Sometimes the only way lawyers can sate their thirst for applying rules is by taking extra jobs where they get to apply more rules.
Forth Electrical Services in-house counsel Craig Thomson, who last night refereed Portugal’s dramatic 3-2 win over Denmark, is an example of this phenomenon.
The problem is finding enough time to fit everything in: Thomson’s rise to the top of international refereeing follows his 2008 decision to trade his job as an associate at Edinburgh corporate law firm Maclay Murray & Spens for his current legal role, which he does just two days a week in order to concentrate on football.
Judging by this recent interview, Thomson seems over the moon about making the Euros, where he is no doubt giving 110%, although I detected a parrot-like sickness in him about the Scottish football team’s failure to qualify for the tournament…
The 40 year-old is the most high profile of a number of British solicitors who double up as football referees. Others include Brechin Tindal Oatts chairman Willie Young, who has since retired as a FIFA referee, and Berwins associate – and curent FA ref – Edward Taylor.