Referee John Beaton had a very busy evening when Aberdeen continued their fine run of form to defeat an under-pressure Rangers at Pittodrie.
Beaton was supported on VAR by Don Robertson and there were several big calls during an action-packed 90 minutes.
Aberdeen like to play the ball quickly whenever they win a free kick but, during a flurry of early fouls committed by Rangers, Beaton was quick to stop Aberdeen restarting the game with the urgency they usually show.
Of course the referee is more than entitled to control a game at the pace he desires and keeping a lid on things early can help settle the players.
Early in the match, Rangers defender Leon Balogun went down injured in the middle of the pitch with a head knock following an aerial challenge.
The referee was right to stop play for a head knock but he allowed play to continue for far too long before pulling it back.
The decision should have made sooner as you can’t take any risks with player safety.
A member of the Aberdeen bench picked up a booking in the aftermath. Play had been allowed to continue until the ball landed nicely for Jack MacKenzie on the edge of the box before it was halted so there was understandable frustration.
Was Balogun lucky to avoid red?
Aberdeen striker Ester Sokler was booked for dissent following a major controversial moment in the first half.
Jamie McGrath slipped through Sokler, who looked to get a touch on the ball before being taken out by Balogun.
My first reaction was a foul and a red card so when the referee awarded nothing I was surprised.
However, a VAR review supported the decision made by the referee.
Having seen a replay, Balogun does get a touch on the ball after Sokler gets their first.
It was a very good spot by the referee, although Balogun was very fortunate with his touch as on another day this could easily have ended with a red card.
There were massive shouts, in particular from Sivert Heltne Neilson, for a handball following a corner.
After another VAR review, Beaton would be sent to the monitor.
The ball appeared to strike the arm of Tom Lawrence before it definitely appearing to hit the arm of John Souttar.
The decision is an interesting one as we saw plenty of penalties awarded for similar incidents last season.
This season the criteria for awarding penalties for handball has become more specific and harder to meet.
Last season I’d say this was 100% a penalty but, following other decisions made this season, I was slightly surprised a penalty was awarded.
With the ball deflecting of Lawrence, Souttar is a tad unlucky.
After a review Beaton pointed to the spot to award the penalty.
There is no doubt the ball hit him on the arm but I thought Rangers may have got away with this one.
The handball rule is so inconsistent so I’m not shocked a handball was given.
In my opinion it is a penalty as the ball hits Souttar’s arm in an unnatural position and the VAR review and subsequent awarded penalty was correct.
Marginal offside decision
The controversy in the first half wouldn’t end there. The away side thought they had grabbed an equaliser after the penalty miss from McGrath saw the pendulum swing in terms of momentum.
However, the offside flag cut short the celebrations.
It looked incredibly tight, a good 50/50 can go either way. A VAR review confirmed the on-field decision.
Having seen a replay it is so tight, unbelievably close in terms of drawing the lines.
I’m beginning to sound like a broken record the amount of times I have said the angles we have for VAR are simply not good enough.
You need to have more than one camera, when it comes to offside. It is the only way to be more accurate and consistent.
The offside could’ve gone either way, with the lines being so close Rangers may feel the decision is harsh. However, the on- field call was offside and the lines backed up the decision.
Overall, I thought Beaton had an OK game. He got most of the big decisions spot on, some following good intervention from VAR.
He was, however, incredibly inconsistent with his decision making.
He was very card happy with the Aberdeen players, but did not book some of the Rangers players for very similar fouls.
How Cyriel Dessers avoided a booking for persistent fouling was baffling. He definitely should have been booked but somehow managed to avoid a caution.
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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