‘VAR doesn’t solve everything’
Prendergast cautions against unrealistic expectations for video officiating
Published:Friday | December 17, 2021 | 7:17 AMDaniel Wheeler/Staff Reporter
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FIFA referee instructor Peter Prendergast says that the inclusion of the video assistant referee (VAR) for the remainder of the Concacaf World Cup qualifying football matches is not an indictment on the quality of officiating in the region....
FIFA referee instructor Peter Prendergast says that the inclusion of the video assistant referee (VAR) for the remainder of the Concacaf World Cup qualifying football matches is not an indictment on the quality of officiating in the region.
Concacaf will have the system in place for all eight teams for the last six rounds of matches in the competition, which start next month. Jamaica will have their first use of the system when they play Mexico at the National Stadium on January 27.
While saying that Concacaf has decided to catch up with the use of the system, Prendergast was quick to issue a word of caution about VAR’s use in the region and notions about it being the solution to questionable decisions.
“It’s not the ultimate decision-maker where you punch some numbers in and get a result,” Prendergast told The Gleaner. “It does not mean that, once you have VAR, then everything is under control and all the decisions are going to be correct and just. I don’t want everyone to believe that, now that we are using VAR, all the problems of refereeing, player behaviour, and cheating will be resolved. So I want to approach it from that standpoint.”
Jamaica defender Damion Lowe’s disallowed goal in their 1-1 draw with the United States at the National Stadium last month was one notable incident in the discussion on the need for VAR in the competition. Prendergast said that, even if the system was at play in the game, the call may not have been reversed, and is also insistent that players, coaches and other stakeholders help to practise fair play.
BETTER GAMES
“It may not have gone to VAR, because there are protocols involved,” he said. “And that may not have been seen as a clear and obvious error, because there was some contact. As for the impact of the contact, that is left up to the referee’s decision. So the VAR may have looked at it and decided that there is enough to support the referee and he would not have changed his decision.
“People need to deal with the football and find a way to make the game work, and all of these methods (VAR, goal-line technology) are really trying to make it better. It’s not that the referees are bad. Players, coaches, and teams need to help the face of football by being fair and not trying to cheat.”
The first eight rounds of games of the campaign have been without the system, with Concacaf citing its need to have parity for all teams. Mexico, the United States and Canada are the only teams in the region that have been using the system.
Jamaica Football Federation Referees Department head Victor Stewart says that they are hoping to get the necessary equipment on the island by early next month, and is confident of their ability to navigate through the logistical obstacles and having adequate trained officials to operate the system.
“The biggest challenge for most of the countries is the logistics in terms of getting the equipment in place,” Stewart said. “I know Concacaf and FIFA are instrumental in helping us in this regard. They are working on the logistics as we speak, to ensure that all of those are in place.
“The technology is there, the know-how is there, and, in modern times, it doesn’t take much to get it on the island.”