John Fleming, the new head of referee development at the SFA, beat off four rivals for the job.
Two candidates were from England and the other two were Scottish.
One of the things that seemed to clinch it for Fleming was the excellent feedback from the 27 officials that went to the training camp in Spain.
As was revealed here there were several call offs from senior officials apparently disgusted that Hugh Dallas had been removed from his post in November of last year.
The entire compliment that should have gone to Spain was 36.
The belief among people at the top of the SFA is that John Fleming is a safe pair of hands.
He will certainly continue with the emphasis on fitness and stamina for officials so that they can keep up with the play.
My sources tell me that Fleming was never the referee in an Old Firm match despite being a Grade One official for ten years.
In that sense he has no baggage.
It is good that he is travelling light in his new post.
I wish him well
