Matthew MacDermid has been appointed referee for Sunday’s Scottish Premiership clash between Celtic and St Johnstone…
Tomorrow’s whistler has been the man in the middle for 19 games this season fluctuating between the top-flight and the Scottish Championship. In those 19 matches, MacDermid has produced 85 yellow cards whilst dishing out five reds.
MacDermid’s first Celtic game since Trophy Day
Yet to officiate a Celtic game this season, this will be MacDermid’s first appointment of a Hoops encounter since the final Scottish Premiership game of last season where Celtic defeated St Mirren 3-2 on trophy-day.
What seems to have caused much controversy though isn’t the referee appointment, but instead is Assistant Referee 1, Frank Connor, which angered theRangers so much, there new CEO Patrick Stewart wrote a strongly worded statement expressing ‘serious concerns,’ over Connor officiating in a game that doesn’t even involve their club.
Frank Connor
SFA Head of Referee’s Willie Collum lambasted VAR Alan Muir and AVAR Frank Connor in the ‘VAR Review,’ show for November and December after Celtic’s Premier Sports League Cup final triumph over theRangers two weeks ago following the duo failing to spot Liam Scales shirt pull on Vaclav Cerny on the line.
Subsequently, Muir and Connor were dropped for the last two Premiership rounds of matches but have returned to the spotlight for the final league card before the end of the year.
Accompanying onfield referee Matthew MacDermid, and AR1 Frank Connor at Celtic Park in the top versus bottom encounter is AR2 David Dunne.
Manning VAR duties at Clydesdale House is David Dickinson with Graeme Leslie appointed to the role as AVAR.
Celtic 12 points clear of theRangers after Boxing Day results
Brendan Rodgers’ side extended their lead at the top of the table on Boxing Day to 12 points and an eye-catching victory before a trip to Ibrox next Thursday will be the objective.
Kick-off is 3:00pm and will be shown live to subscribers based outside Britain and Ireland on Celtic TV.
Conor Spence
Expect the cheating officials to be looking to hand out straight red cards to our players, in order to get suspended for the Glasgow Derby?
As long as we keep moving the ball properly, then won’t be an issue, with getting involved in potential challenges?
This is where the saints, along with the scum will get plenty of leeway in how they are allowed to make such challenges, where the aim is to actually injury our players?
Yet of course, such an approach is never highlighted within Scottish football against ourselves?