VAR will be an improvement, but not a silver bullet
Motherwell chief executive, Alan Burrows, has warned supporters that the introduction of VAR won’t be as extensive as they see down south each week.
The Video Assistant Referee will be introduced in Scotland after the World Cup Finals in November, more than three years after it began being used in England’s top tier.
All 12 Premiership clubs have now been visited by technicians, so that the groundwork can go ahead.
But, without the TV money their colleagues in the Premier League earn, it will be a scaleddown version of VAR which will operate north of the border.
Matches which are broadcast live on Sky will have 14 cameras, which the former Grade One referees working with VAR can refer to when it comes to controversial incidents.
At other games, though, there will be just six cameras to assist the officials on the pitch.
“There will be one camera in line with each 18-yard box, which should help with offside calls,” said Burrows.
“We’ve already had people round at Fir Park, checking where the other cameras should go. However, with only six, it may be that those angles are sometimes inconclusive, and fans need to understand that.
“But the probability clearly is that there will be more chance of offences and infringements being spotted.
“VAR was never meant to be the silver bullet which will make everything perfect. The suggestion is that it will improve referees’ success rate with decisions from 92% to 99%, so that’s got to be worth trying.
“I’m not saying it’s an inferior version of VAR, because it will make our game better.
“There’s so much money riding on the outcome of these calls that they have to be the right ones.”
Burrows also insists that paying customers must be informed what’s happening, whenever the action is held up while a VAR check is being made.
He said: “We’ve all seen English games where the notice ‘VAR check: possible penalty’ or whatever is displayed on the giant screens inside the stadium.
“But not all of our clubs have those. For example, we only have an electronic scoreboard.
“The supporters who pay to get in to matches are the most-important people of all, so we must find a way to make everyone who comes along aware of what is going on as it happens.
“I know there have been complaints since VAR was first used down south, but I’m convinced it will get better.
“I’m a fan of the MLS, and they’ve had it for five years now and it’s much less intrusive these days than it was at first.
“Our fans will need to get used to the odd stoppage, but I reckon VAR will soon be woven into the fabric of the 90 minutes.”