Angus McNeil, the Westminster MP for the Outer Hebrides, joined in the VAR controversy of last night’s Celtic win over Livingston.
In the 71st minute Liel Abada appeared to have put Celtic 3-1 up, effectively killing the match off to restore Celtic’s nine point lead at the top of the SPFL Premiership.
The routine VAR check by Steven Kirkland took longer than normal then rather than give a decision based on the Hawkeye image the VAR instructed match referee Euan Anderson to review the incident on the pitchside monitor.
So far in Scotland that hasn’t happened, offside is black and white, not subjective.
VAR and Celtic … Doesn’t look good again ..
The reasoning will be interesting.— Angus B MacNeil MP?? (@AngusMacNeilSNP) December 21, 2022
Should Celtic push SFA for transparency by publishing VAR reports?
Yes, VAR without explanations is pointless
No, let the teething troubles settle down
The delay reached four minutes before Anderson decided to disallow the ‘goal’. Play restarted with a free kick to Livingston, no one in the stadium had any idea why the goal was disallowed. Viewers on Celtic TV weren’t offered the Hawkeye image that had been used to make the decision.
At Motherwell in November a ‘goal’ from Jota was disallowed in similar circumstances, later in the game an inconclusive long distance image was shown on Motherwell TV to explain the decision. Two days later the SFA issued a statement explaining that one of the Hawkeye cameras wasn’t working but the decision was still right without offering any evidence.
MP’s have a multitude of issues to deal with but with Westminster in recess for the Christmas holiday McNeil was able to look at a Scottish sporting problem.
When the referee is offered to ‘take a look ,’ does that mean the VAR adjudicator(s) are not up to the job of deciding an outcome ? Or is it buckpassing in case there’s an outcry after the decision …. Either way ,it’s amateur hour …
Couldn’t have put it better,John.
These clowns are being shown to be the incompetent cheats they have always been by virtue of their gymnastics in relation to how they view incidents relating to Celtic and Sevco.
Lord only knows what delights the 2nd of January will bring.
Hopefully Gollum,in the VAR room will disappear up his own asshole closely followed by the SFA’s favourite cheat Beathun
I’m really surprised about commotion VAR has caused,to be realistic I never expected anything other than the outcome we have been getting nothing will improve in Scotland till masonic attitude changes,I’m 72yrs old and I remember JS saying they can’t can’t disallow all the goals we score so just keep piling them on HH
Football really needs to follow the lead of rugby and have an open Mike policy where viewers and supporters can hear the discussion taking place between the referee and the VAR guy.
Openness and transparency should be the way forward but not holding my breath but it’s an easy fix – if there is a will to do so.
They are taking this var as far as possible to undo us the next thing they will try and introduce through blatant cheating is if Joe Hart picks the ball up it will be a penalty against us.
If the Livi player deliberately tried to clear the ball but only succeeded in knocking it back to Abada – which seems to be the accepted course of events – then Abada is onside and the goal should have stood. If he had accidentally touched it to Abada without attempting to play it then the Celtic player would have been offside. Cheated again by a coterie of officials who seem to forget the Laws of Football when Celtic are involved.
It’s the same way it has always been. The referees and now var are appointed by a sectarian organisation. Servo fans think it’s a fix if they go a game without getting a penalty. No questions asked when Celtic go a season without a penalty. The Celtic board need to take them to court. No wait a minute the court would be a waste of time. How else can you explain a company going into liquidation but not being forced to sell castle grey skull to help pay their debts. Many firms went bankrupt and people lost their jobs because of non payment yet they are not forced to sell their assets. Sectarian criminal actions.
If this had happened at the goal mouth it would have been given as a goal ?
Sorry meant to say at the other end of the park