TWO Edinburgh referees, Jim Fleming and Ray Megson, remain on
Scotland's international panel. But Ken McCartney, the Hawick referee,
has been deposed by Anglo-Scot David Leslie, writes Bill McMurtrie.
Fleming, the Boroughmuir referee who officiated in the 1987 and 1991
World Cup tournaments, was confirmed again as the best of the Scots when
he was named on Saturday to take charge of the England v France match at
Twickenham in 12 days' time -- his sixteenth international. Megson and
Leslie will be with him as touch judges, with the Edinburgh Wanderer
officially designated as reserve referee.
Bill Hogg, the Scottish Rugby Union secretary, explained that they
were specifically listed in 1-2-3 order as Fleming, Megson, and Leslie.
The ratings, though, could change by the time the SRU have to appoint
the referee and touch judges for the Ireland v France match to be played
at Lansdowne Road on February 20.
Megson has an international appointment further ahead than that. The
SRU named him as Scotland's referee for the World Cup Sevens at
Murrayfield in April.
McCartney's demotion is as much a surprise as Leslie's return to the
top flight. The only plausible explanation is that the SRU's referees
committee did not consider the Borderer to be fully fit after a recent
leg-muscle injury.
Leslie was downgraded from the international group a year ago. Before
then the SRU had had a panel of five -- Fleming, Brian Anderson, Megson,
McCartney, and Leslie -- but the numbers had to be reduced to three
because of a ruling by the Five Nations' Championship committee. By
then, Anderson, who, like Fleming, took part in the two World Cup
tournaments, had retired.
Despite omission from
the international panel, McCartney remains among the SRU's top six,
and Eddie Murray, the Greenock Wanderers referee, has been promoted to
that number. So has Megson's club colleague, John Bacigalupo, who will
do the England B v France B match at Leicester a week on Friday, the
evening before the countries' Twickenham international.
Those six, officially graded as A+, were also named on Saturday. It
was the first time the SRU had announced such a group, though it is
known that earlier this season Lorn Crerar, the Glasgow High/ Kelvinside
referee, and Chuck Muir, from Langholm, were in the six ahead of Murray
and Bacigalupo. Crerar, however, has only recently returned to
refereeing after injury whereas Muir had to hand over the whistle at
half-time in a district match in recent weeks.
On Saturday, too, Bacigalupo, Fleming, and McCartney were named to
make up a reserve pool for the World Cup Sevens, with Leslie listed as a
stand-by.
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