GLASGOW, SCOTLAND - DECEMBER 15: Referee Don Robertson interacts with Jack Butland of Rangers during the Premier League match between Rangers and Hibernian at Ibrox Stadium on December 15, 2025 in Glasgow, Scotland. (Photo by Ian MacNicol/Getty Images)
Martin O’Neill has called out Don Robertson over the two ‘baffling’ decisions made against Celtic away to Hibs at Easter Road.
David Dickinson was assisted by Douglas Ross and Calum Spence on the pitch but the ultimate authority lay with Robertson in the VAR room.
Robertson apparently has a Celtic background although there is no on-field evidence of it.
Since the Alex Schalk penalty for Ross County in April 2016 Robertson has been delivering decisions to accelerate his progress through the ranks.
Alongside John Beaton and Nick Walsh he shares the bulk of the big match appointments from Willie Collum.
This season Robertson has refereed two out of the six Glasgow Derbies.
Last week on VAR duty at Easter Road he failed to do his job with two critical decisions.
True, he got two right in the first half with the Kieran McGrath red card and Daizen Maeda’s goal over-turned.
With all of the technology at hand, and assisted by Duncan Nicolson, Robertson got two major decisions wrong.
O’Neill didn’t miss him as he spoke to Celtic TV during the week.
50 seconds:
We conceded a poor goal just before halftime. That sets you back a little bit because there was an opportunity to go and get the second goal then maybe just after halftime that’s what or my thoughts were in my head anyway at the time.
It wasn’t wasn’t happening and then we had a very very good claim for a penalty when Nygren was pushed over and it wasn’t given.
I don’t know what the referee or the linesman saw or didn’t see in that one and of course there was a contentious equalizer for Hibs because it looks if it looks pretty clear to me that the players handled the ball.
OK, got all of those things out of my system.
During the match the SFA informed Sky Sports that ‘there was insufficient evidence’ of handball for the Joe Newell goal.
All of the messengers picked up on that and repeated. Even though the ball changed direction twice as it travelled the length of Newell’s arm.
No anonymous briefing has been issued for the Ben Nygren penalty issue.
NO EXCUSES OR DEFENCE FOR THE ROBERTSON DECISIONS
O’Neill’s comments on those incidents were ignored by legacy media outlets. They did pick up on Daizen Maeda’s injury situation.
Robertson would have been a contender to referee one of Celtic’s final two SPFL Premiership matches.
Normally the SFA would announce the match officials for midweek fixtures eight days in advance.
Celtic are at Motherwell on Wednesday night, the SFA have not yet published the officials for the three top six fixtures on May 13.
Covering the Hibs match on Radio Scotland John Collins said that the VAR team should be sacked over the Nygren penalty issue.
Nothing New.
It Will Never change
The only person I would love to see back after buying DD out is the bunnet. He had no fear going after those in the SFA who schemed against our football club and we still have a section of our support that think the current board can do know wrong. I wonder if their decendants of the booing section that were when Fergus was introduced after saving our club.
Rules Are Rules
What can you say about these officials that hasn’t been said before? There should be an investigation conducted by the SFA. The on-field and VAR decisions can’t be called honest mistakes this time.
Excuses of lessons will be learnt, being unsighted, decisions are subjective and not enough evidence won’t wash this time because there is more than enough evidence to convict this particular group of (censored).
They are well know to us, it’s the same usual suspects but this time they’ve been caught red handed and the hierarchy know it. This shouldn’t be allowed to go away, we want action taken against them.
None of them should ever be officiating at a Celtic match ever again. Why do we let it happen? Surely there is a course of action supporters can take if our board sit idly doing SFA about it.
The league title might be decided on goal difference the referee David Dickinson and the on pitch assistant Douglas Ross and Don Robertson in the VAR room have questions to answer.
It would be better for them before the last game of the season to resign. Willie Collum is inept, he needs replacing too, Willie can change whichever rule he needs to suit the narrative after consulting with his pals first of course, ain’t that right Willie? I wonder how long does it take to push him and the others out of the area, the stopwatch is counting!
Name Any Celtic Board over many Decades.
Who challenged this regime
And attempted to take them down…
Here is the answer.None. That’s the problem.
Glad that he spoke out about this…
But where the F*ck is The £17,000 per wage thief of filth !