Referee's Strike and the Ugly Side of the Beautiful Game

Referees in Scotland are going on strike for the first time in the history of football. The fact that they feel it is necessessary to go on strike to highlight there issues is an absolute disgrace for the sport. What makes it worse, is that strikes have been a long time coming.

Referees are always critised. It is a part of football. Without there blunders and mistakes football would not be the same as we know it today. They have a vital role and job to perform, key to every competitive game of football. I am a referee myself, and I have, at grassroots level, experienced parents volleying abuse at either myself or my linesmen. It is, what I call, the Ugly Side of the Beautiful Game.

Calling Time on abuse

Criticism is part and parcel with the job. I can take it, and most referees do. But the extent of the criticism that these referees north of the border are subjected to is an absolute abomination. They can not walk down the street without being hijacked by fear and having to constantly look over there shoulders. That, in any scenario, is wrong.

So what has caused this sudden sense of fear? Well, since the start of this season referees in Scotland have been constantly subjected to wave after wave of flak. Recently, referee Dougie McDonald has been the centre of attention when he lied about reasons for overturning a penalty decision. This lead to Celtic chairman John Reid calling for his resignation, describing McDonalds's job as "untenable". Since then, players, coaching staff and even politicians have jumped on the band wagon to join in and critisize referees and procedures.

Actions have also lead to referees who are fearing for not only themselves but for their families, as well as their employers (for secondary professions) receive an abundance of hate mail from the public asking why they employ them.

Once you have read the evidence, it becomes clear why match officials feel the need to go on strike and what they are trying to highlight. They, like every one else, want to enjoy the beautiful game for what it is. I feel that if we don't sit up and listen to what these referees are saying then eventually people will see it as normal to attack or mouth-off to them. Ultimately, it will see a young 14 year old referee out to earn some money, being subjected to abuse that noone, especailly a young person, should ever have to go through. At the end of the day, they are there because they love football, and without them, football would not even exist.