Collum to referee Edinburgh derby

adamhigginsuk
Aug 12, 2014
2 min read

Man in the middle: Collum will oversee his fourth Edinburgh derby when the two capital rivals meet at Tynecastle in the second tier (Picture from SNS Group)

WILLIE Collum will take charge of Sunday's Edinburgh derby between Hearts and Hibernian in the Scottish Championship.

The 35-year-old will be the man in the middle as two of the promotion contenders go head-to-head on the second weekend of the 2014-15 season.

He will be assisted by linesmen Willie Conquer and Gavin Harris while John Beaton will be the fourth official at Tynecastle.

It is the fourth time Collum will referee a fixture involving the fierce rivals from the capital, who are meeting for the first time since they were both relegated from the Premiership last season.

The Fifa Elite Category official made his derby debut in November 2010 in a 2-0 win for Hearts at Easter Road.

He then oversaw a keenly-fought 1-1 draw at Easter Road in August 2012 and the New Year showdown at Tynecastle in 2013, which ended in a goalless stalemate.

Collum is no stranger to receiving high-profile appointments having handled several Old Firm derbies and Champions League matches.

Domestically, he has also officiated the finals of the 2012 League Cup and 2013 Scottish Cup as well as numerous cup semi-finals.

The Glasgow-born whistler handled 46 games in all competitions last season - which culminated in a dramatic second leg of the Premiership play-off between Hibernian and Hamilton Accies.

He brandished a massive total of 130 yellows and 16 red cards, as well as awarding 12 penalties.

Collum has already refereed two games this season - Dundee's 4-0 win over Peterhead in the first round of the Scottish League Cup and Dundee United's 3-0 victory over Aberdeen in the Premiership last Sunday.

The Religious Education teacher has been refereeing since the age of 14 and has been a regular in the Scottish top-flight since his promotion to a Category One official in 2005.

His experience will stand him in good stead for what is expected to be an explosive encounter after both sides won their opening league games last weekend.

Hibs edged past Livingston 2-1 on Saturday as goalkeeper Mark Oxley scored the winner before Hearts snatched an astonishing 2-1 victory against title favourites Rangers on Sunday with a stoppage-time goal at Ibrox.

The Edinburgh derby also took place on the second week of the season at Tynecastle a year ago with Hearts claiming a narrow 1-0 win in a game refereed by Craig Thomson.

The 12:30 BST kick-off on 17 August will be screened live on Sky Sports.