‘We would consider switch to full-time’

KEVIN CLANCY believes Scottish referees would be willing to consider full-time officiating in the future.

Scotland’s match officials currently operate on a part-time basis and are paid match fees that supplement their regular income, in Clancy’s case as a lawyer.

Although the prospect of whistlers becoming fully professional has been made more distant by the coronavirus pandemic, Clancy believes it would garner support if made financially viable.

He said: ‘Whether it’s feasible or not is a question for others to answer, but there are a lot of positive things to be said about full-time refereeing.

‘You would have the opportunity to prepare physically and mentally. There would be less (of an) issue in juggling your professional and refereeing commitments, especially for those of us who are lucky enough to be on the international list.

‘The flip side is that our jobs give us a break from refereeing at the elite level and a lot of the guys meet that balance really well.

‘But if full-time refereeing was an option, then I think a lot of referees would be in favour of it.’

Although unable to train or officiate as normal, as chair of the Scottish Senior Referees’ Association, Clancy remains fully engaged with the Scottish football authorities.

‘The suspension of football has impacted a number of people and the SSRA is always there for its members,’ he continued. ‘We have good lines of communication with our members and also with referee operations and its head Crawford Allan.

‘I’m in contact with Crawford at least once a week to talk over issues that referees are anxious about.

‘As things develop, it’s important for us to keep those channels open.’

Clancy insists the issue of compensation for a loss of refereeing income has not yet been discussed.

He added: ‘That’s not something we have spoken about. The focus at the moment is more health and medical issues alongside the general economy.

‘There isn’t a mechanism in place as such for match fees but in time if those conversations need to be had then Crawford or others will be willing to have that dialogue.

‘I would say morale is good. We have a good working relationship with Crawford and Ian Maxwell at the SFA, and also good lines of communication with Neil Doncaster at the SPFL. However, the focus has to be on health.’