Graham Spiers has hit rock bottom by inviting Mike McCurry onto his patreon podcast to demonstrate what a lovely, misunderstood, decent fella he really is.
As an SFA referee McCurry was a member of the extremist Orange Order, anyone wearing a Celtic shirt or even the colour green when McCurry’s friends are marching through Glasgow city centre will know the level of hatred that the Order cultivates.
Covering the Orangefest In June 2015 the Glasgow Times reported:
The organisation, whose existence is based on the military victory by the Protestant King William Of Orange over forces led by the Catholic King James II more than 300 years ago, announced its day of events in Glasgow last autumn.
It has has been billed as an “opportunity to gain an understanding of the cultural heritage and modus operandi of the Orange Lodge as a whole”, with invitations extended to the Catholic Church, as well as the leaders of other faiths and all politicians in the city.
As well as bands, prayers, a Last Night At The Prom-style concert and speeches, academic and journalist Ruth Dudley Edwards will be speaking, along with former top flight football referee Mike McCurry.
During his refereeing career there were numerous fixtures that raised concern about McCurry’s impartiality, in defence his media buddies replied that he was a Minister, a man of God and beyond questioning.
That defence often led to late night visits to the car park at Hampden.
Spiers likes to position himself as the friendly, nice face of the ‘Rangers’ support, a good sound decent type who just happens to support football clubs which act as a rallying point for those that hate Catholics, chanting and celebrating their intolerance at every match.
In 1998 Spiers accompanied Jim Taynor on a luxury weekend to Jersey to celebrate 10 years of Rangers being under the guidance of Dave Murray.
Presenting McCurry as a good egg that is misunderstood confirms the Spiers agenda that all is whiter than white in Scottish football with the wish that those pesky Celtic fans and internet bampots would pipe down and enjoy the excitement of O** F*** jousts governed by officials from Lanarkshire and Glasgow selected by the untouchables inside Hampden.
McCurry’s biggest refereeing outrage didn’t involve Celtic, in May 2008 he reached levels that Beaton, Walsh and Madden could only dream of as he engineered a defeat for Dundee United at Ibrox that prompted Craig Levein into the most honest post-match interview in the history of Scottish football. McCurry’s career was unaffected.
??New Podcast:
In Conversation: Mike McCurry
The former Grade 1 referee recalls:
·Ibrox infamy
·Craig Levein spat
·“It was a stonewall penalty…”
·Martin O’Neill + Walter Smith
·Refereeing bias?
·Scottish refs: Celtic’s complaint
·FaithLISTEN:https://t.co/btciQM2icX
— Graham Spiers (@GrahamSpiers) January 24, 2023
We’d be as well not turning up today, we couldn’t win today.
Andy, that is fine, but he calmly and honestly explains in some detail what happened that day at Ibrox. I was there: VAR would have fixed everything. Mike doesn’t shy away from my Qs about it at all.
— Graham Spiers (@GrahamSpiers) January 25, 2023
Sorry Graham, as a subscriber I enjoy your podcasts, but this is a ridiculous pod, and guest. This individual cheated Scottish football, and Scottish football fans, for the benefit of one club. He should be nowhere near any discussion.
— peter kelly (@pedrok111) January 25, 2023
Hi HG. I sincerely hope I am not “gaslighting” anyone. My aim with my pod is to air and explore every view – popular and unpopular – and give everyone a chance. No agenda, no cancel culture. I’m sorry you’re leaving.?
— Graham Spiers (@GrahamSpiers) January 24, 2023
Didn’t realise you had become a sensationalist troll ? that was excruciating ?
— Stephen (@stevietait) January 24, 2023
Can you let us know why their are so many ex refs going round the after dinner circuit telling stories about cheating and giving one team in particular favourable decisions.
— Paul Paterson (@pablop1306) January 25, 2023
Well done Graham, one of the biggest cheats in the Scottish game???
Faith!? He is a relic from Scotland’s ultra bigoted past and a complete fraud.
— Joey Jo Jo Junior Shabadoo (@Jedbob67) January 25, 2023
Mike McCurry is now a regular guest on The Battle Fever Podcast. pic.twitter.com/OHtPKjvIPc
— Ceres Arabs (@CeresArabs) May 10, 2022
Remember, the @ScottishFA appeals process is made of utterly impartial former refs like Mike McCurry… pic.twitter.com/BPm9fxoZ0u
— DonsTalk.co.uk (@DonsTalk) September 14, 2018
The most laughable part of this is that you genuinely see yourself as some sort of paragon of impartiality who’s open enough to see both sides of a story.
But in truth there’s only one side.
He’s a Rangers supporter who abused his position. NOT one of life’s good guys.— Cautious Dave (@cautiousdave) January 25, 2023
One of the spokesman at Orangefest who had an affair with a young parishioner. Nice one Graham
— dominic??????????????????? (@dominick1888) January 25, 2023
Predator Rev provides comfort and emotional support.https://t.co/rmA7JzTIJG
— Joe McHugh (@videocelts) January 25, 2023
The Sinister Minister.
— Brian (@Neilstonbhoy) January 24, 2023
This was the guy who you insisted couldn’t be dishonest because he was a baptist minister and was then found shagging a teenager in disguise Hampden car park.
Also shown on video starting a service with Simply the Best (because God is the best), apparently unaware of the optics.
— One Star Means More (@theceltsarehere) January 25, 2023
You’re giving air time to a man who openly admits he was one sided and proud of the decisions he made regarding his boyhood team, a fact he’s stated on many a dinner night. The Dundee Utd game at home was one of the most corrupt refereeing displays in history. Poor from you.
— Chalky (@Chalky8hoy) January 25, 2023
You really need to take a long hard look in the mirror , trying to herald yourself as the great impartial fella but in down to earth fashion you give platforms to ex ref who like many others were truly part of a bias agenda try asking the real questions as to honestly WHY ?
— BOXER (@boxertoye) January 25, 2023
Perhaps next week he could get Stewart Regan to discuss the Five Way Agreement and ask serious questions about the collapse of RFC, the dishonest awarding of a UEFA Licence to RFC, the attempted manipulation and bullying of clubs to parachute a new club into the Premier league, or even the pre determined outcome of the Nimmo Smith enquiry into a decade of illegally registered players.
Oh and finally ask why the guy that allowed those illegal registrations, and who was also involved in the Jorge Cadette registration scandal, remained in post.
Come on Graham if you really want to ask the tough question on you go.
Aye , good old Graham the bastion of impartiality in Scottish Football
I hope he’s a good after-dinner speaker, because he was about as good as an accountant as he was as a fitba’ referee, a minister and a husband…
I think Spiers needs to have a re-think about his guest policy.
https://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/news/scottish-news/love-rat-referee-mike-mccurry-1058833
Editor: Spiers knew exactly what he was doing with his guest Rev McCurry.
I agree with every single point made on this thread… I’ll add another Mr Speirs wants back to Scotland this is just the start of him laying the ground work for the journey back up the motorway
Never understood why Spiers was seemingly regarded as the ‘best of the bunch’ of SMSM football ‘journalists’ in the past.
Admittedly, the bar was low – if not on the ground!
In my humble opinion, when it comes to football related matters, Spiers has always come across as better spoken, a better writer – but still not significantly any better than the likes of English or even Jackson in the quality of his coverage.
He always tried to play the ‘reasonable’, open minded writer – yet was noticebaly posted missing in 2011/12 along with the other weak, obedient scribblers.
…but this podcast has probably achieved good clickbait numbers for Spiers.