Craig Levein was on BBC Scotland’s Sportsound programme to talk about recent refereeing events in Scotland and had the panel flustered as he let the cat out of the bag regarding officials in this country. Levein joined Kenny MacIntyre, Tom English and Kirk Broadfoot to discuss referees on Monday night.
The ex-Hearts player and former manager discussed the introduction of VAR into the SPFL amongst other events that unfolded this past week in Scottish football. Levein revealed that he believes there is a bias within the game in Scotland which is at the heart of the poor officiating we have to endure.
Levein recalled a game against Rangers at Ibrox years ago when he was manager of Dundee United. He revealed that the decisions against his team were so blatant in favour of the home side that the referee wanted his side to lose the game. This particular game he said was refereed by a man in black who was indeed a fan of the Ibrox outfit and was given the game as a favour as he was retiring.
A transcript of the discourse was published in Daily Record:
Levein: “Well I can go back to a game when I was at Dundee United at Ibrox and the official was absolutely appalling.
“He made mistake, after mistake, after mistake.”
MacIntyre: “Was that pressure from the crowd, is that what you’re saying?”
Levein: “No, it was his last game. His very last game. And he got given a game at Ibrox because, I believe, he was a Rangers fan.”
English: “See… I don’t, I don’t…”
Levein: “So what do we say about that then?”
MacIntyre: “You’re saying that’s your understanding, there’s absolutely no evidence that was why he was given the game.”
Levein: “Well that’s what I think.”
McIntyre: “Yeah.”
Levein: “I don’t say I’ve got evidence…”
English: “That’s not admissible in court though it’s not going to stand up in court.”
Levein: “I’m not looking to go to court. If I’m standing in the dugout at Ibrox and a referee’s made five or six huge mistakes do you not think I’m entitled to come out and point that out?”
Broadfoot: “Of course you are, 100 per cent. Absolutely.”
English: “As long as you’re not saying, ‘this referee was deliberately out to get us’. That’s the problem.”
Levein: “Well…”
MacIntyre: “Let’s not go down that road again!”
Intriguing stuff from Craig Levein who obviously was making all the panel uncomfortable about his experience of bad refereeing and his hypothesis of why it was the case. The game in question if memory serves is a game in which disgraced former referee Mike McCurry took charge of and saw countless odd decisions given against Levein’s side back at Ibrox in 2008.
It is odd that the old Ibrox club were in dire financial trouble the last time dubious officiating and scandal was taking centre stage within the SFA. Could it be that history is repeating itself now that the new club have mortgaged the future on stopping Celtic’s ten-in-a-row challenge?
Something doesn’t smell right. If you recall, Craig was fizzing after that particular game and was all guns blazing in his criticism of the authorities. However, the Dundee United manager fell silent for some bizarre reason. A while after that Craig was given the Scotland job. Makes you think, eh?
Watch the game Craig spoke about on BBC Sportsound and refresh your memory of one Mike McCurry…
PS…Ange Postecoglou was of course rather famously warned about all of this on the very first day he arrived at Celtic Park by this website…Referees, cheating, honest mistakes, the media…and the apologies keep flooding in.
Paul Gillespie
The Scottish media as usual circle the wagons when any discussion of favouritism by referees is made in this country, as if it isn’t possible. Why does UEFA insist in neutral referees if refs are all above board or is it only foreign officials who may cheat or be corrupt…?!
— E-Tims (@ETimsNet) December 7, 2021
Interesting “debate” on sportsound surrounding potential bias in refereeing. The panel absolutely stonewalling any notion that referees could be biased.
“You shouldn’t even be allowed to suggest it.”
CL pointed to this incident (pic 1).
The referee in question? (Pic 2) pic.twitter.com/1cPJXBNoEl— 20 Minute Tims (@20MinuteTims) December 7, 2021
@chris_sutton73 The truth is out there… pic.twitter.com/jKhqJMkRxt
— James Dunsmuir (@JamesDunsmuir3) December 6, 2021
YIKES Terror on the airwaves as Craig Levein mentions the unmentionable, panic for Succulent Tam, Kenny WATP Mac and spin guru Dazza.https://t.co/FRvvyMwTem
— Joe McHugh (@videocelts) December 7, 2021
READ THIS…Dan Orlowitz gives Tuesday update on Celtic’s Japanese Revolution
Since they had Broadfoot there they should have asked him if that was SFA policy.
The problem with that though is that the obvious follow up question is “How many asked for their final game to be at Ibrox as opposed to any other club ?”
Oh to have a functioning media.
Kirk broad foot dear god he took one of the biggest dives that a ref never seen and got a penalty. All corrupt
Mike McCurry probably shouldnae have been on a Rangers fan podcast talkin abot how he “grew up hating Celtic“ then, eh? Oops! Case closed.
https://www.followfollow.com/forum/threads/mike-mccurry-on-the-battlefever-podcast.153043/
The year I arrived back to Glasgow from the west mids was around 1990/91, I was at that time still a referee and had my 4 nations badges and refereeing certificates which I still have, I applied to be a referee up here in Glasgow and was told by the secretary of the Scottish referees association, I couldn’t officiate up here in Scotland as I would not be allowed to wear my 4 Nations official badge and I would have to go and sit a further referees schooling course qualify and then get the Scottish referees badge before I could officiate a game up here in Scotland, I found this really very strange as I had already had my refereeing qualifications and also found this to be another honest but biased mistake after all I had been officiating in the West Midlands for some time and found this very disrespectful for not only myself but any other referees who would want to do the same thing, Why should I have to sit in a classroom when I already qualified in front of other referees that were learning at that time, I also did not find this professional at all, But never the less I did not pursue the matter and just left it at that and did not bother applying again !!!
The Scottish Football Association is littered with Rangers supporters growing up in Scotland 🏴 and are another a catholic then you are within the 95% of Celtic haters it’s that simple.
That doesn’t change as you grow into an adult it just intensifies your hatred to Catholics and therefore all Celtic supporters.
If you get a SFA referee job then you just try and hide this fact, but it’s only skin deep and some times especially when it counts the blue bias will come out as I have seen for well over fifty years.
Look at the Lisbon Lions and count the number of caps our countries best ever domestic football team and less than 100 caps between them yet nine in a row league titles it’s a sham on the SFA.
But we have battled it and we will always better it because we are what we are and will always be that way honesty will alway beat cheating.
Tom 007