Police intervention needed in Celtic fan campaign

[OlegKuznetsov 10,816]

Former Old Firm referee Mike McCurry admits: I nearly quit

Apr 26 2008 Exclusive by Hugh Keevins

MIKE McCURRY last night revealed the apprehension, after math and agony of being the man in the middle when the Old Firm collide.

And he told why he contemplated quitting the game after being vilified for booking nine Celtic players in this season's first derby with Rangers at Ibrox.

Police intervention was necessary when McCurry's private life was disrupted and he became the victim of a smear campaign to suggest he was anti-Celtic.

Steps also had to be taken to close down a website illegally opened in his name which used the clear-cut case of identity theft to offer threats of physical violence purporting to come from the referee.

Now McCurry will end his church service as a Baptist minister tomorrow morning to watch television coverage of the fourth, and final, derby of the season while hoping Craig Thomson can have a more trouble-free afternoon than he, Stuart Dougal and Kenny Clark have managed to experience in this season's roller-coaster derbies.

McCurry cautioned 11 players in total when Celtic went down 3-0 at Ibrox in game one last October.

Dougal was at the centre of a storm in March for not sending off Rangers' Kevin Thomson when he clashed with Georgios Samaras as Celtic lost 1-0.

And Clark had to mark the end of his last Old Firm game before retiring at the end of this season by red-carding Celtic's Gary Caldwell along with Rangers' David Weir and Carlos Cuellar.

McCurry was driven to considering early retirement when his private life was disrupted in the immediate aftermath of a performance that was given a high mark by his referee supervisor.

McCurry said: "The word excellent was actually used in his report.

"But the reaction from elsewhere left me to conclude that handling the Old Firm game had become as close as it is possible to get in this world to an impossible task.

"I'm only 43-years-old but I've been refereeing for 26 years. It's a lengthy apprenticeship that ought to have prepared me for what followed the derby match.

"Experienced referees know that you stay out of the public eye for a week before an Old Firm game and another seven days after it's all done.

"The extent to which you can have a normal life after the derby's over depends on the level of controversy which has been left attached to it.

"In my case, I became the centre of allegations that I was anti-Celtic because of the number of bookings I'd given out to their players.

"My previous average for Old Firm games was three cautions and the match at Ibrox had also involved a late melee which forced me to yellow card five players in the last couple of minutes.

"But supervisors who score your performance with a high mark are there to be objective. Fans always think the referee hasn't given their team a fair deal.

"What happened next was a Bebo web page was opened up in my name and threats of physical violence were made, which I had to report to Strathclyde Police and the SFA.

"It was at that point I considered quitting the game because I thought, 'What's the point?' The content on the Bebo page constituted a breach of the peace in the eyes of the police and I had to sit down and have a long, hard think about what was going on.

"All referees make mistakes and simply pray their errors don't have a consequence on the outcome of the game. I'd analysed my performance at Ibrox and knew I'd done nothing to affect the result.

"That made me decide to carry on for the good of the young referees coming after me.

"If I'd packed in the game it would have been a victory for people who aren't genuine football supporters but forma minority with a tenuous link to the game."

McCurry has sympathy for one of the up-and-coming officials, Ian Brines, who started the week by owning up to having wrongly prevented Aberdeen from scoring and getting a draw against Celtic last Saturday.

He said: "The first thing I thought when I read about his apology on the SFA's official website was, 'There but for the grace of God go I'.

"There's so much at stake and the pressures are so great today and yet no allowances are made for the increased speed of the game or anything else where the match official is concerned.

"The referee runs 15kilometres during the Old Firm game and has a significantly increased heartbeat. He also knows the laws of the game and how to apply them. That might not apply to everyone watching him."

The only disruption to McCurry's life that would now force him into reconsidering his decision to stay in the game would be any incident involving the church where he preaches.

He said: "It has crossed my mind that such a regrettable occurrence could be a possibility one day. But it's never happened and I can make the joke against myself that anyone thinking about the idea would be put off once they've listened to me preach.

"Criticism is a way of life in this country, whether it's football or any other part of society, and I have no fears for Craig at Celtic Park this weekend.

"The bottom line is he wouldn't be in charge of the game if he wasn't thought up to the job.

"Craig also has extensive UEFA and FIFA experience which will stand him in good stead.

"I'm not sure the average spectator understands the complexities of refereeing an Old Firm match but in spite of everything the fixture has put me through this season I would be delighted to handle the first one in next season's championship.

"It has no equal anywhere in the world when it comes to passion. That's why I'll be keeping my sermon short on Sunday and getting myself in front of a television set to see the game from Celtic Park."

Remember how much emphasis they put on his religion.

Now that's sectarianism.

[Guest Andypendek]

well done mccurry!

this sort of thing, more than anything we as fans do, will put the spotlight on the neighbours and their deluded world of violence, innuendo and thinly disguised bigotry, all of which is merely a thin veneer over their inherent and congenital stupidity.

[WVB 2,560]

Come now, Juan Ghuy & his merry band dont care aboot religion. Its aw politikul anyhoo.

[Thermopylae 15,288]

This sort of thing makes me wonder what the festering boil of resentment and paranoia that is the septic support would do if the SPL insisted they play 4 games in a week. All I can say I think Lex Gold and the boys would have to make sure their health insurance was right up to date

[dummiesoot 16,278]

The motto: Don't give into the Scum