Hearts and Hibs sent message by former Premier League referee over VAR as fans told of ultimate reality
Sports official Martin Atkinson says VAR is always set to be subject of discussion
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.
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.
“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.
"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.
"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."