What raging Boyd has said about SFA chief joking about Rangers VAR row
Yesterday at 08:30 AM
The row over Rangers’ denied penalty against Celtic in the Premier Sports Cup final rumbles on.
This week we saw the Scottish FA admit Gers should have had a spot kick and the decision to give a free-kick for Liam Scales’ foul on Vaclav Cerny was a mistake.
Referees’ chief Willie Collum went on to discuss the decision on his VAR review show and insisted it was ‘irrelevant’ where Cerny’s foot was positioned, the only thing that mattered being where the pull took place.
The governing body released the audio from the incident, which included VAR Alan Muir communicating with AVAR Frank Connor. The pair have both been dropped from Premiership games this weekend.
SFA chief executive Ian Maxwell tried to defend VAR and insisted mistakes will always be made because of the human error of those involved.
He actually claimed VAR has helped cut out some of the incorrect calls and says they will continue to make that happen.
And Maxwell later hit back at claims there is a bias involved in decision making in Scottish football.
He branded the accusation “absolute nonsense” and praised Collum for the transparency he has ensured since taking on his role.
Rangers hero Boyd hits out at SFA chief Ian Maxwell
Quite rightly, Kris Boyd has had plenty to say on the matter.
Boyd unleashed on the VAR team involved as he quoted Celtic chief Peter Lawwell and poked the bear over the incident.
Boyd also urged Rangers, and specifically new CEO Patrick Stewart and chairman Fraser Thornton, to demand a meeting to try to get to the bottom of the decision-making process.
He has now hit out at Maxwell for attempting to make light of the situation.
He said: “By urging Patrick Stewart to demand answers over the cup final spot-kick howler, I warned that far too many people regarded Rangers penalty rows as a joke.
“I didn't expect Ian Maxwell to be the next to chuckle.
“Why was the SFA chief executive taking the Premier Sports Cup final controversy so lightly in midweek?
“I don't remember him laughing when Scott McTominay's goal was ruled out for Scotland in Spain, or when Stuart Armstrong didn't get a penalty against Hungary at the Euros.
“Oh, the SFA were pretty serious then. But when it's a controversy over a Rangers penalty, it seems to be all a bit of fun.
“Well, let me tell you, this is a serious matter.
“Maxwell shouldn't have waited until Wednesday to address an issue which has dominated the Scottish football agenda all week.
“And he shouldn't have laughed and joked about a "spike" in viewing figures on the SFA's YouTube channel to watch The VAR Review Show.
“He should have gone straight to Collum's door early on Monday morning to thrash out a plan for driving up standards in refereeing in this country.
“Collum has certainly taken it seriously. He looked raging on The VAR Review Show. You could tell he looked hurt and let down.
“If only the rest of the SFA hierarchy took it so seriously.”
Boyd offers solutions to VAR problems
Boyd he reckons he potentially has some of the answers to problems with officiating in Scotland.
He would like to see up and coming referees become full-time and has also suggested former players operating VAR.
He added: “I'd like to start by getting some of our younger refs full-time to help them prepare for the future.
“I know it's costly, but what price can you put on getting these key decisions right?
“Collum has packed in his day job to become the full-time refs' chief, and he's doing the job much better than anyone has been able to do in the past.
“He's open, honest, transparent and has not trying to pretend everything is rosy.
“How do we improve the VAR room?
“Well, I don't think VAR officials necessarily need to be former refs. A lot of our top managers around the world have never played the game.
“The job of a VAR, sitting in a room re-running images of flashpoints in the game, is far removed from running round a pitch as play rages on.
“It's a different skill set and could be tackled by any number of individuals, even former players, who have learned the rules and learned how to assist the on-field officials.
“Staying calm is something they could do with learning.”
