Referees want more training and support from the SFA

Scottish referees say they are being treated like an “afterthought” and require better training following a meeting between officials and the Scottish FA over the weekend.

Discussions were held at Hampden on Sunday in the wake of a controversial decision involving VAR operator Willie Collum during last month’s Celtic-rangers clash. The Ibrox club requested the release of audio communication between Collum and match referee Nick Walsh surrounding the decision not to award them a penalty aftercelticdefenderalistair Johnston handled the ball under pressure from Rangers forward Abdallah Sima.

The episode has led to increased tensions and further spotlight on referees. Speaking to the BBC, an official who was at Sunday’s meeting was quoted: “The leadership have no idea of the pressures we are under and they're just not prepared to support us properly. We need more investment and better training.

“They rely on a lot of goodwill from the referees but they seriously fail to understand the pressures that come with the profile. VAR has only increased that and we sometimes feel like an afterthought.”

The BBC also reports that referees would be open to discussions on releasing the communications between the matchday officials and the VAR operators, but there would need to be an increase in their matchday fee.

An SFA spokesperson said: “The SFA will continue to support match officials in the face of intense and imbalanced media scrutiny, disproportionate criticism and wholly unacceptable abuse and intrusion.”