SFA referee Charlie Richmond yesterday told the BBC he was resigning from his role as a top class official citing reasons that will horrify and resonate with many of you. Speaking last night he said:
“Referee’s committee members, who you would expect to get support from, have told me across the table ‘this is nothing to do with your refereeing ability, it’s nothing to do with your experience but you won’t be getting high profile games because you’re not seen as a team member.
“The fact that you don’t share the same conversation or the same humour doesn’t mean to say you are the bad penny.
“The fact that you don’t share the same conversation or the same humour doesn’t mean to say you are the bad penny.
“In any walk of life a natural progression takes place but the person underneath doesn’t need to stab someone in in the back to advance quicker.
“I received a phone call telling me to watch what I was saying in dressing rooms because this is 10am on a Monday and it’s filtered back already.
“Much more disappointing, is that they are believing that information.”
Coming hard on the heels of last season’s bullying allegations by an official and nature of what was regarded by some as suitable material to joke about in the workplace, the SFA sounds like an old boys club.
SFA chief executive, Stewart Regan, tweeted in response: “Referee appointments are based on performance. Would prefer to see consistent under performers ‘retire’ without feeling need to blame others”.
Ouch. Listen to her.
Charlie Richmond may or may not be a rubbish referee, Mr Regan could easily persuade me of the former, but that is not the point. It is not the responsibility of the employee to manage the performance review process. If the organisation manages this process well, the employee becomes an active part of proceedings, even when performance is worthy of criticism.
This situation has not been managed well. It is a corporate failure at an organisation which has been dogged by corporate governance issues for years.
The SFA have been accredited as Investors In People. The scenario where a senior referee complains to the media about favouritism while the chief executive retorts online about “consistent under performers” (sic) is surely the antithesis of good Investors In People. It smacks of lousy people management.
If you have underperforming staff, make it clear to them where they are going wrong. Do so in an inclusive way, ensure those charged with performance communication are able to do so without accusations of favouritism (Richmond) or bullying (Craven), and for goodness sake, ensure the chief exec doesn’t get bitchy on Twitter.
If you or I accused the SFA of behaviour like this we would be dismissed as irrelevant but the organisation needs to take action to ensure there are no more accusations of bullying, favouritism, selective-humour-bonding and executives disrespecting officials on Twitter.
Can you imagine what the very same people would be doing today if Neil Lennon had a go at a referee on Twitter?
If you would like to contribute a piece to CQN Magazine email me, celticquicknews@gmail.com.
301 Comments- Pages:
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podium?
yes
sos
hope you are well
first team
Hail hail
on bench
Hail hail
P67
2 bad pennies? o)))
stonecutters 11
SummaofSammi :- Thanks for the invite, the beer sounds good the story even better, I think the best story I heard about Mr Baxter involved him and Puskas? at a party in a Glasgow scheme.
Who controls the British crown?
Who keeps the metric system down?
We do! We do!
Who leaves Atlantis off the maps?
Who keeps the Martians under wraps?
We do! We do!
Who holds back the electric car?
Who makes Steve Gutenberg a star?
We do! We do!
Who robs cave fish of their sight?
Who rigs every Oscar night?
We do! We do!
Lousy peepil management?good enough for lousy peepil.
quonno on 11 April, 2012 at 11:56 said:
????
What petition?….I haven’t been in Greggs in a long time…it’s just all the posts this morning have made me ravenous and there’s nae sausages etc., in the gaff..
btw,I used to live in Winnipeg and there was a shop in Kildonan that imported all sorts of goodies from Ireland…far better than here in Ingerland,and Winnipeg was 4500 miles away!
Now I’ll actually READ the article! HH!
But Paul
We all that the rules are NOT the same when it comes to Neil Lennon…
HH
Saint Stivs on 11 April, 2012 at 12:06 said:
who puts coffee in your tea…
Oaul 67
So we can expect Mr Regan to be disciplined for his remarks about certain referees?
Blantyretim, almost enough for a scramble.
bunburybhoy, aye, true.
hoopeddreams, some chance.
Paul67
An easy step to take would be to publish a summary of reports on match officials.
Give the officials a chance to respond to criticism before publication.
It may mean that we end arguing about the quality of the supervision, of course.
DOH!!!
We all KNOW that should’ve read..
Re. the article. Even more scandalous conduct in the Scottish football world.
Where’s it all going to end? And it seems they don’t care if it all becomes public….move along,nothing to see.
Anyway,I need to EAT!
BT did you get both lots of info I sent?
Ps I’m starving with all the link patter, did a Hun start this? Was it moonbeams?
V
Afternoon Paul et al.
The more I see and hear of Mr Regan the less impressed I am. This may not bother him but it bothers me.
He and his, in my opinion, biased, some may say corrupt, organisation have an opportunity to change my mind in the weeks to come.
Should I be confident this will happen? No, I thought not.
vmhan
yes to all 3…..o))
btw there is a recipe for sausages.. EN is yer man…
Drat-was trying to beat VP :{
Vogue. Miss proper currys. Real pubs, square slice ( can get it here but not nearby). Morning rolls ( god I miss them) real creamy beer, Celtic park
Don’t miss the weather , huns( don’t get many here. :))). )
Err that’s about it
Go to Beach about twice a year, should go more
Watch out whistle-blowers (pun intended!) – spill the beans on the SFA and the CEO will sling mud at you on Twitter!
Shockingly unprofessional by Stewart Regan.
Stewart Regan is now ‘part of the fabric’ of the SFA old Boys Club.
Another in a long line of discredited SFA officials.
When we talk about change in the SFA, this clown has to be included. There will be no progress with him at the helm.
Paul 67
Since the sad passing of Paul McBride QC, I fear for Neil this week.
Hail Hail
kev from previous blog
One of many riots the huns enjoyed over the years this on 1969 Fairs cup semi
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
The second leg back on Tyneside took place 4 days after the last league game of the season, and again was a very tough and tight affair standing at 0-0 at half time. Over 59,000 fans had crammed into St James Park and the entire Gallowgate End (it was used by away fans in those days) was overflowing with an estimated 22,000 thousands Rangers fans. The city had been a sea of Blue and White, with most Rangers fans drinking in the bars and on the streets all day.
At the start of second half the deadlock was finally broken by Newcastle when Jim Scott blasted a brilliant cross-shot into the roof of the net from close range.
On 77 minutes a Jackie Sinclair goal finished off Rangers. Ollie Burton’s free-kick was glanced to Sinclair by Wyn Davies, and Sinclair gleefully slotted the ball into the back of the net.
Following the goal the Gallowgate End erupted into a riot as Rangers fans spilled onto the pitch in an obvious attempt to get the game abandoned. The referre was forced to take the players off the pitch for 17 minutes to allow the Police to restore order and clear the bottles from the pitch. Newcastle then held on for the final minutes playing the game with a wall of Police in front of the Gallowgate End, but sadly the trouble didn’t end there, as the Rangers fans went on the rampage in the city centre after the match smashing shop windows, burning cars and fighting with the police.
Vmhan
Can you send to me again if you have time please. There’s no info when i open just a page opens for a message reply. Thanks
Paul 67
I apologise for the space @12:14
Diddums – CSC
Paul67,
Cronyism and bullying in the SFA??
Quelle suprise!
As for Regan, whilst he seemed to have a decent start in the job, it would appear that he has adapted to his environment by hunkering down and toe-ing the peepul line! Didnt take too long did it?
As for Lenny, its been clear to all of us since he became Celtic Manager that there are a different set of rules for Neil to all the rest.
HAIL! HAIL!
Token
Paul67
Gollum was wheeled out yesterday and after reading his comments, you could see that he actually believes he is a brilliant referee.
Enough said…
The Scotsman (Page one) May 22nd 1969
Rangers’ fans riot in night of violence: over 100 injured
Newcastle was under siege last night as violence erupted in all quarters of the city. Mobs of Rangers’ supporters—their team defeated 2-0—smashed their way through the streets. Police, ambulances and hospitals were swamped with calls for help. More than 100 people had been injured in a stadium melee which resulted in the Fairs Cities Cup-tie against Newcastle United being suspended for 17 minutes.
At midnight, Northumberland Police said that they had made 29 arrests: 24 were Glaswegians. Running fights had broken out from pub to pub. Bedlam came to the Central Station when hundreds of chanting supporters formed a human chain across the road blocking all traffic. As the Scots tumbled out of public-houses waving bottles and glasses in the air, calls for help were being flashed to the Central Police Station at the rate of one a minute. Even the police station was under siege at one time. Dog handlers were sent out to quell the riot.
In one incident, a seven-year-old boy with his father, Mr James Smith, of Nayworth Drive, Westerhope, was set upon by a gang as they waited at a bus stop. The boy was beaten to the ground and Mr Smith was struck about the head. He was left bleeding on the pavement.
The Newcastle hospitals — the General and Royal Victoria Infirmary—were so full patients were also taken to the Queen Elizabeth Hospital, Gateshead. One Rangers supporter was seriously ill with crushed ribs. Hospital staff were trying to discover his identity.
Frogmarched
There were just ten minutes to go in the semi-final at St James’s Park when the stadium became an arena. The referee stopped the game and players were sent to safety in the dressing room as police with dogs clashed with invading Scottish supporters.
Some were frogmarched off. Some had to be helped off. One was carried on a stretcher. St. John ambulance men were kept busy as the casualty list mounted. Two policemen were injured — one was detained in hospital with a neck injury.
The invasion began after Newcastle had taken a 2-0 lead. The Rangers crowd were clearly out to wreck the game and save their team from defeat.
Onslaught
Shortly before half-time about 100 supporters had dashed on to the pitch but were cleared by the police. Later, the referee announced over the loudspeaker system that players would be taken off if the crowd stampeded. That was just what he did when the onslaught came.
And after 17 minutes of chaos —quelled only when marauding fans were confronted by police dogs—the pitch was cleared and play restarted.
An ambulance spokesman said: “The trouble was all from the Rangers supporters, who were drunk before the match started. Most of the injured had cut heads from flying bottles,” he said.
One man had his artificial arm pulled off, it took several minutes before it was found and replaced. Several people had dog bites after they were chased back on to the terraces.
Many casualties were carried from the field, and when the pitch was eventually cleared there was a big heap of cans, bottles and torn national flags behind one goal.
When the field was cleared police lined shoulder-to-shoulder along the by-lines facing the terracing where the trouble started. Police dogs formed a second line and the crowd applauded the return to order.
Some of the injured in Newcastle General Hospital last night were:—David Bell, Ardenly Street, Glasgow; John Smillie, Cumberland Place, Coatbridge, Lanarkshire; Robert Cunnachie, of Glasgow; John Bell, Irvine Road, Kilmarnock; Andrew Rankine, Lloyd Street, Glasgow; David Cain, Glasgow; Alan Turner, Sutton Drive, Newcastle; and John Johnstone, Conston Place, Glasgow.
Tension had begun to build up in the afternoon as thousands of chanting Rangers’ supporters, some of them carrying Orange banners, flooded Newcastle. Two hours before the game three had been arrested—two for drunkenness and one for theft. A public-house window was smashed and two people were taken to hospital after a street brawl.
The tension erupted minutes before the kick-off when Rangers’ fans battered down a gate at the ground. Mounted police fought a fierce battle as supporters surged through the opening at the Gallowgate end.
Two policemen were injured and six ambulances ferried casualties to city hospitals.
Inside the ground six constables tried to stem the stampede without success. Three mounted officers struggled through the crowd to help them. After 15 minutes they managed to block the gate—but not before 300 had got in. Many people were injured as they were trampled under foot.
Ambulances sent to pick up the injured were unable to force a way through the thousands of people converging on the open gate. Within half an hour police had the situation under control.
Ugly incidents
Those fans who did gate-crash threw their tickets over the wall and more trouble developed when people without tickets started fighting for them. One mounted officer was confronted by 500 angry Rangers supporters. His appeals for order were greeted with jeers.
At the Gallowgate end dozens of Rangers supporters tried to clamber into the ground over the walls. One slipped on a spike and another fell on to an electric power wire and fused some lights at the ground.
The match itself was tense, with many fouls and ugly incidents.
More than a dozen policemen lined the platform at Waverley Station for the arrival of the Rangers special from Newcastle early today, but there was no trouble.
Police who travelled on the train for part of the journey said the first part of the trip had been noisy but the passengers had quietened down.
The 1969 Inter-Cities Fairs Cup Semi-Final riots was a serious public disorder incident that took place in the city of Newcastle upon Tyne, England, surrounding the 1968-69 Inter-Cities Fairs Cup semi-final. The May 21 match at St James’ Park, contested between Newcastle United F.C. and Rangers F.C., was marred by multiple disturbances.
For the second leg of the tie, 10,000 ticketless Rangers fans travelled to Tyneside in addition to their 12,000 allocation.
Before the game, supporters charged the gates of the Gallowgate end and burst into the ground. A full-scale riot erupted when Newcastle scored their second goal during the second half. Inebriated Rangers fans began throwing bottles and invaded the pitch in a bid to have the game abandoned. Players retreated to the tunnel for 17 minutes while the Rangers fans ran towards the home fans and police fought to restore order and clear away bottles.
Newcastle went on to win 2-0 but Rangers supporters rioted in the city centre, fighting with police and vandalising property.
Future Rangers manager Willie Waddell, then working as a Daily Express journalist, wrote that he had never been so ashamed or seen anything so frightening
-Lifted from Wiki /EWLM/EWTB,SIMBT.
jc2 on 11 April, 2012 at 12:14 said:
/////////////
Thank you.
I’m sure the ‘sage’ – Tim will enjoy reading your post :o)))
God Bless
Hail Hail
Can we get back to the sausage talk
Craven accused Dallas and his assistant, John Fleming, of bullying tactics.
Phil came out in his blog very strongly backing John Fleming.
http://www.philmacgiollabhain.com/the-man-that-can-save-the-sfa/
I would be interested in reading Phils contribution again but it is not online.
MMMhhhhhhhhhhh……………………..
Hail Hail