Will the SFA discipline Iain Brines?
Will Iain Brines be disciplined?
The referee appeared to have a clear view of the incident as Naismith flashed an elbow at Austin McCann which sent the Dunfermline defender tumbling to the ground.
As promised by Stewart Regan last season the incident was dealt with promptly with Rangers accepting the punishment in good faith.
If Brines, or his assistant referee, did their job properly there would have been a straight red card for the Rangers player and no need for retrospective punishment.
If it had been a one off mistake from Brines it wouldn’t be worth mentioning but if there is one referee in the SPL likely to be at the centre of ridiculous decisions most supporters would put Brines at the top of the list.
Without digging back too far he ‘missed’ Michael Duberry’s double hand ball during the April St Johnstone v Celtic match.
In the first match of the new season he awarded Hibs an indirect free kick when Glenn Loovens kneed the ball back to Lucasz Zaluska. By the time that Brines had caught up with play to overlook the free-kick he had been told of his mistake and quickly arranged a rushed dropped ball out of the way of a Hibs player then swiftly blew the final whistle.
I’d imagine supporters of most clubs will be able to quickly recall howlers from Brines, not just the run of the mill these-things-happen type mistakes but the type that makes you wonder if he’s actually watching the game.
With the new disciplinary system standing up to it’s first test it’s time for the SFA to introduce some fair play to refereeing for the benefit of supporters and officials.
A monthly or even bi-monthly table of referee performances would be very welcome.
As well as informing supporters of the performance of officials it would also provide an incentive for younger up and coming referees. While Brines botches his way through games younger officials are being kept out of the top flight.
Every week at u-19 level there are impressive young referees emerging, capable of keeping up with play and having a dialogue with players and coaches without wanting to be the star of the show.
With Brines clogging up SPL appointments the better younger referees are being frozen out of the top flight leaving the SFA with a very limited pool of referees experienced in handling the top matches which results in Craig Thomson constantly being allocated Celtic’s away matches at Rangers and Hearts.
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