- Video
-
Club Roar
Captured a great grassroots sporting moment? We want to see it!Content Collections
The Roar Community
- Join
- Login
Opinion
When the APL-controlled cameras capture Danny Townsend whispering furtively into Graham Arnold’s ear for the four-hundredth time next week, do you think they’ll be talking about VAR?
Townsend has been known to pick up the phone and complain about a lack of positive media coverage, but what he should be doing is calling Football Australia and asking what’s going on with the refereeing.
Either that or giving Warren Moon and Carl Veart a personal call to offer his condolences on another weekend in which officiating – not the football – made all the difference.
Brisbane Roar were robbed of two points on Saturday when they were the better side against Western Sydney Wanderers, only for a couple of decisive decisions to go against them in what ended up a 1-1 draw.
The second one – when Jay O’Shea’s deflected free-kick was ruled out by another pathetic FIFA rule which ensured Connor Chapman, who had no bearing on the goal whatsoever, was standing too close to the wall – was adjudged correctly by the letter of the law.
But the first one – when Scott Neville’s point-blank rebound was chalked off after a Joe Knowles volley had smacked the crossbar – speaks volumes for the Australian psyche.
The biggest myth about Australians is that we’re a carefree, fun-loving people.
What we really are is obsessed with rules – and policing those rules – and you’ll find no better example than an A-Leagues which remains grimly determined to snuff out the potential for enjoyment at every available opportunity.
If it takes nearly four minutes for VAR to rule out Neville’s goal, because it turns out his shoulder or kneecap or whatever looks fractionally in front of the last defender on a TV replay which isn’t even remotely in line with the action, then let the goal stand.
Instead, what the APL seems to do week in and week out, is forget the very reason for their existence and allow decision after decision that robs supporters of the joy of seeing goals.
And you need to read this, Danny, because quite frankly every single one of us is sick to death of VAR robbing us of the entire reason we watch football in the first place.
Now that we’ve got that out of the way, how good was the VAR decision to send off Adelaide United striker Hiroshi Ibusuki in the 2-2 draw with Sydney FC yesterday?
Referee Kurt Ams signals for the VAR (Photo by Robert Cianflone/Getty Images)
The Japanese striker won the ball in a challenge with Sydney FC midfielder Anthony Caceres, then saw referee Daniel Elder make a clear and obvious error in deciding to brandish the red card, only for video referee Kurt Ams to uphold the decision within a matter of seconds.
Perhaps Ams was feeling the pressure on the back of the preceding day’s lengthy VAR adjudications, but either way it was the umpteenth use of video technology to make yet another incorrect decision.
Why do we persist this? We don’t even need to curry favour with FIFA given that we’re already co-hosting next year’s Women’s World Cup.
The Reds deserve huge credit for fighting back with a man down to secure a 2-2 draw with the Sky Blues in what was a frenetic clash at Allianz Stadium.
At least I’m not the only one frustrated by the officiating.
“The penalty and the red card… the red card for me is no red card, there was a foul before and the referee can be better,” opined the A-League Men’s marquee man Nani after Melbourne Victory’s 2-0 loss to Melbourne City in front of more than 23,000 fans at AAMI Park on Saturday night.
“This is a derby, the stadium is full, it kills the game, it kills the spectacle,” the former Manchester United winger claimed – admittedly after he gave away a game-changing penalty in the 15th minute.
“We want the full stadium and we want people to come see the games,” he added.
Do you hear that, Australian Professional Leagues?
Fans pay good money to attend games to watch the football – not the referees.
If the penny ever drops with the powers that be, we just might have a halfway decent football league.