Scotsman Shame
For any referee put in charge of the most volatile and contentious fixture in the Scottish game it is an anxious time as they come under the spotlight.
Highlighting an officials religion however is new ground but not untypical of the Scotsman who could hardly hide their contempt for Artur Boruc blessing himself before matches.
On one occasion they devoted their entire front page to a picture of Boruc blessing himself at Ibrox and produced a heavily critical editorial to the matter.
Turning to tomorrow’s match it’s Collum’s religion that is under scrutiny- can we expect the same depth of investigation into the religion of other referee’s given their first Celtic-Rangers fixture in future?
The Scotsman states: “It is more than a little ironic that a teetotal religious education teacher has been placed in charge of proceedings this weekend.
“Collum is employed as an RE teacher at Cardinal Newman High School in Bellshill. His faith even saw him feature in a Sunday newspaper earlier this year as, prompted by the kind of risible internet supporter conspiracy which still lays bare the worst elements of the Old Firm rivalry, he was forced to defend the small cross he has attached to his referee’s whistle.
“It’s because I’m a Christian person,” Collum was quoted as saying. “I don’t believe anyone could question my honesty. I’m stunned.”
It’s very doubtful that today’s article was instigated by a sports journalist, more likely someone in the news department wishing to delve excitedly into the matter.
It’s quite a common feature of so called quality newspapers to highlight issues then distance themselves by describing it as an internet matter or something that other newspapers have highlighted overlooking their own involvement.
Typical of this is rumour mill or transfer speculation round-ups which is basically bringing attention to stories that other newspapers have run with ie; stories that they failed to cover.
While Collum is the subject of today’s interest Artur Boruc is now employed in Florence where his pre-match ritual won’t be treated with the same high brow level of scorn that he encountered in Scotland.
In December 2006 The Scotsman turned their full attention on the Celtic keeper ignoring an incredible decision to deny Celtic a penalty when Neil Lennon was virtually chopped in half by Stevie Smith with Celtic leading 1-0 at the time.
“ARTUR Boruc, the Celtic goalkeeper, was at the centre of fresh controversy last night after blessing himself in front of Rangers supporters during yesterday’s Old Firm game,” wailed the Edinburgh based newspaper.
“Television footage showed the Polish internationalist making the sign of the cross as he walked towards his goal at the Copland Road end of Ibrox Stadium before the start of the second half,” The Scotsman continued highlighting an act witnessed in almost all continental football matches.
Hiding their own disapproval of Boruc behind others The Scotsman added: “Last night, a Rangers fans’ spokesman accused the Celtic goalkeeper of trying to incite the crowd by blessing himself during yesterday’s game – which ended 1-1 – and called on the Parkhead club to warn Boruc about his behaviour.
Any fans spokesman with those sort of views really needs to be questioned on what is so offensive about a person crossing themselves.
John Macmillan, the secretary of the Rangers Supporters Association, told The Scotsman: “In normal circumstances, there is nothing wrong with someone blessing themselves but in today’s environment, it is not advisable to do it at a football match.
“I was at the game and although I didn’t see him doing it, I did hear a roar from the Copland Road end before the start of the second half and it was pretty obvious what Boruc had done.
“A couple of the guys who get on my supporters’ bus said they had paid particular attention to him before the game started and they said he hadn’t blessed himself in front of the Celtic supporters. If that’s the case, you really have to ask why he did it at the Rangers end.”
Unfortunately factually incorrect but never mind, lets get on with the Boruc bashing.
McMillan added courtesy of The Scotsman: “These things shouldn’t really mean an awful lot, but if a player is out to provoke other fans, someone has to do something about it. It should be clamped down upon and it’s time the Celtic management advised him not to do this type of thing.”
Keeping the story going The Scotsman then decided to waste police time adding: “A spokeswoman for Strathclyde Police would not comment on whether any supporters had complained about Boruc’s action. “No offence or crime has been committed,” she said.
Some sanity at last but The Scotsman wasn’t going to let that put them off adding: “A Celtic source insisted Boruc had blessed himself before both halves.
Finally in an attempt to bring some balance to their article they turned to Peter Kearney of the Catholic Church who told them: “It’s my understanding that it’s common practice for Artur Boruc to bless himself before the start of each half. We’re pleased with the reassurances we’ve had that blessing yourself is not deemed to be offensive in any way.”
It’s not known if the Polish Embassy, the European Union or the United Nations were asked for their thoughts on Boruc blessing himself in a backward little country.
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