Hugh Dallas, the former SFA referee, admits he cannot wait to start his new job as Head Referee in the Greek Super League after being branded "The Highlander of Arbitration" in his new homeland.
The controversial former Grade One official was surprisingly headhunted for the £250,000-a-year post by the Greek top flight last week and will start his new job next week and said he is looking forward to a new beginning, despite the many problems that surround Greek football.
Dallas said: "I am fully aware that suspicion among referees is the order of the day here. I'm not a magician, but I will step by step do the work entrusted on to me and uphold fair refereeing in Greece.
"I love this profession and money comes second to me. I know about some of the issues in Greece and my biggest worry in football is players who cheat by diving.
"They are getting increasingly sophisticated at doing this and some clubs even practice it in training. It's extremely difficult to control.
"I've refereed Greek teams 12 times in my career and, although I don't remember all the results, I remember the weather in all of them. I know this job will be a lot of work, but I am looking forward to it immensely."
Dallas retired from refereeing in 2005 having officiated at two World Cups. He was appointed head of referee development at the SFA, before he was dismissed over the "Popegate" email scandal.
FIFA have banned the former Greece coach Fernando Santos for eight international matches for verbally abusing match officials at the World Cup. Santos, a 59-year-old Portuguese, was sent from the dug-out after extra time of Greece's last-16 match against Costa Rica. The match finished 1-1 and Costa Rica went on to win on penalties.
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