With Video Assistant Referees and Match Review Panels both making decisions after the fact, football runs the risk of destroying the very fabric that makes the game unique.
The news that Besart Berisha has been handed a two-game ban for shoving fourth official Daniel Elder in Melbourne Victory’s spiteful 2-2 draw with Adelaide United last weekend was largely disappointing, if not entirely predictable.
Berisha, with his less than stellar disciplinary record, was in danger of earning a sanction the second he put his hands on Elder. And that’s honestly as it should be.
The excitable Kosovo international shouldn’t have been barging into Adelaide defender Jordan Elsey on the touchline in the first place.
But then should Elder really have been on the pitch?
“I tell you what, Besart Berisha should not be doing that,” said Fox Sports commentator Simon Hill at the time, and from the tone of his voice you could tell there was a feeling Berisha’s shove would attract further scrutiny.
That’s why the MRP exists, and on the whole Berisha probably got off lightly with a two-game ban – plus another two suspended – considering that Danny Vukovic copped a mammoth 15-month ban and missed the Beijing Olympics for slapping the hand of referee Mark Shields in the 2008 grand final.
But if the action hadn’t occurred on the touchline, where Elder happened to be standing and was close enough to intervene, would Berisha now find himself in so much trouble?
If it’s only human for referees to try and position themselves between feuding players, is it not an equally human reaction to try and push them away?
I had been planning to write about the VAR and its impact on Brisbane Roar’s demoralising 2-1 defeat to Newcastle Jets last Sunday afternoon, until the redoubtable Hill beat me to the post.
He may be better known as a commentator, but Hill remains one of the best writers on the game in Australia, and his soon-to-be-released book Just a Gob on a Stick should make for fascinating reading.
Anyone familiar with his writing would know that the tendency to blame officials has long been a bugbear of Hill’s, and he’s right when he says a lack of personal accountability has contributed to a situation where the VAR is now raising more questions than answers.
Originally my view was that with so many decisions analysed in detail on TV broadcasts, it wouldn’t hurt for the referees to also have a look at the same replays.
Yet it’s clear that the VAR is taking away from the spontaneity of the game and robbing fans of the joy of the immediate aftermath of a goal.
And in raking over every single decision with a fine-tooth comb and slowing down the game considerably, the decision-makers are also eliminating one of the very qualities that makes football such a compelling spectacle – the human element.
Still, it must be said that when it comes to Football Federation Australia, they don’t just confine their controversial decisions to what’s happening on the pitch.
‘Damned if they do and damned if they don’t’ probably sums up the decision to award Sydney FC the hosting rights to next month’s FFA Cup final at Adelaide United’s expense.
It was probably the right decision given the Sky Blues have missed out on hosting the final in the past, but here’s an even better idea.
Name some actual criteria around the tournament and stick with it. That way FFA will no longer run the risk of having perceived favourites.
As for VARs and the newfound obsession with replaying every incident, it’s already had a detrimental effect on the game.
Former Socceroo and current Fox Sports analyst Ned Zelic had already tweeted he’d be going on a ‘TV onslaught’ over any decision to suspend Berisha.
It will be well worth watching. Let’s just hope Zelic doesn’t cop a suspension at the end of it.
Ad-0
Guest
I've been saying this for years to anyone who wants to listen. VAR has ruined Cricket and Rugby, why should we let it ruin football too. Mistakes still happen, and it destroys the natural flow of the games. The only reason we have it is because both public, pundits and players prefer to score cheap points and blame the ref, rather than look at their team's tactical and technical failings honestly.
pauli
Guest
"A ref is a ref, not an authoritative figure" - a referee has authority on the field. So yes they are. Would you be happy if your son or daughter was manhandled while refereeing a sporting fixture?
Onthedole
Guest
Ban the VAR now before it kills the game.
Roar fan
Guest
See my comment above.
Roar fan
Guest
Who do you suggest should break up a fight or a melee? If not the referee closest to the incident to prevent an all out brawl, who has the unenviable task. I await your response with interest.
Cool N Cold
Guest
I am not arguing. However, there is an interesting thing today. Watching the video of BR vs Nix in this webpage (http://theworldgame.sbs.com.au/article/2017/10/28/roar-complete-incredible-comeback-snatch-draw), when the ball bounced off Mackay's foot, it was not considered as a deliberate kick, but a rebound. So, McGlinchey was offside. This happened at 35:40 (match clock) or at 00:34 of the video clip. However, when the ball bounced off Mackay's foot to Maccarone (in the match BR vs Jets last Sunday), it was considered as a pass. Anyhow, there is a difference between these 2 situations. One is bouncing to the opponent while the other is bouncing to a teammate.
Buddy
Guest
Thanks, I will look out for it tomorrow at Newcastle. What I really wnt to know is why they are reviewing it, what did they think was possibly wrong?
Lionheart
Guest
it's only small - at least at Suncorp, in the corner of the screen.
Nemesis
Guest
CUB = Cashed Up Bogan
Ben of Phnom Penh
Roar Guru
Incidentally what does CUB stand for? Not all of us are intimate with Australian demographic ancronyms & jargon. My Google searches turned up items on baseball, craft beer and the junior boy scouts movement.
Kris
Roar Rookie
This is a terrible argument Mike. Players do not get to indulge their natural instincts without consequences.
Kris
Roar Rookie
EDIT: Double post
Nemesis
Guest
At home we got nothing last night. Certainly there was no promotion for McDonald's; not even the icon. Only Harper & Speed made dad jokes about the fast-food association. Last week I recall a flashing amber light adjacent to the score watermark in the top left corner, to inform the viewer VAR was being consulted. Last night there was no flashing light.
Lionheart
Guest
At the game you get the golden arch on the electric scoreboard, I think with VAR next to it. So you have an idea of what is going on if you look as the scoreboard also replays the incident. In that case Roar-Newcastle, the VAR symbol did not appear until some time after the goal, when the ball and players were all back at the centre spot ready to restart. It was quite an appalling use of technology.
Lionheart
Guest
that's not an opinion Waz, them's facts
Cool N Cold
Guest
Thank for introducing the term "over used". This is a simple and succinct way of describing the situation now. Last night's case of Sydney FC vs Glory is another mis-using the VAR system. Why needed 4 minutes to review? If the VAR is in doubt, he simply refers back to the main referee to make the decision. That is simple. It is because that the main referee already has viewed as everyone else after the VAR review session. Also, I have seen a couple of throwing the judgement back to the main referee in NRL matches, despite me not a NRL fan. Seems that the football referees have seldom watched NRL matches.
Mitcher
Guest
That’s just not true. The suggestion that individual decisions/actions by referees are scrutinised less that the multitude of f ups by players is the biggest most absurd and damaging furphy on the face of the sporting earth.
Squizz
Guest
The leniency of the suspension lies with the charge. He was there for unsporting conduct which carries a lesser sanction than the assault of a referee. Given the charge the suspension is about right. The argument should be was he correctly charged.
saul
Guest
VAR is overused i thought it was going to be used for controversial decisions like penalties and did it cross the goal line decisions. It's destroying the intensity of the game when used after every awarded goal. Last nights Sydney fc, Perth match was a joke when i saw the ref looking at the screen, it was an embarrassment to the game. If the VAR can't make a decision then the ref should stick by his original one.
Nemesis
Guest
"Okay, I just found the video and watched it. " So, let me see if I understand this correctly, Chris Kettlewell? You formed your opinion & posted several comments about, the penalty decision handed out to Berisha without ever having seen the incident? Seriously? And people think I'm being ridiculous for questioning opinions on this forum?