Irish FA pulls the plug on plans to send referees to Australia for VAR training
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Powys County Times
10 hours ago
- Powys County Times
Brendan Rodgers primed for Celtic's Champions League challenge after opening win
Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers stressed they would be ready for the Champions League qualifiers after leaving it late to secure victory in their opening game of the domestic season. The champions needed a deflected strike from substitute Luke McCowan to edge past St Mirren with a 1-0 win as they started their William Hill Premiership title defence at Parkhead. Celtic earlier hit the frame of the goal through Benjamin Nygren, Reo Hatate and Adam Idah, and had a Callum McGregor strike disallowed for handball following a VAR intervention. But a strikeforce led by Idah inside Daizen Maeda and Yang Hyun-jun – with James Forrest and Johnny Kenny coming off the bench – looked in need of the reinforcements which Rodgers has been calling for. The Celtic manager was eager to praise his side's display and not labour that point, but fans will be keen to see new signings come in soon after Monday's Champions League play-off draw. The likes of Sturm Graz and Basel await Celtic as they discover their fate for the high-risk, high-reward games, which will take place in the final two weeks of this month. Rodgers said: 'We'll be ready for the games. Whenever they come, we'll be ready. The players are working very hard. 'They are always tense games. But we're in a good place and we'll take that game on when it comes. 'We've had a really, really good pre-season. The players are shaping up very well and are working very hard. There's real spirit and solidarity here in the team. So we look forward to that. 'We know whoever we get, it's going to be tough, but it will also be tough for them.' When asked whether their long wait for a goal against St Mirren underlined the need for more attacking options, Rodgers said: 'We created a lot. We got into a lot of really good areas and you have to give credit to the goalkeeper. The goalkeeper made some great saves. 'I think we were creative in the game, dominated the game. 'At times we moved the ball really well. At other times we could have attacked a wee bit more when we got into certain positions and been a bit more aggressive in the one-v-one moments. 'But overall, to play against that team, against that system, that's how you've got to work it and then you need a bit of quality to finish it. 'Sometimes you need a wee bit of good fortune as well. We didn't quite have that, some of them hit the post and the bar.' St Mirren manager Stephen Robinson saw plenty to encourage him. 'It was disappointing because we lost to a deflection,' he said. 'Defensively, I thought we were superb, very, very well organised. People use that as a slight against St Mirren sometimes, but that is one of the basics of management, get your team organised. 'We said we would have five or six opportunities to break and we did. Some we picked the right option, some we didn't. 'We didn't sit back the whole game, we pressed. I think we caused Celtic problems at times. 'But they have a heck of a lot of quality. If you look at the substitutes they are bringing on in comparison to ours, then it makes it a tough task.'
Scotsman
19 hours ago
- Scotsman
Hearts and Hibs sent message by former Premier League referee over VAR
Sports official Martin Atkinson says VAR is always set to be subject of discussion Sign up to our Hibs football newsletter Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to Edinburgh News, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. Learn More Sorry, there seem to be some issues. Please try again later. Submitting... Both Hibs and Hearts have been handed a clear message on VAR's position within the game after the current SFA VAR Manager Martin Atkinson told fans it's here to stay. Atkinson, 54, has admitted he is well aware that VAR will always remain a 'subject of discussion' but that it will remain in the SFA whether supporters like it or not as it provides the opportunity for referees' mistakes to be rectified. The former Premier League whistler also admitted he wished the video assistant referee had been around during is own career after some of his mistakes continue to plague him today. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Atkinson was announced as the new SFA VAR Manager in October and has been quietly working away in the background. Now, however, he has provided fans with a clear position on the contentious VAR set-up: it is here to stay. "VAR is always going to be a subject of discussion. Some people like it and some are "Football will always split the opinion, won't it?', Atkinson said. Celtic's Daizen Maeda scores in the 2-1 defeat to Hibs before VAR ruled it out for the ball being out of play in the build up. (Photo by Ross Parker / SNS Group) | SNS Group 'I go back to when I was a referee. On the field, you made a mistake. It was a clear error that has influenced the result. You drove home and then watched whatever TV highlights programme is on that evening. "Then the following day, you see whatever is written in the media, then whatever follows, and it just continues for so long. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad "There's no worse feeling as a match referee knowing you've made that mistake', Atkinson admitted. 'The guys don't go out to make mistakes. There's no reason for them to not want to be perfect when they are out there. "But if we make that mistake with VAR we have an opportunity to make that right, and it's got to be good for the game. It's got to be the way forward, and I do believe that it has improved the game. The 54-year-old also confessed: 'I really wish it was there in many situations in my career where I've driven home and I've just thought, 'Why didn't I give that penalty?' "We seem to forget about these really big decisions that have influenced games and results over a number of years. Personally, I know they haunt me. Decisions that I've made over the years, I could tell you all the mistakes. But I'm not going to! I'm talking about the decisions where you've sent a player off. And you know full well if you had VAR on that day, the player wouldn't have got to the tunnel because they would have just turned you around. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad "And it impacts massively on that game, the overall result, your credibility as a match official, and everything that goes with it. Then it haunts you. It stays with you, these wrong decisions. So VAR is there to stop me now thinking 15 years ago, I wish I hadn't sent that player off in that game, in that derby. That is what VAR is there for. To make sure the integrity of the game and all that goes with it is not influenced by a decision made by a referee that can't be changed." Atkinson, who works with Head of Referee Operations at the SFA Willie Collum, is also a supporter of the recent proposals to have Premiership referees explain VAR's decisions during games, backing the plans that could put this into action. "I'm a football fan myself', Atkinson noted. "All referees are fans. You wouldn't do this job if you didn't love being involved in it and being part of the game. The communication side is something that we certainly embrace. It's something we talk about. Again, this is not just the referees who want this and that's it. We're quite open to doing anything that will enhance us in stadiums. It's certainly not written off by us. "We'd be looking to implement it as soon as the clubs are ready, as soon as we get the green light to say, 'Yes, the clubs want it, supporters want it'. We'd be all for that. Any country is allowed to do it when they are ready to do it. If the clubs say, we're ready to go, we have got all the infrastructure and the money and everything that goes with it to roll it out. Then we would certainly like to support that and encourage it."
Scotsman
a day ago
- Scotsman
Why Scottish football's VAR is here to stay as ex-referee 'haunted' by mistakes of the past
Scottish FA head of VAR makes case for technology Sign up to our Football newsletter Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to The Scotsman, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. Learn More Sorry, there seem to be some issues. Please try again later. Submitting... He's been working away quietly in the background since Christmas, but former English Premier League referee Martin Atkinson has been having a big influence on Scottish football in the past eight months. Replacing Jon Moss as the SFA's VAR manager, Atkinson has worked with the country's top referees and officials on improving all aspects of their game. He brings a wealth of experience to a role that will always have scrutiny. VAR continues to be a source of conversation and consternation in our game. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Nevertheless, Atkinson does not see it going anywhere. The message is clear: VAR is here to stay. The goal is now to improve it. Scottish FA VAR manager Martin Atkinson. (Photo by Ross MacDonald / SNS Group) | SNS Group 'I think it's always going to be a discussion,' said Atkinson on VAR. 'Some people like it. I fully get that. Some people are against it. 'That's football. It will always split opinion, won't it? We talk about football in the old days. We talk about football now, modern football. We're always going to have that debate about it. I go back to when I was a referee. 'On the field, you make a mistake. It's a clear mistake that influences a result. You drive home. You watch whatever television programme is on that evening, the following day, whatever is written in the media, whatever follows, and it continues for so long. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad 'There's no worse feeling as a match referee knowing that you've made that mistake. Now, the guys don't go out to make mistakes. There's no reason for them to want to be perfect when they're out there. 'We make mistakes. If we make that mistake and we have a chance, an opportunity to make that right, then that's got to be good for the game. It's got to be good for the integrity of the game. 'It's got to be the way forward. I do think that it has improved the game. I really wish it was there in many situations in my career where I've driven home and I've just thought, why didn't I give that penalty? Why did I give that penalty when I should have done that? It's there for that reason. 'But the big decision, we'll still always have subjective decisions that split a room. We'll always have decisions that split a room. We always get that. That's just football.' Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Referee Nick Walsh checks the VAR monitor during a match between Rangers and Hibs at Ibrox last season | SNS Group VAR sceptics will point to Swedish football deciding to ditch the technology, but the fact is that every major league has VAR. Atkinson does not see Scotland going down the same route. 'I think when you look at the UEFA in general, it's 46 out of 53 nations got it. So that speaks for itself straight away,' the 54-year-old said. 'And the other countries, you may well get an odd outlying country that are like, we don't want it. 'But again, I'd just reiterate that ... the referee gives a penalty when a ball hits a player in the face. It changes the whole game. We seem to forget about these big, big decisions that have influenced games and results over a number of years. Personally, I know they haunt me. 'Decisions that I've made over years. I could tell you all the mistakes. Decisions where you've sent a player off and you know full well if you had VAR on that day, the player wouldn't have got to the tunnel because they'd have just turned you around. And it impacts massively on that game, the overall result, your credibility as a match official, everything that goes with it. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad 'And it haunts you. It stays with you, these decisions. So VAR is there to stop me now thinking 15 years ago, I wish I hadn't sent that player off in that game, in that derby. That is what is there for. To make sure the integrity of the game and everything that goes with it is not influenced by a decision made by a referee that can't be changed.'
