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Match: Dundee Utd 1-2 Celtic, League, Oct 2010
aka: Dougie Dougie, Dougie-gate, Dougiegate
Reference: Referees conspiring to undermine Celtic and cover their arses….
Dougie-gate
“We’re not asking for special treatment, but neither will we be treated as less than anyone else. Those days are gone.”
John Reid (Celtic Chairman)
Quite a bizarre collection of events.
Hard to know where to begin to describe this mess, but think of the chaos theory idea where the flapping of a butterflies wings can lead to a hurricane!
It all began in a match v Dundee Utd in the league in October 2010.
What should have been a straightforward penalty decision led to referee Dougie McDonald first awarding it then crapping himself after being hounded by Dundee Utd players. He then went to his assistant linesman before deciding to rescind the penalty and do a bounce-up! Bizarre.
Obviously irate, and a mess of a situation, but instead of tidying it all up, the referee, linesman et al made a mess of it. Each was said to have asked to lie and so on, making it all a mess and each blamed each other. The match report had fabrications which should led to obvious punishments. However, the SFA is a mess and each mandarin was watching their own backs and it was long dragged out in the press.
The Celtic board actually sat back and decided not to interrupt their enemies whilst they were making their mistakes, so it can never be said that Celtic were instigating or fuelling any of the issues.
Bizarrely, many were using it as a stick to beat Celtic! Paranoid and vindictive are some of the daft terms that were thrown at Celtic fans. However, it wasn’t Celtic fans or staff who created these issues. It was the SFA officials themselves.
The referees on 21 Nov 2010 announced their intention to strike over this debacle. They claimed to fear for their safety even though Craven himself stated that he did not resign as an official due to any supposed threats.
Scots-Irish independent journalist Phil Mac Giolla Bhan made what was likely the defining find. Separate to Celtic, Phil revealed an email was found to be sent by Hugh Dallas which was said to be offensive to Catholics. It was a crude joke about the Pope & the child abuse scandals. In private it would be smirked at but sent via work email it’s a disciplinary matter. He’d got himself into an unwanted situation but had to pay the penalty.
On 26 Nov 2010, Hugh Dallas along with 5 other colleagues resigned (were sacked?) over the affairs. This was followed by Dougie McDonald on 28 Nov 2010.
This was probably the first campaign (unorganised as is the Celtic norm) by the support to strive to get justice. The media were either aggressively against (e.g. dipstick Chic Young), or believed the club should acquiesce to the SFA (e.g. Jim Traynor believed that McDonald should go but Celtic should “shut up…” etc etc).
It was a victory for the Celtic support and the club. A vindication of fan power.
Match
KDS
Officials lied to Celtic, says assistant Steven Craven (BBC)
(BBC)
Assistant referee Steven Craven says he and other officials lied to Celtic manager Neil Lennon about events that led to the overturning of a penalty.
Craven, who resigned over the issue, has told the Sunday Mail that he initially agreed to say he alerted referee Dougie McDonald to his mistake.
But Craven claims head of referees Hugh Dallas refused to accept McDonald’s admission it was his own decision.
It is understood that people within the SFA are taking legal advice.
They question Craven’s account of the sequence of events that led to McDonald being warned after an SFA investigation.
The controversy arose after McDonald blew for a penalty after goalkeeper Dusan Pernis challenged Celtic striker Gary Hooper during the match against Dundee United at Tannadice on 17 October.
McDonald then approached Craven before giving a drop ball inside the area.
It was claimed in the aftermath of the game that the referee had heard Craven shout “Dougie, Dougie” in his earpiece before consulting his assistant.
But it has since been admitted that McDonald had himself quickly realised his mistake and had it verified by Craven.
And an investigation headed by recently appointed SFA chief executive Stewart Regan on Friday reprimanded McDonald for not making that clear in his post-match report despite saying he was correct not to award a penalty.
Regan has promised changes to the reporting procedure and hopes to launch a “respect campaign” to reduce the pressure from clubs, managers and players on officials.
However, with Craven having gone public about his resignation and claims of being made a scapegoat, focus is now likely to shift to head of referee development Dallas’s role in the affair.
Craven claims he had been urged to stick by McDonald’s original explanation, given to an angry Lennon after the game, as it was more credible.
Celtic are understood to be preparing to make their opinions on the matter known.
Meanwhile, it is understood that the SFA will ask Celtic to account for Lennon’s own behaviour during the match.
Statement from Hugh Dallas and Stewart Regan
Monday, 01 November 2010
Statement from Hugh Dallas, the Scottish FA’s head of referee development, and Stewart Regan, Scottish FA chief executive.
Hugh Dallas:
“I am extremely angry and upset at the completely unsubstantiated allegations made by Steven Craven in a Sunday newspaper at the weekend. I refute categorically any suggestion of impropriety on my part during the telephone call that I made to Steven Craven on Monday, October 18, with a view to clarifying the sequence of events surrounding the overturning of a penalty decision by the referee, Dougie McDonald, in the Dundee United versus Celtic match the previous day. That clarification was necessary so that I could explain the decision publicly.
“I wish to make it clear that at no time during that conversation did I suggest to Steven that he called Dougie over to him. I asked Craven to talk me through the incident, which he did. I then asked him if he had shouted “Dougie, Dougie” at the time. He said “No”. I replied, for clarification, “So you didn’t shout “Dougie, Dougie?” and he repeated the answer “No”. I was left in no doubt that he had not initiated the dialogue with the referee and at no time in any subsequent statement that I made did I suggest the contrary.
“This telephone call was made from my office and another Scottish FA employee was present in the room throughout its duration.
“Unfortunately, these allegations have given rise to the suggestion that I was involved in some sort of ‘cover-up’: nothing could be further from the truth. I was adamant from the time that Dougie first contacted me that an accurate version of events be established. Dougie and the other assistant at the game, Charlie Smith, have since corroborated the correct chronology of events on the field and in the dressing room, which has cast serious doubt over the legitimacy of Craven’s own claims.
“I communicated that version of events to the match observer but he felt his report should contain what was actually said to him in the dressing room. In view of the whole circumstances, I decided that I would refer the matter to the chief executive, who in turn forwarded the findings of his completed report to the SFA Referee Committee for consideration.
“I also refute utterly Craven’s allegations of ‘victimisation, harassment and bullying’ at the hands of myself and my colleague, John Fleming. Claims of bullying by John have been refuted by many of the 24 other assistant referees present at the fitness test, including Martin Cryans, the chairman of the Scottish Senior Football Referees’ Association.
“The conversation I had with Craven, after a seminar at Tulliallan, was similar to conversations I have had with many referees and assistant referees in Scotland over the past few years, in an effort to improve standards. Dialogue is a huge part of the ongoing development of referees and assistant referees.
“I am dismayed and saddened that the reputation I have built up over 30 years in refereeing could be besmirched by such unfounded allegations. I have, however, been overwhelmed by the messages of support received from friends, colleagues and well-wishers across the country, as well as the support I have received from the referee fraternity.”
Stewart Regan:
“The Scottish FA is unequivocal in its support of Hugh Dallas, the Head of Referee development, and his colleague, John Fleming, in light of recent allegations made against both by Steven Craven. In the past week, I have spoken extensively to Hugh as part of my investigation into the events at the recent match between Dundee United and Celtic and have found him to be helpful and honest throughout this process.
“While we will work together to remedy the flaws in the administrative process that emerged as a result of the investigation, at no time was Hugh’s integrity ever called into question. Hugh has addressed the personal accusations himself in the statement but I wish to make plain that I am committed to supporting Hugh and the tremendous work he does for the Scottish FA, the refereeing fraternity and Scottish football in general.
“In the coming weeks I will be contacting all the constituent members of the game in Scotland to help implement our campaign to Respect the Ref, Respect the Game. Hugh and his team will be pivotal to this process.”
Official Celtic
5 Nov 2010
AFTER recent events involving the match at Tannadice, and yesterday’s SFA statement, Celtic have issued the following statement.
Celtic Chairman John Reid said: “Following events at Tannadice, it was Celtic’s absolute right to request clarification on a matter of this nature. Indeed, it is widely accepted that this was an incident which deserved some explanation.
“It was also correct that the Scottish Football Association conduct an investigation into events following the resignation of an assistant referee. Clearly, as a result of this investigation it is very unfortunate that dishonesty has been proven. This, of course, is a matter for the SFA to deal with.
“However, we are encouraged by the proposals of the new Chief Executive Stewart Regan, to address a series of issues within the SFA and to allow greater transparency and openness in all future decision making. While we would have liked a review to be more independent in nature, Stewart Regan’s objectives are to be applauded.
“We fully understand that there is intense pressure on referees in a high-profile environment. We know too that they carry out a very difficult job.
“We now look forward to the review process being carried out and to the implementation of the appropriate recommendations.”
Hugh Dallas
6 Nov 2010
http://www.philmacgiollabhain.com/
By Phil Mac Giolla Bhain
Controversial Scottish referee Chief Hugh Dallas sent a sectarian email “joke” last September on the day of the Pope’s visit to Britain.
The joke has a picture depicting a children beware road sign with the added words “ Pope is coming”.
The email was Scottish FA sent from Mr.Dallas’ official email address it was a reply to an email entitled ‘FIFA nomination.’
It was sent on 16/09/2010, the day of the Pope’s visit to the UK.
The reply, from Hugh Dallas’ official SFA email address had a jpeg attachment called “popeiscoming”
The image depicted a red triangle caution road sign with an adult holding a child’s hand. Under the ‘Caution’ there was a hand written sign affixed saying, ‘Pope is coming.’
The clear implication of this “joke” was that His Holiness The Pope is, somehow a danger to children.
This news comes at a time when Dallas is embroiled in a controversy with Celtic FC about the amount of referring decisions that the Parkhead club have claimed that have went against them over the last two years.
Dallas’ view is that these decisions are “Honest Mistakes” and that every team has reason to gripe about referring decisions from time to time.
Last season Celtic sent a DVD of 30 refereeing decisions to the SFA claiming that this was proof that the referees were biased against the club.
The refereeing issue has come to the fore in the last few weeks after it was disclosed that referee Dougie McDonald and Assistant referee Steven Craven had lied post match to Celtic manager Neil Lennon about a decision not to give the Parkhead club a penalty.
Dallas himself was involved in a stormy Old Firm match at Celtic park in May 1999.
When he was hit by a coin by a Celtic fan. Bleeding from the head wound caused by the coin Dallas had to be treated and the match stopped for several minutes.
This revelation that on the day of the Pope’s visit the SFA’s head of “Referee Development” was sending a sectarian image linking His Holiness the Pope to paedophilia will only fuel concerns among the mainly Catholic Celtic support that officialdom in Scottish soccer is hostile to the club because of the its Irish Catholic heritage.
I contacted the SFA and told them of the existence and content of the email sent from Hugh Dallas’ official email address on the day of the Pope’s state visit to Britain.
The SFA refused to comment about the email.
Despite several attempts by this journalist, including leaving a message on his mobile phone, Mr.Dallas was not available for comment.
Celtic call for referee to resign By Chris McLaughlin (BBC),
18 Nov 2010
Celtic chairman John Reid is calling for the resignation of referee Dougie McDonald as well as a complete review of the Scottish Football Association.
McDonald was warned by the governing body after lying about his reasons for overturning a penalty award.
“If the SFA had any sense of their own integrity, they should look at it again,” said Dr Reid.
“His position is completely untenable. The SFA’s position on this issue is also untenable.”
Celtic chairman John Reid
It led to a meeting between Celtic chief executive Peter Lawwell and his SFA counterpart, Stewart Regan, who had already promised an overhaul of the refereeing system.
Reid, addressing around 200 shareholders at the Glasgow club’s annual meeting, said “bold, radical action” must be taken to combat “stories of lies, conspiracies and cover-ups” within Scottish football.
“We’re not asking for special treatment, but neither will we be treated as less than anyone else,” he said. “Those days are gone.”
Reid, who also thinks video technology should be used to help officials make decisions, backed
Celtic had also written to the SFA seeking clarification over a spot-kick awarded against them by referee Willie Collum in their defeat by Rangers.
“We lost the league last year because we weren’t good enough, but we reserve the right to query decisions,” he said. “It’s not sour grapes or paranoia.
“Stewart Regan has promised us a full review of referee procedures. But, not just that, a full review of the SFA as a whole.”
Lawwell saw a brighter future for the club under the present team management, led by Lennon, who took over after the sacking of Tony Mowbray. “Last year on the pitch was clearly unacceptable,” said the chief executive.
“We have a new, young, vibrant managerial team led by Neil Lennon that will be here for a very long time.”
Meanwhile, Reid shouldered the blame for the appointment of Mowbray, the former Celtic defender who was previously with West Brom and has recently taken charge of Middlesbrough.
“We got off to a false start under Mowbray,” said the chairman. “But we managed to avoid some of the catastrophic financial failures that others fell into.
“Tony Mowbray’s appointment was a mistake and I ultimately take responsibility for that.”
Story from BBC SPORT:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/sport1/hi/football/teams/c/celtic/9206945.stm
Published: 2010/11/18 16:36:19 GMT
© BBC MMX
Hugh MacDonald on Monday: the Scottish refereeing crisis will not be solved by strike action
The Herald 22 Nov 2010
Hugh MacDonald
THE decision by Category One referees to withdraw their services from Scottish senior football matches this weekend will be interpreted as placing Scottish football in crisis.
However, it is also the bluntest admission that refereeing itself is in crisis. Sources close to the referees last night insisted that they “were sick of criticism”. Yet surely, as a body and individually, there must be a recognition among referees that the storm engulfing Scottish football has a valid cause.
The admission by Dougie McDonald, the Category One referee, that he lied to both the match observer and to Neil Lennon, the Celtic manager, in the wake of the penalty incident at Tannadice was a signal for referees to be placed under greater scrutiny.
The subsequent warning handed to McDonald by his peers stunned many in its leniency, not least those among the hierarchy at the Scottish Football Association. McDonald’s decision to carry on whistling has placed pressure on his colleagues. The strike vote was leaked to the press last night but there are also referees who believe McDonald has done his profession a disservice.
This, of course, will be lost in the wringing of hands over the refs’ decision. It is impossible not to sympathise with officials over their fears for themselves and their families. Most connected with Scottish football – including those in the media – have come into close contact with people who abuse them, mostly verbally but sometimes physically.
If the referees believe that in the current, febrile climate they can not expect to perform their duties safely then this is a decision one must respect. The same applies to those referees who wish to leave the game because they feel the pressure has become too high, the atmosphere too poisonous. However, the only top official to leave in recent months has been Steven Craven and he refuted suggestions he had resigned because of abuse from fans. He was insistent that his reasons for leaving top-class officiating were entirely a consequence of events inside the refereeing community.
However, there may be other referees who are more than willing to take charge of a senior match for £800. The terms of Article 114.1 of the Articles of Association, governing refereeing appointments, states: “Unless the rules of a European or other competition prescribe to the contrary, or unless the Association gives permission to the contrary, every match in which a club in full or associate membership is engaged within Scotland shall be controlled by a referee whose name is included within this list”. It then lists Category 2 referees as “referees recommended for appointment as referees in predetermined grades of football and as assistant referees in designated matches”. There is enough leeway in this wording to allow the SFA considerable room for manoeuvre, if it wishes. No one likes criticism, everyone deplores any unnecessary pressure placed on anyone in the performance of their duty, referee or not. However, any sympathy among clubs will disappear if fixtures are not fulfilled because of a dearth of officials.
If the situation persists and Scottish refs say they will not turn up on Saturday, the SFA will be forced to look elsewhere for officials. It could be construed as a dereliction of the association’s duty to protect the interests of its member clubs if it did not. There is not one football club in Scotland that can blithely waive the revenues for even one match.
The SFA was keeping its counsel last night. UEFA officials were not returning calls. They may all be forced into action before the weekend.
Of course, it may not come to anything. There may be sweet words or harsh warnings. There may even be both and the referees all turn up for kick-off on Saturday.
It is also difficult to divine precisely what the refs believe they can achieve by their action. Do they honestly think any strike will stop criticism? Have they come to a collective decision that a week without their services will silence the complainers? This, frankly, would overturn more than 100 years of football culture.
A stubborn truth will remain, whatever happens between now and Saturday. Scottish football and Scottish refereeing is in crisis. It will not be solved by a strike. It may just be constructively addressed by some temperate discussions.
Written by The Outlaw Raparee of KDS Forum (Nov 2010)
I sent this in to Radio Scotland. Got a bit carried away. Anyway, had to leave the room for a bit, so I’m assuming none of it was read out…
“Neil Lennon and Celtic have done nothing that other managers and clubs haven’t done this season. Craig Brown complained about Celtic getting a penalty – a stonewaller – and was still going on about it as recently as last week.
Walter Smith used insinuation and innuendo when talking about the referee Murphy, who had disallowed a Rangers goal for offside. Smith said he had previously allowed a goal to stand for Celtic that Smith thought was offside. Does that not call into question the integrity of the official? There was no need for Celtic to be brought into the debate, but as the linesman’s name was Murphy, you can read into it everything you need.
Is that paranoia? Pat Nevin, who abandoned Celtic when a media career required it, will probably say so. But when he says there is no evidence of a conspiracy against the club, he clearly, as an ex-Celtic fan, doesn’t know his history. From the Great Flag Flutter, to the deliberate failure to register Jorge Cadete. Also, the SFA refusing to back a member club to get a transfer fee from Monaco from John Collins citing EU legislation when Monaco wasn’t an EU member. Then there was the case of the SFA refusing to back Celtic in the case of Marko Viduka, insisting that the club pay 3M when the player had done a runner.
Ernie Walker and Jim Farry insisting Celtic had to play at Hampden for legal reasons and introducing retrospective legislation when the government had contradicted the SFA and, when they went to Hampden, Celtic were ordered not to fly the Irish tricolour. Celtic were fined an unprecedented amount for ‘poaching’ Tommy Burns from Kilmarnock.
Is there really nothing at the SFA against Celtic, repeatedly, systematically, institutionally? A governing body that allowed that great elephant in the room to go unchecked for 8 decades ie the religious apartheid of one of its major clubs is really an impartial arbitrator of the game? A body that used the Union Flag at trophy presentations, rather than a Saltire? Is it beyond the realms of possibility that if such expressions of bias and bigotry were allowed to flourish at Rangers, a club which grew after the adoption of such policies, then there might be some possibility that some of their fans would make the move into the world of refeereing?
Traynor and Spiers have admitted that bias existed against Celtic ‘in the past’. Everything is ‘in the past’. No one admitted it at the time. If it is indeed ‘in the past’ when did it stop, what was the cut off point? It should have been clear when partiality ended and fair application of the rules were applied.
Taking the Dundee Utd game and respect, it was not Celtic players who had surrounded the referee at the penalty incident to get him to change his mind. If the rules of rugby were followed, as suggested, Celtic would have had a penalty from two yards out.
Celtic asked for clarification on a bizarre decision. The referee then lied, the head of referees peddled the same falsehood on air for two days, even though it has been subsequently established that he knew from text that McDonald and Craven that they had lied. Why did he continue to peddle this falsehood and why has he escaped any censure for his part in all of this, (and that excludes his serious misjudgement in using his SFA email account to send an email that would contravene many companies’ internet usage policies and result in the bullet)?
As for the ‘climate of fear’ being whipped up by irresponsible actions, Neil Lennon arrived in Scotland an uncontroversial character, yet has been chased in his car (while driving his daughter), he has been attacked at traffic lights while out with his girlfriend, and men are currently in prison after leaving him unconscious on the street.
As I say, a previously uncontroversial character (the Alan Shearer boot to the head incident apart), he was vilified for his ‘playing style’ as he was booed from one end of Scotland to another, and is now the victim of another appalling smear campaign by a complicit media, desperate for the establishment club to get the financial lifeline that they have grasped in the last two years by qualification to the Champions League. If Celtic were 10 points behind Rangers, the tone of all of this would be different.
If Lennon is attacked again, then the media has to take a long hard look at their abysmal journalistic standards, where they, knowing that there are many people out there prepared to inflict serious damage on the man, are happy to continue to demonise him for having the audacity to question a decision that Craig Brown, Jim Jefferies, Walter Smith and the current Scotland manager would rage about.
You have just cut off a woman for mentioning the ‘elephant in the room’. Is the Rangers signing policy such an embarrassment that it is whitewashed from history?
Javier Hernandez has been advised not to carry out his regular pre-match ritual. Something that he does around the world is unwelcome in a modern, tolerant Scotland. Go figure. ”
Scottish Refs Have No Reason For Strike
Link: http://threeandin.com/2010/11/24/scottish-refs-have-no-reason-for-strike/
The straw that broke the camel’s back was Celtic chairman John Reid questioning their honesty. A former Blairite Home Secretary questioning anyone’s honesty is hypocritical. It’s like Katie Price telling young girls not to get their **** out.
So, the Grade One refs in Scotland have decided to call strike action this weekend. It’s not strike action but a withdrawal of service. They cite fear for themselves and their families after an increase in – unreported – abuse. They have no demands like most strikers have. No manifesto of change that they want to see implemented.
Their strike just seems to be in support of their disgraced colleague and boss who have admitted lying to a SPL manager, falsifying a match report, covering up this lie and only coming clean when it was exposed in a paper. That and they don’t like being told that they are not very good at their job.
The SFA and the SPL were caught by surprise. You see the men in the middle have never informed them of ‘unprecedented levels of abuse’ despite them having regular meetings with the refs. True, Willie Collum did receive some abusive phone calls after the Glasgow derby four weeks ago when he gave a penalty he didn’t see.
They weren’t the death threats that have been reported, Collum has admitted that. Also, the mass media reporting that the linesman involved in Tannadice-Gate, Stephen Craven, resigned due to death threats, again, denied by Craven, are wide of the mark after Craven came out and admitted he resigned due to his treatment from Dougie McDonald and Hugh Dallas in the wake of the Tannadice incident.
The SFA are planning on bringing refs from other associations if an agreement is not reached with the spit-the-dummy officials. This has seen an unprecedented level of vitriol and abuse from the press with the word scab being used to stoke the fire of ill-feeling. A word so outdated it was last used when Aberdeen were successful.
Officials from the SFA and assorted rent-a-gubs have been making sinister quips that this whole thing has sectarian undertones and certain clubs should stop this innuendo. Do you think they are talking about ref’s chief Hugh Dallas who seems to be on gardening leave after being caught sending an e-mail concerning the Pope and child abuse? Or that UEFA have again warned Rangers over their fans witty repertoire?
No, I don’t think so.
Instead of being thanked for having the face to stand up to and point out to the SFA the deteriorating refereeing standards since Hugh Dallas took over as boss – see Craig Thomson’s performance last night in the Ajax v Real Madrid game – plus trying to force the SFA to modernise from the current warren of committees, meetings, lack of transparency in their disciplinary procedures – which saw a referee admit he lied, falsified a match report, cover it up but still keep his job – Celtic are being vilified in a massive smear campaign that deems them sectarian bigots.
Make no mistake Celtic want blood in all this. Dallas and McDonald must be the first to go. If the refs go on strike this weekend then they should all be sacked for bringing the game into disrepute. Rip it up and start again.
If that doesn’t happen, can we come and play in England?
Referees’ chief Dallas leaves SFA By Jane Lewis and Jim Spence
Head of referee development Hugh Dallas has parted company with the Scottish Football Association after being accused of sending a tasteless e-mail.
The former World Cup referee was the subject of an internal disciplinary hearing on Thursday evening. SFA chief executive Stewart Regan investigated reports of an e-mail sent from Dallas’s SFA account when the Pope visited Scotland on 16 September. And, on Wednesday, Catholic Church spokesman called on the SFA to act.
“I have not been in there today. I stayed away from there because, if he has dismissed anyone, any appeal from people who have been dismissed would come to me. “I don’t know if people have gone or not – that is possible. “Some people have phoned me and told me that five have left, but I don’t know how many have gone and who they might be. I don’t want to get involved.”
Dallas, who had been the SFA’s head of referee development since June 2009, had also been under pressure in recent weeks following criticism of Scotland’s officials. Celtic, in particular, had been angered by referee Dougie McDonald’s decision to overturn his own award of a penalty against Dundee United on 17 October.
Reid alluded to what he claimed was a history of bias against Celtic and supported MP Pete Wishart’s suggestion that referees should reveal which football teams they support. Celtic had also recently written to the SFA asking for clarification over a penalty awarded against them by Willie Collum during the Old Firm derby against Rangers. Following that incident, striker Gary Hooper suggested that referees wanted to give decisions against his club. Then, this week, Scotland’s referees withdrew their labour ahead of this weekend’s fixtures, complaining of undue pressure, abuse and that their integrity was being questioned. Both Dallas and the SFA were unavailable for comment tonight.
The SFA have made no official comment all day despite both Polish and Portuguese officials withdrawing their offers to cover for striking refs. One of the striking category one referees, John McKendrick, described the departure of Dallas as a “very dark day for referees in Scotland”. “We have to remember that Hugh Dallas was a world-class operator,” he said. Pictures of Dallas, crouched on one knee with blood streaming from a head wound, are one of the most stark images in Scottish football.
In 1999, during a title decider in which three players were sent off and a penalty was awarded to Rangers, Dallas was struck on the head by a coin thrown from the Celtic section of support. Celtic subsequently hired a behavioural psychologist to investigate Dallas’s behaviour in the match. Dallas was awarded an MBE for services to football a few months after being chosen to be the fourth official at the 2002 World Cup final.
Story from BBC SPORT:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/sport1/hi/football/scot_prem/9230531.stm
Published: 2010/11/26 22:16:44 GMT
© BBC MMX
Hugh Dallas departs from SFA position after Pope email inquiry
There were reports last night that up to four other SFA employees have also left their positions.
SFA president George Peat would not confirm the other departures, but said last night: “Stewart Regan (SFA chief executive] has interviewed a number of people at Hampden.
“I have not been in there today. I stayed away because, if he has dismissed anyone, any appeal from people who have been dismissed would come to me.
“I don’t know if people have gone or not – that is possible.
“Some people have phoned me and told me that five have left, but I don’t know how many have gone and who they might be. I don’t want to get involved.”
The Catholic Church on Wednesday called for the SFA to sack Dallas if it was proved he passed on the message via his official email account at the SFA.
It is understood the 53-year-old was the subject of an internal disciplinary hearing on Thursday evening. Dallas was said to be thinking over his situation for a few days, but it is believed he met with his employers yesterday afternoon and indicated that he wished to resign.
Regan launched an inquiry earlier this month after reports of the alleged email surfaced. He acted after reports claimed a photograph relating to the Pope’s visit had been passed on via official SFA emails.
The photograph showed a road sign featuring a woman and a child with a doctored message referring to the Pontiff below.
The SFA chief executive said in a statement on 10 November: “I can confirm I have looked into the circulation of the email reported in the media.
“Let me state categorically that I do not condone the transmission of any email content that might cause offence to anyone.
“I have spoken with staff and the matter will now be dealt with internally, in line with the Scottish FA’s information systems acceptable use policy.”
The director of the Catholic media office, Peter Kearney, then wrote to Regan demanding swift action. Kearney said: “I am writing to you to express my concern at an allegation made recently against a senior official of the SFA, Mr Hugh Dallas, the head of referee development.
“He has been accused of sending an email from his SFA email account on the day of the Pope’s visit to Scotland, which was totally unprofessional, gratuitously insulting to the Pope, deeply offensive to the Catholic community of Scotland, and an incitement to anti-Catholic sectarianism.”
Kearney asked that the results of the internal investigation be made public and if the allegations are proven Dallas be “removed from his post”.
Regan backed Dallas earlier in November after the former World Cup referee categorically refuted allegations he had bullied Steven Craven, an assistant referee. Craven accused Dallas after quitting the profession following his involvement in Dougie McDonald’s decision to rescind a penalty awarded to Celtic during their victory over Dundee United last month.
The departure of Dallas brings to an end a near 30-year career in refereeing that saw him officiate at two World Cups – he was fourth official in the 2002 World Cup final – as well as the 1999 Uefa Cup final.
In December 2002 he was awarded the MBE for services to football. After hanging up his whistle in 2005, he took on various observer positions, and was appointed SFA head of referee development in June 2009.
Last night a colleague of Dallas described his resignation as “a dark day”. John McKendrick, the fourth official in the controversial Dundee United v Celtic match, said: “It’s a dark day for refereeing in Scotland. Hugh Dallas was a world class operator.”
Dallas did not return phone calls last night.
A game of two huffs
- Whistling in the wind: can anything be learned from the referee debacle?
Russell Leadbetter
The Herald
28 Nov 2010
On any given Saturday, the arrival of an SPL match referee would be witnessed by no more than the proverbial two men and a dog … and that on a good day.
Yesterday, however, at snowy New Douglas Park in Hamilton, Meir Levy, not long arrived from his native Israel, had to run a mini-gauntlet of news photographers and a Sky TV crew, diplomatically ignoring a couple of shouted questions as he did so. This was no ordinary Saturday: it was Strike Saturday.
Meir was one of a number of continental officials drafted in at short notice, after a frantic stint of behind-the-scenes telephoning, to cover for the absence of Category One referees who went on strike in protest against what they describe as a rising tide of abuse from managers and players, to the point where their integrity is being queried and their personal lives affected.
During last week, the crisis – and that is not too strong a word for it – seemed to unravel out of control. Polish match officials who’d been drafted in, decided to stay at home. Portuguese officials arrived at Glasgow Airport and left again almost immediately. It was revealed that Alain Hamer, the Luxembourg official charged with overseeing matches involving the two Old Firm sides this weekend, is himself on strike in his homeland – over the amount of abuse received by referees. Fans’ websites and phone-in radio shows were galvanised as rarely before.
To cap things off, Hugh Dallas, once one of Scotland’s best-known referees, and now the SFA’s head of referee development, was sacked on Friday over an offensive email about the Pope. In a remarkable turn of events, the Catholic Church in Scotland had previously intervened to call for Dallas’ head.
This is scarcely the first time that religion and football have mixed – and mixed badly – in Scotland. But the entire episode – particularly the events of the last few days – has done little to improve the standing of the Scottish game across Europe. “I just think this is a no-win situation for everyone – for referees, for fans and football teams,” said St Mirren supporter Gary Bain, 41, outside New Douglas Park. “Who wins? That’s anyone’s guess. I think there’s more to come, personally … The referees have the upper hand. If there’s no referees, there’s no football. Today we have football thanks to foreign referees, but that’s not going to happen every week,”
Robert Boyle, 49, from East Kilbride, and a neutral fan at the game, was forthright: “I think Celtic are to blame for the whole thing, to be quite honest. John Reid and Neil Lennon [Celtic’s chairman and manager] are responsible for the whole hassle. The SPL is to blame as well.”
The immediate cause of this embarrassing dispute was an incident at Dundee United’s Tannadice ground last month, though it seems like half a lifetime ago. The underlying grievances, however, are somewhat older. Category One referee John McKendrick, for example, believes it is “too simple” to say that events at Tannadice kicked it all off. What happened on October 17 – when McKendrick, incidentally, was the fourth official – was that referee Dougie McDonald awarded Celtic a penalty after a foul by Dundee United keeper Dusan Pernis on Celtic’s Gary Hooper.
Realising he had been too hasty (an instinct supported by TV replays), McDonald withdrew the penalty award after consulting his assistant, Steven Craven. Celtic manager Neil Lennon was beside himself with anger.
In his official account of the incident, McDonald claimed that Craven had, via his earpiece, told him of his error. The following day, Hugh Dallas backed McDonald’s decision, but Craven denied doing any such thing and alleged that the referee had instigated a cover-up.
On October 24, Lennon raged at referee Willie Collum over the penalty he had awarded to Rangers in that day’s Old Firm derby and over his failure to send off the Ibrox side’s Lee McCulloch. The following day, Craven quit, It was claimed that he felt he had been made a scapegoat, and handed in his notice after he and his teenage sons were reportedly subjected to threats and verbal abuse.
News then broke that hours after the Old Firm game, Collum had received a number of death threats at his Lanarkshire home, the caller reportedly threatening to “go after him and his wife and children”.
On October 29, the SFA’s referees committee decided unanimously that McDonald had been correct to order a drop ball after initially pointing to the spot following Pernis’ challenge on Hooper, but it gave him a “warning” over his failure to properly articulate Craven’s role in his report and in discussions with the match observer.
The SFA’s chief executive Stewart Regan said he was launching a ‘respect’ campaign in the new year. “This whole handling of referees by managers, players and clubs has got to stop,” he added. “I think we have seen too much of it. We are getting discussed across the world for the way the referees are being treated and I do feel it is time we stood up and said enough is enough.”
He may have spoken too soon, On November 18, at Celtic’s AGM, (a week after McDonald had returned to SPL duties), club chairman John Reid, the former high-ranking Labour Party politician, turned up the pressure on McDonald: “No-one who has admitted to lying to our manager over important decisions should remain in post. He (McDonald] should go and if he didn’t resign, then he should have been removed from post. There cannot be integrity in a system that allows a referee to lie and, allegedly, to try to get others to lie about a crucial decision affecting a game.”
The club’s chief executive, Peter Lawwell, said he would be “astonished, in the first instance” if McDonald was allowed to referee another Celtic game. “There are other ways of keeping him occupied, I’m sure, rather than sending him here,” he was quoted as saying.
Pete Wishart, the SNP MP for Perth and North Perthshire, threw in his tuppenceworth, declaring that match officials should reveal which team they supported.
A week ago today, Scotland’s leading referees decided that enough really was enough, Their announcement that they would make themselves unavailable for selection this weekend made front-page headlines. Scottish FA president George Peat responded: “We do not condone the strike but we must sympathise with the grievances of the referees. Unfortunately the behaviour of some people in recent weeks has tarnished the image of Scottish football. It has demeaned the game. The culture of inference, innuendo and conspiracy theories must stop.”
The SFA immediately threw itself into a marathon, running up considerable phone bills in an effort to secure European referees as emergency cover for the SPL games, a First Division match, today’s ALBA Challenge Cup final (now postponed thanks to the weather) and several Scottish Cup ties. But an unexpected U-turn by three Polish referees threw a spanner in the works, forcing a revision of the SFA plans. By the time the Portuguese contingent of referees and their assistants had come and gone (pausing long enough to declare solidarity with their Scottish counterparts), and Dallas and several other SFA personnel had paid the apparent price for the Pope email, European football attention was firmly on Scotland. The SFA’s Regan, for good measure, told Celtic that in relation to their demands for McDonald to be sacked, they should “get over it”. “I think the SFA’s position on this is that Dougie McDonald has already been before the Referee Committee,” he added.
“The case was heard. A punishment was given out. Whether the punishment is liked or not, you cannot try someone for a second time simply because you do not like the decision delivered. That is not how natural justice works. If a player was suspended or a manager banned and somebody did not like the outcome, you would not put him back in front of the same set of people to try to get a second result.”
In relation to the Dallas sideshow, SFA president George Peat said yesterday: “I read reports in the papers this morning that some people have resigned but I don’t know and I can’t get involved in it. All I know is that Stewart Regan was meeting with several members of staff. But if there were to be appeals they would have to come to me so I can’t get involved.”
Yesterday’s Scottish football programme looked strange, from whichever angle you came at it. The four SPL games – Celtic v Inverness ICT (refereed by Alain Hamer), Hamilton v St Mirren, Hibernian v St Johnstone (Malta’s Christian Lautier] and Kilmarnock v Aberdeen (Eli Hacmon from Israel) – the solitary fixtures on a rather offbeat day.
In the event, they went off smoothly. Enduring what had until then been a dull game at Easter Road between Hibernian and St Johnstone, the BBC Radio Scotland pundit Craig Paterson observed saltily: “The referee will be wondering what all the bother is about. The game is an absolute doddle to referee.”
The two remaining SPL fixtures – Dundee Utd v Rangers (weather permitting) and Motherwell v Hearts, take place today.
Outside New Douglas Park yesterday, an hour before kick-off, Stuart Miller, 44, from Carluke, who watches both Hamilton and Motherwell with his 18-year-old son Ben, spoke for all those fans who were just glad to be able to see a game. “We don’t care who referees them, we’re just football fans, and that’s the reason why we’re here. We come for the passion and the drive.
“But the game has suffered, definitely. There’s been so much adverse publicity. Scotland, unfortunately, is very passionate about the game, more so than quite a lot of other places in the world, and I think that has got caught up with part of the referees’ saga as well. But I hope they can rectify it.
“The SPL needs to set new guidelines that basically everybody works to, and we don’t have a shouting-match on the pitch, or confrontations with referees while the match is going on. That should be done after the game. I think if they get something like that set up, the referees will be happier. When it starts affecting their personal life, it’s a bit sad, really.”
Rangers manager Walter Smith has added his own voice to the debate, saying that while he himself has challenged referees in the past, the levels of criticism directed at them over the last couple of years “has gone beyond what you would think was acceptable.”
Maybe the referees’ grievances were a boil that simply needed to be lanced. The European referees will be gone by tonight, the sense of chaos – hopefully – will melt away like the snow, and things will be back to normal by next weekend, all other things being equal. Maybe some good could come out of it all yet – at the very least an increasing distrust for the mixing of two of Scotland’s most tribal habits: football and religion.
The main players
Dougie McDonald: SFA referee whose Tannadice penalty decision last month helped spark the current crisis, Has been a referee since 1982. He admitted lying about his reasons for overturning a Celtic penalty in a game against Dundee United, although the SFA supports him.
Hugh Dallas: Ex-referee who has officiated at the highest international level. Was until this weekend the SFA’s head of referee development. He drew criticism for his handling of the Celtic penalty controversy and quit the SFA after reports he forwarded an offensive e-mail about the Pope.
Neil Lennon: Former Celtic captain, who earlier this year succeeded Tony Mowbray as team manager. He issued two complaints about referees’ penalty decisions to the SFA and was asked to leave the pitch after disputing another penalty. He now faces punishment from the SFA.
Dr John Reid: Former Labour Cabinet minister who held high-profile posts including Defence Secretary and Home Secretary. Has been chairman of Celtic FC since 2008. He said that Dougie McDonald should no longer be a referee and said he should have resigned, or been sacked.
Stewart Regan: Recently appointed as SFA Chief Executive. Aged 46. Has been Chief Executive of the Yorkshire County Cricket Club and director of The Football League Championship, He oversaw the investigation into the penalty decisions and the Pope email scandal.
Referee McDonald opts to retire
(28 Nov 2010, BBC)
Dougie McDonald has announced his retirement as a category one referee with immediate effect.
The 45-year-old, who has overseen two Scottish Cup finals, has been at the centre of a refereeing row since his controversial penalty U-turn decision. McDonald misled Celtic manager Neil Lennon over his reasons for rescinding a spot-kick he initially awarded at Tannadice on 17 October.
Celtic had been calling for McDonald to step down after his admission.
“My category one colleagues decided rightly to withdraw their services from matches this weekend in response to the outrageous way they have been treated by sections within Scottish football and, in my opinion, the lack of support they have received from the SFA General Purposes Committee in recent years.
“However, their united stand, and the position of strength they have established this weekend, has been clouded by one issue, namely the aftermath of the Dundee United v Celtic match on 17 October.
“Now is the time for all of Scottish football to move on.
“My decision will therefore remove that issue from the debate and ensure that the next day of action – which, in my opinion, will undoubtedly come if the football community does not have a massive change of heart – will result in media coverage being concentrated on those who engage in referee bashing and those who condone it.”
McDonald had received a warning from the Scottish Football Association after failing to properly explain his overturning of the penalty award.
He returned to SPL duty to oversee Hibernian’s 2-1 win over Motherwell on 13 November and intimated that he had no intention of stepping down.
“If the SFA had any sense of their own integrity, they should look at it again,” said Dr Reid on 18 November.
“His position is completely untenable. The SFA’s position on this issue is also untenable.”
McDonald went on to suggest that the recent problems facing referees ran far deeper than his spat with Celtic.
“It is also important to make clear that just as this issue is not about Dougie McDonald alone, nor is it about Celtic Football Club alone,” he added.
“The truth is, since I became a class one referee, managers or players – and sometimes directors – at almost every club, at one time or another, have been guilty of such behaviour. “The only difference being the degree and tenor of the criticism and the inferences from it.
“The constant has been the unwillingness of the SFA General Purposes Committee to deal with it.
“I suggest they check the meaning of phrases such as ‘wasn’t impartial’ used by (former Celtic winger) Aiden McGeady and ‘conspires to’ used by (Dundee United manager) Peter Houston and consider whether we want those used in Scottish football.”
McDonald follows Hugh Dallas in departing his role within Scotland’s refereeing circles after a turbulent week.
Dallas was sacked as the SFA’s head of referee development amid an internal probe into allegations that a controversial image relating to the Pope had been circulated via the governing body’s official email system.
Match officials from Israel, Malta and Luxembourg ensured all four of Saturday’s SPL matches went ahead despite category one referees withdrawing their labour in protest at their recent treatment.
Story from BBC SPORT:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/sport1/hi/football/scot_prem/9236198.stm
Published: 2010/11/28 18:10:08 GMT
© BBC MMX
Scottish Football Association chiefs accused over second child abuse spoof
Dec 19 2010 Exclusive by Russell Findlay, Sunday Mail
A SECOND email making jokes about child abuse will reignite civil war at the Scottish Football Association, we can reveal.
At an appeal on Wednesday, staff sacked for passing on an email about the Pope will claim bosses laughed at an even more offensive message.
One source said: “They are furious and think they are the scapegoats for this. The SFA tried to make it look as if they have acted decisively but it seems they have opened a huge can of worms instead.
“If it’s proved that this second email has circulated between other staff, some of them very senior, it’s hardly fair.”
Union officials acting for four workers axed in the wake of the Dallasgate controversy will make the shock claims at appeal hearings this week.
Secretary Amanda McDonald, audio-visual technician Tim Berridge, mailroom manager Bob Bryan and administrative assistant Marco McIntyre were dismissed from the SFA along with referees’ chief Hugh Dallas.
After their dismissal, SFA president George Peat said he only learned of the sackings in the media, adding: “I wasn’t in the office.”
SFA sources said they were punished because they had sent a notorious email about the Pope’s visit to Scotland – which branded him a danger to children – to people outwith the Hampden HQ.
But now the workers claim a spoof video advertising a repel lent spray to protect youngsters from paedophile priests was widely circulated and viewed within the SFA.
McDonald, Berridge and McIntyre will be accompanied by their GMB union reps when they begin an appeal at Hampden on Wednesday.
They will draw attention to a US web clip made by comedy website National Banana. It features a young boy who suffers a sex attack by a priest but is then protected by “Priest Off ” spray.
The clip starts with the boy returning from a Catholic camp where he has been abused by a priest. His parents then laugh at the idea of reporting the abuse to Church authorities because of their reputation for covering up abuse.
The video then turns to a spoof TV ad for the spray, which “works just like insect spray”. After being sprayed with Priest Off , the child repels the clergy.
It ends with a priest being struck by a lightning bolt.
One source said: “They believe they have been treated unfairly because this video went round other staff – including two senior guys – with no consequences.
It’s also thought they have evidence of similar material joking about the abuse of children by priests circulating between senior SFA figures.
“Dallas will hear whether his appeal against dismissal was successful tomorrow.
Another source said: “Whatever the outcome of his appeal, it could be a guide as to what might happen with the other three.
“They’re not going away quietly. They believe that there is serious hypocrisy in the way they have been treated. They believe their punishment didn’t fit the ‘crime’. They want their jobs back.”
A Catholic Church spokesman said: “It’s important that an employer who has an acceptable use policy applies it consistently. You can’t have one rule for one group and a different rule for others.”
An SFA spokesman said: “We are not in a position to comment on a live case.”
‘JOKE’ EMAILS PROVE A GROWING PROBLEM
Lawyers are facing a deluge of cases involving employees sending controversial emails from work accounts.
Laura Salmond, of Glasgow solicitors Levy & McRae, said: “More and more employers are putting policies in place which state that forwarding questionable emails is a disciplinary offence.
“Disciplinary action over this sort of thing is becoming increasingly common, not just with emails but also with social media like Facebook.”
Solicitor Austin Lafferty said: “People could be breaking their contract of employment, even if it’s an innocent joke in good taste, because it’s wasting time.”
Salmond added: “People need to be aware of the potential consequences of their actions.
“If anyone receives an email they’re not sure about, they should bring it to the attention of management or delete it.”
Hugh Dallas settles ‘Pope email’ case against SFA
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-glasgow-west-14275813
25 July 2011
From the section Glasgow & West Scotland
Hugh Dallas and pope emailHugh Dallas was sacked over the email about the Pope’s visit to Scotland
A referees chief who was sacked for sending a joke email about the Pope and child abuse has settled with the Scottish Football Association (SFA).
Hugh Dallas was planning to sue the SFA for unfair dismissal at an employment tribunal in Glasgow this week.
The hearing was expected to last five days but officials confirmed that both parties had reached agreement.
Mr Dallas, 53, and four other SFA staff were sacked over the email. Three have since been given their jobs back.
Mr Dallas’ lawyer Caroline Carr released a statement following the settlement.
Issue resolved
It stated: “Hugh Dallas can confirm that the issue has now been resolved to both parties’ satisfaction using Acas conciliation.
“Hugh Dallas will continue to support, encourage and promote association football in Scotland and the Scottish referee movement. He has no further comment to make.”
A spokesman from the SFA added: “It’s been resolved to each parties’ satisfaction and we have no further comment to make.”
The email at the centre of the case contained a joke about the Pope and child abuse.
It showed a road sign of an adult holding a child’s hand. It was captioned – “Caution: The Pope is coming” in reference to the Papal visit to Scotland in September.
Church call
The Catholic Church called for Mr Dallas to be sacked if he sent the email.
The five members of staff who were eventually sacked – including head of referee development Mr Dallas – were alleged to have forwarded the email from their SFA accounts in breach of the organisation’s IT policy.
Mr Dallas first challenged his sacking in November last year and his appeal was heard the following month by then SFA president George Peat and human resources expert, Viv Coady.
Both parties agreed with chief executive Stewart Regan’s decision to sack him.
Mr Dallas was given an MBE for services to football a few months after being picked to be the fourth official at the 2002 World Cup final.
