SPL referee Mike McCurry filmed singing Rangers anthem in church
Sep 21 2008 By Steve Dinneen

THIS is SPL referee Mike McCurry belting out Rangers anthem Simply The Best in front of his stunned congregation.

Video footage shows the controversial whistler leading a chorus of the song in his church - the day after the Ibrox team beat Celtic in a crucial Old Firmgame. The Tina Turner hit is a huge favourite among Rangers fans and the club play it over the public speaker system before games.

The film shows the Baptist minister donning a giant foam hand.

McCurry, 44, was at the centre of controversy in May after a series of blunders in a match.

Dundee United manager Craig Levein accused him of bias after his team lost 3-1 to Rangers.

Then his affair with 21-year-old Sunday school teacher Victoria Mathers was exposed in June.

He went to ground for two months but returned to top-flight action three weeks ago and today takes charge of a match between Kilmarnock and Celtic.

The video shows him handing out red and yellow giant foam hands to the congregation at Mosspark Baptist church in Glasgow.

He jokes he had always wanted to send a football player off in the last match he referees while wearing an outsized glove.

He introduces the "last hymn", saying: "Can you put the words up on the screen please?

"We'll sing this then we'll say closing prayer. If any of you are going through a hard time, I'd be delighted to pray with you.

"The bottom line is, this is a great church and we've got a great God. He's simply the best.

"Most of you will know the tune - the words might be a little bit different. We're going to stand, point, sing, clap, do whatever.

"And we're going to tell Jesus we think he's simply the best."

The video then shows McCurry dancing and clapping his hands as he sings along. He cups his hand to his ear, mimicking the famous "I can't hear you" goal celebration used by footballers.

The congregation applaud when the song finishes but many look bemused during the performance.

One assembly member said: "Everyone knows it's a big Rangers song and there were a few raised eyebrows for him to be giving it laldy the day after an Old Firm game.

"He did make clear it was praising God but to be asked to sing that song on that day did surprise people a little bit.

"The lyrics change in church to 'He touches my heart' instead of 'I'm stuck on your heart' and I'm sure there was no malice intended."

A member of McCurry's assembly said the classic anthem was played on March 30 - the morning after Rangers had beaten Celtic 1-0 at Ibrox.

The match was widely seen as a title clincher for Gers but they were overtaken by Celtic in the race to the SPL title.

Yesterday there were no replies to calls to McCurry's mobile phone or to the church

offt that reminds me of how cringeworthy churchgoing can be some times.

I stopped buying the Hunday Mail a long time ago.Which game is McCurry at?

I thought he was doing our with Killie

I wouldn't even call it journalism.

6 months ago this tape appears on their desk and their first thought was "save this for a time when we can stir it up as much as possible"

I wouldn't even call it journalism.

6 months ago this tape appears on their desk and their first thought was "save this for a time when we can stir it up as much as possible"

I've e-mailed the journalist in question. Here's what I sent:

Dear Sir

I'm writing to vent my disgust at your article in today's paper about referee Mike McCurry and his singing of what you call, a Rangers anthem, during one of his services.

The first thing I am completely bemused at is the fact that this incident was filmed on March 30th, you claim in your article, yet you wait until the morning of an SPL match between Kilmarnock and Celtic, which McCurry is officiating to print this story. My question to that is, are you purposely trying to stir up Celtic fans in anticipation of this match this afternoon?

As for the song itself, it is a song played at Ibrox as everybody knows, but I think you'll find it was a hit single for Tina Turner back in 1990, before Rangers adopted it for their home games. As you clearly stated in the article, he adapted the words to incorporate Jesus and God, as you would expect from a minister. So where is the offence?

I am willing to accept that perhaps he should have thought twice about it, given the reaction you are looking to provoke, but had he instead opted to belt out one of the vile sectarian songs that's banded about, then your article would have had more substance to it.

But all you have done is sensationalise something to a higher level than what it should be and after the recent other stories regarding Mr McCurry and his private life, it seems apparent that you and other reporters within your newspaper have an agenda to hound out one of the country's leading referees, who has shown, admittedly, poor judgement at times.

I sincerely hope that most readers of your newspaper treat your story with the contempt it deserves and should any incident occur at today's match between Kilmarnock and Celtic involving Mr McCurry, I hope you are responsible enough to hold your hands up and not hide behind your paper or take any moral high ground.

Journalism is as base an occupation as the oldest profession, and getting lower by each techological leap

You cannot hope to bribe or twist,
thank God! the British journalist.
But, seeing what the man will do
unbribed, there's no occasion to.

As for the song itself, it is a song played at Ibrox as everybody knows, but I think you'll find it was a hit single for Tina Turner back in 1990, before Rangers adopted it for their home games. As you clearly stated in the article, he adapted the words to incorporate Jesus and God, as you would expect from a minister. So where is the offence?

I saw Sir Christopher Meyer (ex-British Ambassador to the USA - now head-honcho of the Press Complaints Commission) at a speech/question-and-answer session earlier this week. At one point he was asked about the growing tendency for papers to 'create' stories, playing on the ability of an apparently offensive / shocking act which (they claim) causes offence. His response was this:

(I paraphrase) The newspaper industry is one of diminishing returns. The growth of digital TV or radio - and particularly of cyber-space media - is shrinking the newspaper market. Less papers are being sold, so there is a constant fight to attract readership from your rivals. This constant pressure, a 'race to the bottom', means that the focus is more and more on creating or finding stories that can/will cause hysteric reactions - as opposed to reporting the reaction occuring...

The reduction in editorial staffing, coupled with reducing sales and the need to perform to keep ones job in journalism, has removed much quality-control and fuels a culture of 'shock-creation'.


IMO this story - essentially 'Minister Plays Pop Song during Service' - is a perfect example of this.

As usual the hun press at the mind games again.I hope Strachan has the savvy to try an motivate his players over this.

I'm no fan of referees, but this is bordering on harrassment surely. The article states that he changed the words in the song to incorporate "Jesus" or "God", for the purposes of him being a minister and all that.

It's a ridiculous story and I actually hope McCurry sues them. He was leading church goers in a service, not leading drunken Gers fans in a pub sing-song.

I can't believe the level of journalism involved here, but most worryingly the editor of the paper agreed that it should be on the front page.

On the day of Mike McCurry taking charge of our game a national newspaper has deemed to ome out with this story, how is it news worthy? Are they implying something about McCurry singing a former Rangers anthem the day after Rangers beat Celtic 1-0 in what many huns thought was the championship decider?

I think it's mischief making of the highest order

Its hard to imagine a football association elsewhere in the 'civilised' world which would tolerate such an individual taking charge of matches which influence his team.

It strange that they are "implying" what everyone already knows: Rangers Mike is a massive hun.

Its hard to imagine a football association elsewhere in the 'civilised' world which would tolerate such an individual taking charge of matches which influence his team. And Mike is only the latest in a long, long line.

Its equally hard to imagine that a randy Jesuit who regularly belted out items from the Celtic songbook in public would fare so well in refereeing circles.

Funny. General agreement that this is a non story, and shit stirring from the Mail.

Then along comes the conscience of the board, and turns it into a Masonic/Orange/Hun conspiracy.

You really are a fucking idiot plastic. Just the sort who would take an article in the Sunday Hail seriously.

As a wee aside do you think a Catholic priest that was filmed singing YNWA the day after Celtic beat Rangers could ever referee a Rangers game?

As a wee aside do you think a Catholic priest that was filmed singing YNWA the day after Celtic beat Rangers could ever referee a Rangers game?

Does he have his refereeing badges?

Yes and a 18 year old mistress too

I don't remember that getting plastered all over the pages of a filthy tabloid rag. Maybe you could provide a link?

I've sung YNWA at a karaoke before - I think we can say fairly safely that I'm not a Celtic supporter. Plastic's angle appears to be that any song that has ever been sung at Ibrox has been tainted with Hunnery. Would he say the same about the FOA, ot YNWA? That all Liverpool supporters are plastics too? Or the folk singer I heard last week in Newmarket was?

The truth of the matter is that that song is a popular karaoke number, and he changed the words to turn it into a hymn of sorts. This isn't like that mutton chopped lawyer being caught singing sectarian nonsense, and who was rightly binned. The baptist churches do this sort of thing all the time. It's cringeworthy. But unlike the paranoid plastic, most people can see it for what it was.

Mistress or manstress?

You might want to read the OP clearly stated views plus I don't think Celtic fans would have been as good natured if they thought the newpapers exclusive was as supersoarway stunning as was being claimed, not the banswer to my admittedly light hearted question, which given you failed to answer, not looking for a dissertation, just an opionion