I have also seen him passing verdict on referees in a regular column in the Sun of all places. Now, I don't know if he actually writes it or not, how heavily it is edited and/or spiced up, but I dare say he has a reasonable earn out of it! I have some sympathy with referees who have served at the highest level feeling like they are now free from the shackles placed on them when officiating and speaking out more freely, it must be very tempting and given some extraordinary lacks of support in some cases (not his, with ref to his illness by the way) I imagine they feel little loyalty to the job, the governing body or the profession.
However; it is bordering on criminal, the complete lack of loyalty it shows to former colleagues, serving officials at all levels and the 'brotherhood' if you like, of refereeing. We've all been there; you're watching a local game with mates, or supporting your young nephew at u11s or something; if I can politely decline to comment on the performance of an inexperienced parks refs when they make questionable calls, replying to mates and family with only 'maybe he had a different angle/view' when I actually think they've dropped a b*****k, I fully expect someone in the public eye such as him, to bloody well do the same. Especially, when up until very recently, he would of expected the same of them and considered them friends and/or colleagues. Very, very poor in my view.
