Verdict on goals goes hi-tech
Bloemfontein game altered soccer
FRANK Lampard’s place in the history of both Chelsea and English football is already secure but a rare goal-scoring ability from midfield will now form only part of his legacy.
Few people can say they have fundamentally changed football but, from today, it is a claim Lampard could justifiably make.
After millions of pounds spent on testing and innovating, as well as years of lobbying, the Community Shield at Wembley between Manchester United and Wigan Athletic will be the first major match in English football to use goal-line technology.
The turning point in the debate did not arrive until June 27, 2010 in Bloemfontein.
England were trailing Germany 2-1 in the last 16 of that World Cup when Lampard sent a spectacular shot crashing past Manuel Neuer into the goal off the crossbar.
Referee Jorge Larrionda missed it but, from the VIP seats inside the Free State Stadium, Fifa president Sepp Blatter turned to a monitor and was made instantly aware of the injustice. In that moment, Blatter’s mind was changed and football’s most powerful administrator was suddenly a belated convert to goalline technology.
English football has reached agreement with Hawk Eye, the Hampshirebased company that also provides technology in tennis and cricket, for what is now being called a “Goal Decision System”.
The individual cost of installation is £25 000 and it will be operational this season at Wembley and at all 20 Premier League grounds.
The officials at the 380 Premier League matches this season will be supported by Hawk Eye’s 14 cameras, which, it is claimed, will provide an “accurate and definitive” verdict on whether the ball has crossed the line within one second of a goal.
That verdict will be relayed instantaneously to the officials’ watches, which will vibrate and have the word “goal” flash up on the display screen.
The referee will receive further confirmation via a message on his earpiece. A virtual representation of any close goal-line incident will also be shown to the crowd and be made available to broadcasters.
According to the Premier League, there were 31 incidents last season for which Hawk Eye would have provided a definite answer to the referee. Of those 31 incidents, there were three mistakes on crucial goalline decisions.
This is one of the biggest changes that has happened in 150 years
“It was thanks to Frank Lampard and the World Cup in 2010 that the mood changed on this,” said Richard Scudamore, the Premier League chief executive.
“The only fundamental reason people play football is to get the ball over the line and score a goal. It’s only right we should have it. It’s a discreet technology for a specific thing. It is 100 percent accurate.”
Alex Horne, general secretary of the Football Association, hailed the new technology as one of the most important developments in football history.
“This is one of the biggest changes that has happened in the 150 years since we conceived the laws of the game,” he said. — © The Daily Telegraph, London