Two coaches from the same game have slammed the use of the Video Assistant Referee after Newcastle Jets' thrilling draw away to Western Sydney Wanderers was overshadowed by farcical delays, officiating and decisions.
Jets coach Ernie Merrick was dismayed at what he described as a "disgraceful" performance from the referee and the VAR which lead to more than 7 minutes of injury time in their 2-2 draw at Spotless Stadium on Friday night, joining the chorus of coaches, players and pundits suggesting it is turning fans away from the game. The VAR brought play to a standstill on three occasions, causing major delays to play and stopping the rhythm of the game, twice to intervene and re-referee for matters of interpretation rather than clear and obvious error.
"The second half, I was more worried about the refereeing decision than I was about the opposition," Merrick said. "Does the referee make decisions anymore or does he wait for the VAR to confirm everything? Because it's going to be a long drawn-out process to play a game of football. If that's the way things are going to go then I don't think many people are going to come and watch the game."
Wanderers coach Josep Gombau was critical of the overuse of the VAR and its disruption to the flow of the game, making for frustrating viewing.
"We are stopping so much of the game, maybe three times in a game which is a lot. After that, some decisions will benefit us, some will affect us, but we are using [the VAR] so much," he said.
The Jets twice came back to earn a 2-2 draw to inch closer towards sealing their first finals appearance in seven years after goals from Andrew Nabbout and Dimitri Petratos cancelled out two penalties from Western Sydney's Oriol Riera.
VAR made its first entrance to deny Chris Ikonomidis a goal in the opening minutes. The former Lazio winger slotted the opener after being played through on goal by Marcelo Carrusca, only for the VAR to take minutes to find he ever so narrowly strayed offside.
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It delayed the inevitable however and the Wanderers took the lead two minutes later. Carrusca was brought down inside the box in a clumsy challenge by former Western Sydney captain Nikolai Topor-Stanley. Spanish striker Riera made no mistake from the spot, stroking the ball into the corner of the net and sending Jack Duncan the other way.
After a string of fine saves at the end of the first half, Vedran Janjetovic was eventually beaten minutes after the restart. Petratos curled a classy first-time strike past the Wanderers goalkeeper to make it 1-1.
Just as momentum began to tilt in favour of the visitors, a major stroke of luck went the way of the hosts. A deflected cross struck the arm of Topor-Stanley, who gifted a second penalty to his former club and despite referee Peter Green waving play on, the game was brought to a standstill minutes later for the VAR to back-track and re-officiate the match. The Wanderers were eventually awarded a penalty after a major delay and Riera restored their lead, composed as ever from the spot.
The home fans were still celebrating when Nabbout unleashed a stunning goal to draw level. Almost immediately after the kick-off, the Jets forward struck an in-swinging shot from distance that dipped into the far corner of the net to make it 2-2.
Newcastle thought they had snuck a winner when Janjetovic fumbled a cross into his own net amid pressure from Newcastle's Jason Hoffman. Yet again, it was overturned by the VAR. Contact between the two was evident, but it was questionable whether it was sufficient to overrule the goal on the basis of clear and obvious error.
It forced both sides to settle for a point that consolidated their positions on the table for at least another week.
Two coaches from the same game have slammed the use of the Video Assistant Referee after Newcastle Jets' thrilling draw away to Western Sydney Wanderers was overshadowed by farcical delays, officiating and decisions.
Jets coach Ernie Merrick was dismayed at what he described as a "disgraceful" performance from the referee and the VAR which lead to more than 7 minutes of injury time in their 2-2 draw at Spotless Stadium on Friday night, joining the chorus of coaches, players and pundits suggesting it is turning fans away from the game. The VAR brought play to a standstill on three occasions, causing major delays to play and stopping the rhythm of the game, twice to intervene and re-referee for matters of interpretation rather than clear and obvious error.
"The second half, I was more worried about the refereeing decision than I was about the opposition," Merrick said. "Does the referee make decisions anymore or does he wait for the VAR to confirm everything? Because it's going to be a long drawn-out process to play a game of football. If that's the way things are going to go then I don't think many people are going to come and watch the game."
Wanderers coach Josep Gombau was critical of the overuse of the VAR and its disruption to the flow of the game, making for frustrating viewing.
"We are stopping so much of the game, maybe three times in a game which is a lot. After that, some decisions will benefit us, some will affect us, but we are using [the VAR] so much," he said.
The Jets twice came back to earn a 2-2 draw to inch closer towards sealing their first finals appearance in seven years after goals from Andrew Nabbout and Dimitri Petratos cancelled out two penalties from Western Sydney's Oriol Riera.
VAR made its first entrance to deny Chris Ikonomidis a goal in the opening minutes. The former Lazio winger slotted the opener after being played through on goal by Marcelo Carrusca, only for the VAR to take minutes to find he ever so narrowly strayed offside.
You will now receive updates fromSport Newsletter
Sport Newsletter
Get the latest news and updates emailed straight to your inbox.
It delayed the inevitable however and the Wanderers took the lead two minutes later. Carrusca was brought down inside the box in a clumsy challenge by former Western Sydney captain Nikolai Topor-Stanley. Spanish striker Riera made no mistake from the spot, stroking the ball into the corner of the net and sending Jack Duncan the other way.
After a string of fine saves at the end of the first half, Vedran Janjetovic was eventually beaten minutes after the restart. Petratos curled a classy first-time strike past the Wanderers goalkeeper to make it 1-1.
Just as momentum began to tilt in favour of the visitors, a major stroke of luck went the way of the hosts. A deflected cross struck the arm of Topor-Stanley, who gifted a second penalty to his former club and despite referee Peter Green waving play on, the game was brought to a standstill minutes later for the VAR to back-track and re-officiate the match. The Wanderers were eventually awarded a penalty after a major delay and Riera restored their lead, composed as ever from the spot.
The home fans were still celebrating when Nabbout unleashed a stunning goal to draw level. Almost immediately after the kick-off, the Jets forward struck an in-swinging shot from distance that dipped into the far corner of the net to make it 2-2.
Newcastle thought they had snuck a winner when Janjetovic fumbled a cross into his own net amid pressure from Newcastle's Jason Hoffman. Yet again, it was overturned by the VAR. Contact between the two was evident, but it was questionable whether it was sufficient to overrule the goal on the basis of clear and obvious error.
It forced both sides to settle for a point that consolidated their positions on the table for at least another week.
