ALEXANDER Pope, in his poem Essay on Criticism, opined: to err is human; to forgive, divine.

It’s a flowery 18th century way of saying that everyone is allowed to make mistakes and, when they do, it’s actually okay.

Old Popey was smarter than most and knew his way around a couplet, Shakespeare is the only writer to appear more often in the Oxford Book of Quotations, but he may have had second thoughts about penning such famous words had he been around long enough to watch Scottish football and in particular the performances of our referees.

These human beings, divine or otherwise, are simply not allowed to make mistakes and as for forgiveness, well you can forget all about that.

This brings me to Craig Thomson, regarded as Scottish football’s best referee, whose real mistake during Sunday’s League Cup final between Motherwell and Celtic was to be fallible. Send him to the tower.

Early on in the game, Motherwell defender Cedric Kipre attempted a tackle on Celtic’s Moussa Dembele. He went for the ball but his timing was well off and studs connected with his opponent’s ankle with some force.

Kipre didn’t mean it. Why would he deliberately commit such an obvious foul in what was the biggest match of his career knowing full well that it would result in at best an early booking? It was a mistake.

Dembele was fortunate to be able to carry on, his assailant even more so because had Thomson spotted the connection, he would reached for his red card. It was that bad.

But the referee didn’t see the foul. Not because, as the moon howlers would have it, he’s part of a masonic conspiracy, perhaps the worst of all conspiracies given how many trophies currently sit at the top of Kerrydale Street, but because in that split-second he felt Kipre got the ball.

It’s nothing sinister, certainly not worth any basement dweller churning out a 3000 word blog, which any psychiatrist would have a field day with, asking why everyone is out to get their team because Celtic are the embodiment of everything that is Protestantly challenged.

Celtic, by the way, won the final. They did so because Kipre, that man again, got himself in a bit of a muddle and allowed Scott Sinclair to get the wrong side of him, put an arm around the player who collapsed to the Hampden turf in the style of a wardrobe full of wet duffle coats.

Thomson was ideally positioned and awarded a penalty – which it probably was – and having done so had to send off the Motherwell man. It was soft and red cards in those circumstances are usually harsh. Dembele scored and the game was over.

Motherwell's manager Stephen Robinson, players and supporters were not happy and most could see why. But there were Celtic fans who told them to dry their eyes because what was done was done.

Before sending out numerous tweets on why Kipre wasn’t sent off in a match their team were victorious

Of course, had Motherwell been awarded the exact same penalty then I am sure most Celtic supporters, while disappointed, would point out Thomson was only applying the rules. Ahem.

Football is played at such a speed these days that it’s actually too much for one man in the middle of it all. Referees need more help from his assistants, the clue is in the name, and that means the guys running the lines, the one standing beside the dugouts and those chancers on the by-line who literally do nothing.

Also, why the game doesn’t use the technology which exists is utterly baffling.

My fear is fewer and fewer will want to become a ref given all they have to put up with, some of which goes way beyond any line of acceptance.

Refereeing is an almost impossible job which isn’t going to get easier any day soon. And, yet, the culture in football of blaming everything on the officials has never changed.

Thomson was just doing his job. It maybe wasn’t his best day but let’s give the guy a break, like yer man Alexander said. Although with surname like his he wouldn’t, of course, be allowed anywhere near a whistle…

And Another Thing

MY goodness but Stevie Clarke is a stern chap.

The still relatively new Kilmarnock manager didn't miss his players after Sunday's home defeat to Aberdeen.

"The start of the game was disgraceful. It's nothing to do with the game plan," he said.

"It's about the attitude of the players who went onto the pitch."

He then told an interviewer that "he'd better ask the players" as to why their performance, especially at the start, was so poor.

Clarke is a bit on the dour side at the best of times but this was something else.

At least the Kilmarnock fans heard as bit of straightforward honesty for once.

I have to say, I rather like the cut of Clarke's jib.