The latest episode of The VAR Review aired on Sky Sports last night and, as expected, Willie Collum’s verdict on the Auston Trusty incident has sent Rangers fans into meltdown.
The Head of Refereeing stood by referee Nick Walsh and VAR Andrew Dallas in their decision not to send off the Celtic defender for his accidental contact with Jack Butland’s head during the derby, despite acknowledging the call was “subjective”.
As ever, VAR debates seem to split opinion along predictable lines.
No football fan wants to see the game over-refereed, unless you’re Rangers and the call doesn’t go your way.
But interestingly, there was another flashpoint from the match that had Celtic supporters scratching their heads this time.
Rangers defender Derek Cornelius went in late and high on Johnny Kenny, catching the young striker above the ankle with his studs, while his trailing leg followed through. It looked a dangerous challenge in real time and, on replay, many felt he was lucky to stay on the pitch.
Collum provided an explanation on the programme, suggesting the officials deemed the tackle reckless, but not violent enough to warrant a red card:
“When the Rangers player enters into the challenge, there could be a case for the way he enters into it being serious foul play.
“But how he arrives at the challenge is definitely more reckless, because the contact is to the side of the boot, it’s low, and that’s what the VAR team and the on-field officials take into account.
“The fact the contact’s to the side of the boot makes this reckless for us. Sometimes in refereeing we talk about a ‘high-end yellow card’. This would be regarded as a high-end yellow card, but without doubt, we’re very content that this is yellow.”
The explanation hasn’t exactly silenced the debate. Many Celtic fans felt the tackle endangered Kenny’s safety, while others believe consistency is the real issue, especially when Trusty’s far lighter contact was analysed for days on end.
And the disallowed goal, a fleas dick at most offside