Willie Wonky
The agenda post the Glasgow Derby was to major on the referee. That being the case, I feel empowered to give Collum the CBN treatment!
It is not a unique perspective to say Collum seems to lack any empathy with the players and indeed the sport being played. He seems to prefer a very cold distance with the players. This rather robotic style can probably be tolerated providing the majority of decisions are fair and accurate.
So, putting my personal feelings to one side, how did Oor Wullie get on with the big calls?
The Crime Count
Here is the overall Crime Count table.
This is the second highest Disciplinary Points racked up against Celtic this season. Hearts’ 35 will take some catching. Last season’s high was 36 by St Johnstone in the 0-0 at Celtic Park.
Celtic’s 21 is also a season high which is surprising given how little Celtic were under pressure and the lack of any bad fouls.
The Big Decisions
Most of the post-match noise centred on the lead up to Celtic’s winner. It was claimed that Rogic had fouled Jack in an edge of box clash prior to the fast break that resulted in Ntcham’s decider.
In real time I thought it could have been a foul to The Rangers. My son alerted me to Rogic’s leg contacting Jack as he came down, potentially causing him to lose balance although he seemed to land awkwardly on his ankle.
The ex-English Premier League referee Dermott Gallagher, in a regular review of contentious decisions on Sky Sports, pointed out that Jack jumped into Rogic which was the original foul action. On looking at it again he is absolutely spot on.
Collum was very close and decided to give nothing. I was surprised at the time, but this seems a rare but welcome example of a nuanced call from Collum. It could have gone either way depending on which action your eyes picked up on. Certainly not a major injustice.
On 25 minutes, the officials collectively missed McGregor kicking out behind him to a prone Ajer after an aerial challenge. If you have done Shotokan karate, you’ll know the Ushiro-Geri. It is a particularly vicious strike and very difficult to defend even if you are not laid prone. Studs into the hip joint from such a kick would have been very painful. It was a clear red card offence. There is no more that needs saying.
Other Decisions
Collum’s bad luck started on the 3rd minute. Despite looking at the situation from behind, he missed Lafferty planting his foot onto Lustig’s prone ankle.
As can be seen, Lafferty is perfectly balanced and in control. It wasn’t an out of control accident. The Northern Irishman was allowed a further 3 fouls by the 30th minute for no punishment.
By the 38th minute the two strikers in Blue had racked up 9 fouls between them for no sanction. Morelos was finally booked for his 6th offence.
Collum’s ill luck continued when dealing with Celtic “infractions”. In the 10th minute, Brown slid in, all on the deck, to try and scoop the ball from Lafferty. Showing balletic dexterity, the ex-Hearts player leapt out of the way before rolling around holding seemingly battered legs.
Unfortunately for Collum there was no contact at all. Nevertheless, Brown was immediately booked and played 80 minutes on a yellow. An experienced referee can surely read the players actions?
It got worse for Collum in the 36th minute when Edouard, running towards goal, was nudged in the back by Morelos. Losing balance, he fell into Jack, the Frenchman’s foot landing on Jacks ankle. Another Celtic yellow card. I could sympathise with the whistler as this was difficult to pick up at first viewing.
The final controversy arrived in the 85th minute as another quick Celtic break saw Ntcham release Christie towards goal. Christie cut inside Goldson who put an arm across his chest, briefly. Christie fell over and Collum awarded a free kick on the edge of the area and booked an irate Goldson. This seemed an exaggerated fall from Christie for me with the contact such as it was not commensurate with the falling action. I would not have complained about a card for diving. I am not sure why Christie did not run in on goal.
Conclusion
It is a tactic as old as football to complain about the referee when slipping 7 points off the league lead, and 4 behind your city rivals.
On this occasion however, it seems Celtic were on the rough end of most of the key decisions. If it were the other way around I can assure you I’d say so. For what it is worth.