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Celtic are yellow-carded over referee McCluskey
James Traynor Herald.com
Tuesday 22 October 1991
CELTIC have failed in what appears to have been an attempt to have a referee, Jim McCluskey, prohibited from handling their future matches, and reading between the lines, it is obvious the club have been rebuked for their insolence.
After yesterday's SFA council meeting, the chief executive, Jim Farry, made it clear the association were not at all happy that Celtic had sought to influence the appointment of referees. ''Clubs often object to the performance of the referee, but the council are disappointed that the club should seek to influence appointments.''
The Parkhead club had written to the SFA comlaining about McCluskey's handling of this season's first Old Firm match, which was played at Celtic Park at the end of August. Rangers won the match 2-0 — Mark Hateley scored both goals — but Celtic's supporters, and obviously the directors, were incensed after Pieter Huistra tackled Tommy Coyne, who was bearing down on goal, from the back on the edge of Rangers' box.
Huistra was booked and allowed to stay on the field when the vast majority inside Celtic Park were convinced he should have walked in accordance with new guidelines. Clearly McCluskey was of the view that Gary Stevens was rushing in and might have made a tackle.
Celtic saw this as the turning point in the match, and perhaps after brooding over the incident, wrote to the SFA. The letter arrived in front of the disciplinary committee who, in deciding to note the terms of the club's complaint, had no hesitation ''in rejecting the request regarding the appointment of this referee to future matches involving the club.''
The committee's communique to the full council yesterday went on to state: ''The committee was disappointed to receive such a letter, and while acknowledging that the appointment of officials for this match was made by the Scottish Football League, it decided the club be advised, in unambiguous terms, that it is not a matter for a club to seek to influence refereeing gradings of appointments. The obvious difficulties which would arise if that state of affairs were ever to come about should harldy need to be stated.''
Clearly, the authorities have moved smartly to remind Celtic of their place and their attempt to become McCluskey-free must now be a source of embarrassment to two people in particular. Kevin Kelly, who becomes the club's chairman at the end of this month, is a member of the disciplinary committee while the man he is about to succeed, Jack McGinn, is treasurer of the SFA.
Celtic's chief executive Terry Cassidy, who is in Neuchatel with the team for their UEFA Cup, second-round tie against Xamax, made no comment yesterday.
Dundee United's out-of-contract Yugoslavian internationalist, Miodrag Krivokapic, has been training at East End Park, although Dunfermline's manager Jocky Scott made it clear yesterday that he does not intend to sign the player. ''He is friendly with our Yugoslavian player, Milos Drizic, and I have agreed to his training here,'' said Scott.
Pasted from <http://www.heraldscotland.com/sport/spl/aberdeen/celtic-are-yellow-carded-over-referee-mccluskey-1.816520>