Mike Dean admits deliberate VAR error

[Caesium137]

Can you admit to making a deliberate error?

Surely that's an impossibility, he has made a deliberate decision to ignore foul play?

It is in no way or means an 'error'?

 

[Acklam_Lad]

Sorry thought he was still Head of VAR.

But I agree this opens up a whole can of worms to accusations of potential match fixing by VAR ‘ignoring’ or ‘missing’ certain things

 

[FishofContemplation]

Shockingly sloppy journalism. It’s not a penalty incident. It’s a corner at the other end. And not the corner they scored from either. So Dean can’t intervene for the missed foul, only for a possible missed red card for violent conduct. Which is a differently weighted call. Especially given the pushing and pulling nonsense that is routinely tolerated at corners.

 

[Tryasize10]

From reading his comments it seems his point is around the undue criticism that referees and officials get and whilst you can't condone this single decision, I get his broader message entirely.

The levels of cheating and gamesmanship, in every game it seems, is damaging to the sport as a spectacle and the abuse referees get for trying to manage games is beyond acceptable.

But that's not his fight. He is (was at the time) an official so I don't get his point at all to be honest.

It's an abuse of power regardless of his intention.

 

[FishofContemplation]

VAR, in its current guise, doesn't work. For me, they need to move to a system that is similar to cricket and tennis. The on field ref should be able to go over and look at a screen at the side of the pitch if he or the assistants feel they have missed something or want a second look at an event/issue. No VAR team, no calls in the ear from someone in an office block 200 miles away, just the on field officials using replays if they feel the need.

Just saying, but what you’re proposing is nothing like the system in cricket and tennis. Tennis is fully automated. The umpire presses a button and the system tells them what happened. (Edit - and that’s only where they have both line judges and Hawkeye, most tournaments have just accepted that the latter is more accurate and sacked off the former anyway) Cricket involves a replay official in a room somewhere and calls in the ear to the on-field official who just gets told what to do. Neither involves the on-field official wandering off to look at a wee screen.

Rugby is closer in that the on-field ref has traditionally participated in a discussion with the TMO while watching the screen and ultimately made the decision. Except that they’ve binned that collaborative process for red cards this year anyway.

 

[Nano]

This is a ridiculous thing to admit to. To openly state he didn't apply the rules of the game is bad but to admit that when he was in the position that is designed to remove errors is insanity.
So how many other decisions have been missed because of tough games or it involved a big team? It questions the validity of the whole refereeing structure at the top level.
VAR, in its current guise, doesn't work. For me, they need to move to a system that is similar to cricket and tennis. The on field ref should be able to go over and look at a screen at the side of the pitch if he or the assistants feel they have missed something or want a second look at an event/issue. No VAR team, no calls in the ear from someone in an office block 200 miles away, just the on field officials using replays if they feel the need. On top of that, each team should have three reviews that the on field captains can request to the referee. If correct, they keep the challenge and if wrong, they lose one.
I think putting mics on refs would also help.

All this does is highlight how the problem is the referees and not the technology. The solution is more transparency. Have the entire process available to see/hear and it removes the possibility for corruption like this. There would be no way for this to be missed if it was recorded because he'd have to say something and there is no justification for not enforcing the rules. Being behind closed doors they can get away with whatever they want.

Removing VAR, as some people suggest, just gives these people more opportunity to make corrupt decisions by hiding behind the "I didn't see it" or "have to make a split-second decision" excuses.

Also, all the diving, cheating, time-wasting, dissent, conning the refs etc that makes refereeing the game more difficult is their own fault. They have the laws within the game already to stamp that behaviour out but they choose not to enforce it.

 

[Millbrook]

Shockingly sloppy journalism. It’s not a penalty incident. It’s a corner at the other end. And not the corner they scored from either. So Dean can’t intervene for the missed foul, only for a possible missed red card for violent conduct. Which is a differently weighted call. Especially given the pushing and pulling nonsense that is routinely tolerated at corners.

Agree entirely. In any event neither of them were going to get the ball. Cucerella was blocking Romero before the hair pull so could have been penalised for that.

Sounds like a daft thing to say though.

 

[Sheriff_John_Bunnell_ret]

Interesting to read that he hated VAR. Thank **** I can still watch Boro games without this *****.

 

[starplayer]

VAR was meant to take the ‘human factors’ out of the equation. It obviously doesn’t so other than off sides and goal line stuff what is the point. We had imperfections before and we have them now

 

[UTB70]

Youll never convonce me some refs dont have favourite teams or players or those they dislike or make decisions on their opinion rather than the actual rules. Didnt one ref we had admit he blew early or somehing to avoid extra time so could get to a concert in newcastle once? Totally not following the rules.