Aberdeen found a way to win at Hampden on Saturday, the 10-man Dons beating Hibs 1-0 to set up a Viaplay Cup final meeting with Rangers. But how did referee John Beaton and VAR official Greg Aitken perform during the semi-final?
After a fairly dull first 45 minutes, Hibs looked to have broken the deadlock via Aberdeen-raised Australian international Martin Boyle, when he took an excellent touch to control a simple ball over the top before finishing.
Aberdeen’s back-line were terrible in this passage of play, completely out of position and with nobody tracking forward runs.
From my position, in the stadium I thought Boyle was onside, as no Aberdeen players even appealed for offside.
However, a long VAR review was to follow.
It took several minutes for VAR to reach a decision – a unacceptably-long delay which rightly drew boos and jeers.
The on-field decision to award the goal was eventually overruled due to offside.
And, despite Hibs boss Nick Montgomery’s post-match comments suggesting the goal should have stood, offside was the right decision.
Offside rulings are one of the things VAR should get right every time, as offside is not subjective. It is not opinion-based like many aspects of football.
You’re either off, or you’re not. It doesn’t have to be “clear and obvious” for this part of VAR’s operations to kick in, and there’s no such thing as a “harsh” offside.
🗣️'If it takes five or six minutes to deliberate whether he's offside then it's not clear and obvious'
Hibernian manager Nick Montgomery thinks Martin Boyle's goal against Aberdeen should have stood ⤵️#BBCFootball pic.twitter.com/3IXMPuFiah
— BBC Sport Scotland (@BBCSportScot) November 4, 2023
VAR got the decision correct in the end – however, my issue is it took far too long for the right conclusion to be reached.
Officials right to deny Hibs’ spot-kick claim – as Vente tried to initiate contact
Hibs would then have a penalty appeal turned down by the officials, which was confirmed by VAR.
At the time, I thought Aberdeen were potentially lucky.
But having seen the replays, I don’t think there was enough in the incident for it to be a spot-kick.
Dons keeper Kelle Roos spilled the ball and Dylan Vente from Hibs did get a touch to knock it away.
However, as opposed to Roos taking him out, Vente tries to initiate contact, then just jumps over the Reds goalie, making it seem like there was significant contact.
— Ryan (@ryanmeston07) November 4, 2023
Reds’ Jack MacKenzie had to walk for moment of madness
Aberdeen’s Jack MacKenzie was sent off for two cautions during the second half of the semi-final clash.
His first booking for me is a caution, as his man gets away from him and he pulls him down.
The second caution came from an off-the-ball incident.
Hibs defender Lewis Miller gave MacKenzie a bit of a push and the Aberdeen defender fell into his trap and reacted, chasing him and giving him a shove back – which, of course, resulted in Miller hitting the deck.
It was a moment of madness from MacKenzie and certainly worthy of another booking.
Hibs’ Miller went down far too easily in build-up to Bojan Miovski’s goal
Despite being a man down, Aberdeen took the lead through Bojan Miovski with little more than 10 minutes left to play.
A great run by captain Graeme Shinnie sparked a counter attack where Dante Polvara eventually slipped through an onside Miovski, who calmly slotted the ball past David Marshall in the Hibs goal.
The Hibees players were claiming for a foul on Miller by Shinnie in the build-up – but this was absolutely not a foul.
Miller once again threw himself to the ground (instead of trying to play the ball in this instance). But he went down far too easily.
Miovksi shout wasn’t a penalty – but it also wasn’t a dive
A goal to the good, the Dons subsequently had a penalty shout of their own when Miovski once again charged through on goal, before going down following contact from behind from a Hibs defender.
Ref Beaton booked the Reds striker for diving, something which I felt was harsh.
I don’t think it’s a penalty, but I don’t think it’s a dive either.
The decision to not award a penalty was correct, but saying it was a dive is incorrect. It’s possible for there to be contact and it not to be a penalty.
Overall, though, I thought Beaton and his team, including VAR, had a good game – and they got every major decision correct in my opinion.
Finlay Elder was a registered referee for six years and a category 5 official from 2019, with experience in the Highland League, Juniors and Club Academy.
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