways to cope, usually by getting back on the horse and refereeing other games.
‘It’s so easy to focus on the negatives and think: “Poor me, people are shouting at me”. But we get an opportunity to go to some of the best stadiums in the world to referee and it’s a brilliant job.’
Greater public recognition has also followed Beaton’s rise in refereeing.
‘It’s only when you referee the big games, you see the fallout on social media and that’s where it becomes a challenge,’ he admitted.
‘All of a sudden, from being able to walk about like everyone else, you’re now someone that people recognise. If you make a mistake in a normal job, it will frustrate you and you only have to answer to your boss.
‘If you make a mistake as a referee, then you have a lot of people to answer to. Everyone has an opinion, everyone has seen the mistake, and you have to get yourself in a position where you are prepared properly for the next game despite the background noise.
‘There’s often a perception of referees that isn’t true. For example, Bobby Madden did an interview with the Open Goal podcast recently and so many people have come up to me and said: “Bobby’s just an ordinary guy”.
‘I wonder what these people expected. During lockdown, I’ve been doing a lot of running on the streets, instead of going to the gym. It’s funny because I’ve yet to go out a run and not be recognised. I’ve never had any issues but people forget that you’re just a normal guy.’