Rangers did the right thing when it was announced on Wednesday that they will be fighting to overturn a four game dugout ban for Derek McInnes. Not just for themselves and for their new boss. But for every manager and every player in the rest of Scottish football. Because what will the game in this country become if we reach a point where everyone in it is too scared to open their mouths or to express an honestly held opinion?
There are many things which make the Scottish game so unique and so special and so attractive to broadcasters with big money to spend and to the audiences beyond our own borders. And, while some people may like to question the quality, the sheer passion and emotion involved are without argument two of its biggest selling points. That’s why so much of the world was watching towards the end of last season when Derek was leading Hearts to within a handful of minutes of what would have been a historic title success. It became an incredible story.
Freedom of expression under threat
So exactly how was Derek supposed to react when he saw a highly controversial VAR decision being made which changed the outcome of a match between Motherwell and Celtic - and seriously hampered his chances of pulling it off? Was he supposed to button his lip and shrug it all off as if he wasn’t really all that bothered? Or should he have been afforded the right to speak from the heart and tell his own supporters and everyone else for that matter, exactly how he is feeling? I know what scenario I prefer. And I’d be astonished if the vast majority of people who care about the game in this country don't see it the same way.
Yes, he used a strong word when he said the decision was ‘disgusting,’. But so what? Everybody has different opinions - that’s the way of the world - just as everyone is entitled to voice their own point of view. I personally like it when a manager or a player comes out and speaks his mind so long as no lines are being crossed in the process. I completely accept there has to be limits and rules applied to what can and what can’t be said. You can’t be allowed to call the integrity of people into question or suggest, without any cast iron proof, that something sinister or untoward is going on. If you do that then you have to be big enough to be prepared to take whatever consequences come your way.
Consequences for Scottish football
But I feel very strongly about this. You must be entitled to express how you feel about any given incident or decision and, in my opinion, that’s all Derek has been guilty of. He’s being punished for doing nothing more than telling people how that penalty award made him feel. And in what world can that be right or fair? Think about this for a second. Is that what we want our game to become? A place where people are denied the right to express their own emotions and thoughts? A place where they are encouraged by the authorities to be less than honest? Or maybe a sport where the main characters - be they managers or players - refuse to give any interviews at all? Because if this ridiculous four game ban is not booted into touch then that’s exactly what is likely to happen. Players will simply not want to be placed in front of the microphones and the cameras. Managers will have to pick over every word that comes out of their mouths. And fans and viewing customers will be getting short changed and denied the chance to hear how their own club feels about various big moments which affect their own daily lives as supporters. How can that possibly be a good thing?
I know there will be fans of other clubs who might think I’m taking this stance because Del is now the manager of my old club. No doubt I’ll be accused of having the old blue tinted specs on - and that’s fine too. It’s fine because I’m allowed to express my opinion just as they are perfectly allowed to disagree with it. That’s life. I’ve lost count of the amount of times I’ve heard a manager say in a post match interview that his team played well - and I’ve thought he must have been watching a different game from the one I’ve just watched. That’s OK too. If that’s how he really feels then that’s up to him. Everyone else can then make their own minds up as to whether he’s talking mince or not.
Impact on Rangers and beyond
But what we can’t create is an environment which makes people so scared that they feel the need to be dishonest when asked for their opinion. Because if Del’s ban is not overturned or, at the very least, reduced on appeal then that’s exactly what we’ll get. And it will impact every club, every manager and every player and fan in Scottish football. From a purely Rangers perspective, yes, there’s no question they’d rather have the new manager on the touchline and in the dressing room rather than watching the first three league games of the season stuck in a seat in the stand. On Wednesday night, for example, he was able to make some tactical tweaks and changes at half time which helped to change the momentum of a friendly match against St Etienne. It wasn’t a sparkling Rangers performance by any standard and there’s clearly a lot of things Derek will be looking to improve ahead of the start of the season at Dundee United next Friday night. But he did his work during the interval and it helped to make sure that his side won the game. That shows the value of being able to communicate directly with the players and Rangers will want him in the thick of it. That’s why they went after him in the first place. But he’s got a good staff behind him who he knows and trusts. He’ll still be more than able to get his message across through them even if he has to keep his distance for the first three games. So that’s not the big issue where this suspension is concerned. It’s about looking after the health of the Scottish game in general. And I truly believe if players and managers are forced to put a zip on their mouths and to hide their true emotions, then football in this country could be creating an ever bigger issue for itself in the long run.
