Scottish Premiership boss Callum Davidson has questioned SFA chief executive Ian Maxwell’s response to the introduction of VAR.
On Wednesday afternoon, it was confirmed that the technology would be utilised in Scottish Football for the first time on the weekend beginning the 21st of October.
Celtic will be involved in VAR’s first televised use in the Scottish Premiership when they take on Hearts at Tynecastle in two weeks’ time.
Ahead of our trip to the capital, the Hoops will be given a brief glimpse into how the system fairs when Hibernian take on St Johnstone at Easter Road, the night before Ange Postecoglou’s side face Hearts.
Supporters of clubs across the Scottish Premiership have raised their doubts about the technology as we prepare to enter a new era for officiating in this country.
SFA chief executive, Ian Maxwell, didn’t exactly help those who had doubts when the former Partick Thistle board member was asked for his thoughts on the new system.
Maxwell stated that the first three months of VAR’s introduction would be ‘horrendous’ as clubs and officials become acclimatised with the latest innovation within Scottish Football.
Although many would expect it to take some time for everyone involved to get up to speed, Maxwell’s comments were seen as bizarre to many, considering the SFA have been ‘planning, developing and testing’ this system for around three years.
St Johnstone boss, Callum Davidson, was one of the first Scottish Premiership bosses to react to the SFA chief executives’ comments as he called for consistency on big decisions from the day the system is introduced.
He said [Sun Sport]: “I am hoping it will be quicker than that. You want the right decisions straight away. It might take a little bit of time to come to the decision, that’s fine.
“But let’s hope the decisions are made correctly straight away when we bring it in — because that’s why VAR is there.
“We don’t want a few months of, ‘Oh, we’re not sure’, or inconsistency in the decisions. We want the decisions to be consistent from day one.
“The big decisions will be the important ones. Hopefully, they will be a lot clearer. That’s what you’re looking for — and hopefully, it won’t take as long as they think.
“It’s history for St Johnstone, we’ll be the first game to use it.”
Callum Davidson’s response to Maxwell’s comments is spot on, and other clubs should have the same questions.
As mentioned, there was always bound to be doubts from across Scottish Football regarding the controversial introduction of VAR.
And already, we find supporters and managers of clubs asking questions following a bizarre statement from the SFA chief executive.
Of course, as Davidson states, it may take a little longer for decisions to be made at first. But the idea that we are in for a ‘horrendous’ few months is not something I would be expecting from officials utilising this technology.
It is certainly going to take some getting used to as Celtic prepare for the introduction in just over a week’s time.
Ange Postecoglou’s side will be hoping they don’t suffer from any early VAR mishaps, and if so, questions should be asked right from the off.
Hopefully, Maxwell’s initial fears don’t come to fruition. However, this is Scottish Football, and it seems that will almost certainly be the case.
In other news, Former top referee adds to concerning noise ahead of Celtic’s VAR league introduction.
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