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David Martindale last night launched a withering attack on VAR after seeing his Livingston side denied what he says was ‘a stonewall penalty’ when going down to Rangers at Ibrox.
With the scores tied at 1-1 in the first half after Tete Yengi had cancelled out a Manny Fernandez opener for the hosts, Fernandez clearly handled an effort from Yengi inside the area.
No award was given by referee Ross Hardie — with reports stating the SFA had offered ‘close proximity’ and the player’s hand being in ‘a natural position’ as reasons — and Rangers went on to win thanks to a late effort from Mohamed Diomande, given in the wake of a review by VAR John Beaton following an initial offside decision.
Lions boss Martindale insists the entire game is in uproar over video re-runs and has accused the SFA of not understanding the carnage being wreaked on clubs and managers by big calls that prove to be wrong.
‘I can’t believe that is not a penalty,’ he raged. ‘Well, part of me CAN believe we don’t get it, but it is a stonewall penalty.
‘With VAR, it cannot keep going on like this. I don’t understand why it’s not a penalty and I am not the only manager.
David Martindale tries to speak with referee Ross Hardie for an explanation after the match
The Livingston boss is clearly unimpressed as he walks away from his consultation with Hardie
Fernandez had opened the scoring for Rangers but endured a troubled afternoon overall
‘There’s some manager every week, sitting moaning about VAR and blatant decisions. Then, you get an apology, but an apology is not going to help on Monday morning. It is not going to help my group or get me a point to get us up the table or get us three points.
‘I don’t think they understand what is actually at stake and how much this means to managers and clubs. It is just flippant. Oh, we got it wrong. Sorry. Move on to next week when there’s another three decisions that are wrong.
‘I don’t think we can keep going down this road. Something needs to change and it needs to change very, very quickly.’
Martindale watched Fernandez’s handball back and cannot accept the reasoning given by the SFA, which was reported during the match on the BBC website.
‘I think he makes a motion towards the ball,’ said Martindale. ‘I think, if he doesn’t hit the ball with his arm, it is going in also. I am not agreeing with that “natural position” thing.’
Asked if he was surprised by the outcome, Martindale replied: ‘Honestly, no. The referee hasn’t even had the benefit of looking at the monitor. I am genuinely not surprised and that’s no good. It is wrong, but it is genuinely how I feel.
‘It feels like the ‘wee club syndrome’ at times. I don’t want to feel like that, but I do.
Mohamed Diomande celebrates after scoring what proved to be the winner against brave Livi
‘We should be in a much better place than where we are with VAR. It’s not just me moaning. It is *every* manager.’
When asked if Hardie spoke to him, Martindale said: ‘Yes. (He said) Get away from me or you are getting a red card.
‘I’ve not had any explanation. I thought there were two or three moments in the game that kind of went against us. The big one is a game-changing moment with the penalty.
‘Potentially, it could have made it 2-1 and makes it all the more difficult for Rangers. The fans probably get on their backs as well and it probably gives my players more belief.
‘Then, my goalie gets booked for wasting time. Rangers go 2-1 up and Butland is taking forever to do anything, but it doesn’t go the other way. I take the yellow card for my keeper, but it has to be the same for both teams and I don’t think that was the case. That is the disappointing aspect.’
Rangers head coach Danny Rohl described the victory — his fourth on the trot in the league — as ‘a dirty win’ and admitted that his side have to make improvements.
Rangers boss Danny Rohl was delighted with what he called 'a dirty win'
‘I wasn’t here a couple of weeks ago, but maybe a couple of weeks ago, we wouldn’t win this game,’ he said. ‘I spoke in the press conference about a dirty win and maybe it was exactly this.
‘In the first ten minutes, we scored and felt we are comfortable, we can carry on and it feels easy. Then, we started to be a little bit not 100 per cent focused in the small details.
‘Our pass quality was not fast enough, we slowed down, we started to be too far away in our counter-pressing. In the goal we conceded, we were not aggressive and close enough. It was an easy long ball.
‘We know that we have to improve this game, but, all in all, it is four wins in a row. If you offered me that four weeks ago, I would take it.’
