Goal.com

Goal.com profiles the 12 referees who will be in charge in Poland and Ukraine. Here we take a closer look at Scotsman Craig Thomson

PROFILE

Scot Craig Thomson took up refereeing at the age of just 16 and has steadily worked his way up through the ranks to be involved at the very peak of the profession, having been selected to officiate at a major international competition for the first time.

Thomson, who will turn 40 during the course of the tournament, is by no means lacking in experience. His first international match came over eight years ago when Norway beat Northern Ireland 4-1 in Belfast, though the encounter he is perhaps best remembered for Italy’s short-lived Euro 2012 qualifying match in Serbia, which was abandoned because of severe unrest in the terraces.

Later in the same qualifying competition, he would oversee France’s crucial 1-1 draw with Bosnia in Paris; a result that came via a controversially-awarded penalty in a match les Bleus needed to take something from to ensure their place in Poland and Ukraine.

CRAIG THOMSON | Scotland

SEASON STATS Games 37 Yellow Cards 128 Red Cards 12 REFEREE FILE Date of Birth 20/6/1972 Refereeing style Will apply advantage rule, strict with cards Biggest match Euro 2012 qualifying Serbia v Italy

He has become known for his strict officiating, finding himself at the centre of a storm when he sent off Xabi Alonso and Sergio Ramos when Real Madrid travelled to Ajax in the Champions League in 2010, and receiving the ire of Jose Mourinho in doing so. Both players were subsequently adjudged to have been fishing for a second yellow card, meaning that they would be suspended for a meaningless group game, rather than the first match of the knockout phases.

“The sendings-off came after an easy game where the referee has shown some strange yellows,” the Portuguese hit out after the match.

“They are cards that I don’t like. It was an easy game to control. Ajax made a lot of fouls and for the first from Ramos he was shown a yellow card.”

	THOMSON'S SUPPORTING TEAM
Assistant Ref 1	Alasdair Ross
Assistant Ref 2	Derek Rose
Assistant Ref 3	Graham Chambers (Standby)
Additional Assistant	Willie Collum
Additional Assistant	Euan Norris

Domestically, the professional lawyer, who specialises in construction, has grown used to criticism, and was involved in a one-week strike soon after the Real Madrid incident in an attempt to protect the integrity of Scottish referees, who had been accused by Celtic manager Neil Lennon of adopting a stance against his side.

Paisley-born Thomson has taken charge of numerous Old Firm clashes between Rangers and Celtic – notoriously fierce affairs – and has not shied away from controversy, sending two players off as the Gers defeated St Mirren in the 2010 League Cup final.

A year later, he would then overrule the award of a penalty to Rangers in the final of the same competition, drawing criticism from then manager Walter Smith, who suggested that the official’s actions had been “dangerous”.

He was also criticised following the 2011-12 Scottish Cup final between Hearts and Hibs after awarding a penalty to the Jam Tarts for a challenge that appeared to occur outside the area.

Nevertheless, the referee remains a respected figure and enhanced his reputation after donating his £1,000 fee from that final to the Hospice that cared for his late mother.

Despite courting controversy with the likes of Mourinho, Thomson is a referee highly thought of at Uefa, and as such he has been granted a number of high-profile encounters over the course of the 2011-12 season.

The sport enthusiast, who particularly enjoys cycling, golf and squash, took charge of no less than five Champions League encounters over the campaign, including the round of 16 first-leg clash between Bayer Leverkusen and Barcelona, and also officiated Atletico Madrid’s Europa League semi-final first-leg victory over Valencia in April.

With a wealth of big-game experience now under his belt, the Scot travels to Eastern Europe in the summer well equipped to deal with the rigours of top-level competition, and the criticism that inevitably comes with it.