Ed Sheeran: multi award-winning singer songwriter, Taylor Swift’s best friend and purveyor of catchy, harmless pop music. Harmless, that is, unless you’re referee Mark Clattenburg.
The English Premier League official has been suspended from this weekend’s fixtures following two breaches of protocol incurred as he raced to catch a Sheeran concert after refereeing West Brom’s home tie against Crystal Palace last weekend.
Professional Game Match Officials Ltd, the governing body for England’s elite referees, states that all officials – the Referee, the two Assistant Referees and the Fourth Official – must travel to and from matches together, to promote integrity and provide security. However, so desperate was Clattenburg to see the diminutive ginger strummer that, like an impatient child on Christmas Eve, he dashed out of The Hawthorns alone to catch the gig. Reports that Clattenburg left clutching a homemade poster comprised of his and Sheeran’s face with the words “MARK 4 ED” inside a sparkly pink heart are thus far unsubstantiated.
Clattenburg compounded his error by accepting a call from Palace manager Neil Warnock while driving to the gig, which goes against guidelines stating that conversations with coaches should be made in the presence of assistants. It is rumoured that Warnock – a huge Sheeran fan himself (we’re making some assumptions here) – phoned the referee so they could practice harmonies together for a future rendition of “The A Team” on Britain’s Got Talent (though The18 must stress that, to-date, we have been unable to corroborate any of this information).
All of which is rather embarrassing for a man considered to be one of the Premier League’s senior match officials. It also, however, casts question marks over the refereeing powers-that-be. After all, where were the draconian punishments when Clattenburg failed to book Craig Dawson for “assaulting” Julian Speroni last weekend, or when he allowed Nani’s bizarre goal against Tottenham, or when he failed to award the most blatant goal that never was in the history of the Premier League?
It seems that, when it comes to judging a referee’s performance, one’s commitment to live music is taken far more seriously than any actual on-pitch errors and omissions.
