Andy Walker: Refs should play by the rules ..once they get to know them.

Byline: Andy Walker 

ONE of Scotland's best referees Kenny Clark said recently that players don't know the rules of the game.

He even went so far as to suggest that players and managers should actually referee a game for 90 minutes to give them some sort of understanding of how difficult their job can be. There might be some truth in what he says but let me turn his statement on its head.

I honestly feel some referees don't know the game or appreciate how ridiculous some of their decisions can be.

Maybe if they were part of ateam for 90 minutes desperately trying to win a crucial match they'd appreciate what players are up against.

A couple of recent examples showed how out of touch even the sport's supposedly most accomplished officials are.

Just the other week the eyes of the world were trained on the Stade Louis III as Monaco took on Chelsea in the most unlikely Champions League semi-final. And 24 hours later Porto and Deportivo La Coruna squared up in the Estadio Do Dragao for a place in the final of Europe's biggest and best competition.

Yet I thought both games were marred by incompetent refereeing.

Monaco and Chelsea had endeared themselves to neutrals with their magnificent brand of attacking football in knocking out Real Madrid and Arsenal in the previous round.

But instead of a game that matched the occasion the focus of attention afterwards was sadly on the scourge of football today an embarrassing exhibition of cheating and play- acting by a high profile player.

It wasn't Claudio Ranieri's bizarre substitutions that everyone was talking about when looking back on the match. Nor the brilliance of Monaco strikers Fernando Morientes and Ludovic Guily, who were both instrumental in giving Prince Albert's favourite side a first leg lead.

No. Everyone I spoke to the following day couldn't believe the antics of Chelsea's Claude Makelele. His unnecessary over reaction when tapped on the head by Andreas Zikos convinced referee Urs Meier to send the Monaco player off.

If ever a player was guilty of blatant play acting and cheating then it was Makelele. His behaviour was an absolute disgrace.

But the ref's reaction made it so much worse. UEFA insist they'll stamp out diving, cheating and the feigning of injury. When Makelele went down it was time for strong refereeing.

I was pleading for the Swiss official to take action and when I saw him reach for the red card I thought, at last, here's a player about to get the ultimate sanction.

Unbelievably, Meier chose to send Zikos off and only booked Makelele.

Asa former professional my blood was boiling just watching this in my own home. I was enraged by the antics of Makelele in trying to con the referee.

Had it happened in this week's second leg Zikos would have missed the biggest game of his career simply because another professional saw fit to feign injury.

What's that got to do with the referee you might say. Well, either he's totally incompetent or what I really suspect he doesn't fully appreciate the actions of players.

Zikos brushed another player's head and there was a complete over-reaction on Makelele's part.

Every player I've spoken to thought the red card was going the other way. But no. The refs' rule is: 'He raised his hands so he has to go.'

Pity the official didn't see Marcel Desailly elbow Morientes, although to be fair UEFA have since banned the Chelsea defender for three games.

It seems that in referees' eyes an outrageous two-footed tackle designed to put a player out of the game can be ignored. But if you raise your hands you have to go. It's pathetic. In other words, it's OK to break bones and rupture ligaments but whatever you do don't label a player a cheat.

Similarly, Deportivo's Jorge Andrade was sent off by German referee Merkus Merk the following night for a playful kick at his ex-Porto teammate Deco with absolutely no malice intended.

I'm amazed referees can look at these incidents and view them as violent conduct yet tackles like the one by Romania's Ganea on Scotland's John Kennedy can go unpunished.

Will Makelele be punished? No. UEFA say the ref saw the incident and dealt with it accordingly. That he made a mess of it doesn't seem to count which is part of the problem. Referees are never wrong.

For example, no matter what happens in Scotland Donald McVicar, the SFA's Head of Refereeing, will stand by and support the ref. Tohim they're infallible. And that's wrong. By all means give them support but when they've made a mistake where's the harm in owning up?

And a mistake is not swearing during a game. Stuart Dougal, another one of Scotland's best referees, was severely censured for uttering the f*** word at Firhill. Give me strength.

I wonder when the SFA and UEFA will learn. Do they not recognise every player will chance his arm in a game, every player will try to gain an edge and every player cheats in some way.

That's the reality. The problem is in dealing with it. Instead of being over-officious in clamping down on trivial matters such as players tugging at an opponent's jersey or looking to caution those who celebrate a goal by taking their top off UEFA could have sent a clear message that blatant play-acting will not be tolerated. A six-game European ban is what Makelele deserved. At the very least.

First of all, the player would think twice about doing it again. And maybe more importantly his club having to do without his services for a considerable period would take positive steps to discourage others from acting in a similar way.

I've been accused of condoning cheating because I said I understand why players go down in the box to try to win penalties.

It's worthwhile pointing out I was never booked for diving or cheating because I believe I never did. But I think I understand players' actions.

Let me be quite clear. I openly admit to going down in the box numerous times in my career in the hope of winning penalties. There's nothing wrong with that.

Crucially, I never went down in the box when no one had touched me. That's cheating and that's the difference.

Whenever I was clumsily challenged by a defender in the box I always felt I wasn't obliged to take an extra touch or adjust my stride.

It simply wasn't my job to stay on my feet as long as possible after being fouled.

Would anyone applaud my sportsmanship if I played on after an ungainly challenge but lost the chance of a goal? Not a chance. And defenders know that better than anyone.

Football is not like golf where etiquette plays a big part. If I thought for a second that every player played by the rules I'd do the same.

So is the defender who blatantly hauls down an opponent homing in on his team's goal a hero, a villain, a cheat ... or is he just acting in a professional manner?

The answer is that it depends on who is viewing the incident. To his own fans he's a hero because he's denied the opposition a clear goalscoring opportunity.

He's a villain to neutral observers and a cheat to the opposing fans.

Bizarrely, to his team-mates and manager he's acted in a thoroughly professional manner.

What about the defender who wraps his arms round your body at free-kicks and corners? Is he a cheat? Of course he is.

Most professional players accept that bone-crushing challenges are part of the deal.

It's a physical game and the truth is there are some dirty b******s out there.

However, feigning an injury to get someone sent off as Makelele demonstrated is surely punishable by a competent official and, if not, by football's governing body.

That's their job. If only they knew the game.