When you thought Scottish Football couldn’t get any more farcical, it is now apparent that our governing body, while headhunting for Category One and FIFA-ranked referees, has failed to inform those who they are trying to tempt to our shores, the real reason why they need their help.
It seems that the SFA have not had their fill of cover-ups as they have failed to mention to the Football Associations of the country’s they are contacting, the reasons why they need their officials.
STV Sport has revealed that the Polish referees thought they were on an exchange programme, similar to an agreement that the Polish FA has with their Japanese counterparts.
The 12 officials who were to officiate our games this weekend, have pulled out, when they learned of the real reason why they were needed.
Marcin Borski, Pawel Gil and Hubert Siejewicz, together with six assistants and three fourth officials, all decided to cancel their plans to referee three of 11 fixtures scheduled when they learned they were instead needed to cover an ongoing strike.
And Israeli referees boss Yariv Teper has also admitted that he would not have sent his officials to Scotland if he knew the full reasons why they were needed. SFA chiefs contacted Teper yesterday morning to request his help, but nobody from Hampden explained the circumstances of the referees’ actions.
Teper revealed that he did not ask why their help was needed by the SFA, but admitted that if he was aware of the details of the strike he may have decided on another course of action.
He said, “The SFA told us there is a problem with the Scottish officials. We have been asked to give them some referees. We didn’t know what the reasons for the Scottish refs’ strikes were for. Now I have heard it explained why, it puts it in a different light. It is not reversible now but if we had known the reasons we would have discussed it more and then made a decision.”
After McDonald’s lies and the subsequent cover-up, with SFA Referees Chief Hugh Dallas allegedly a party to it, the SFA should have learned their lesson and informed their counterparts across Europe, the real reasons behind their need for help.
The Polish referees u-turn now means that the only SFL game that would have taken place between Morton and Falkirk has now been called off.
This latest news increases the farcical nature surrounding the referee’s strike and the whole issue continues to cause damage to the Scottish game, although the question is – will it have a lasting effect?
Sources: STV Sport & Daily Record
