Aberdeen’s unbeaten start to the Premiership season was ended by St Mirren in Paisley – but how did referee John Beaton, supported on VAR by Matthew MacDermid, perform in the Dons’ 2-1 defeat?
Before any of Saturday’s matches even began, there was controversy.
With Storm Bert battering Scotland, there were big questions marks over fixtures going ahead.
I’ll start by saying fan safety was completely thrown out the window for every single game over the weekend.
The roads were treacherous all over the country, with warnings advising people to stay at home and only travel if necessary.
A collective decision should have been made by the authorities to protect supporters – something which was done last year during Storm Babet.
The fact every match was delayed for reasons relating to the weather made clear they should not have been played.
Pitch for St Mirren v Aberdeen was playable, but less than ideal
The referee for St Mirren v Aberdeen, Beaton, had a big call to make, with the pitch covered in snow in the early afternoon, and a pitch inspection scheduled for 2.55pm ahead of a prospective (delayed) 4pm kick-off.
Having seen photos of the pitch before entering the SMISA, I wasn’t convinced the game would go ahead.
Once I entered the ground, though, the surface actually looked ok, and credit has to be given to the volunteers who managed to get it cleared in time.
Don’t get me wrong, the pitch was in playable, but less-than-ideal condition – players were slipping, and the ball was holding up at times.
St Mirren’s Alex Gogic should never have been sent off
The game was played at a very frantic pace, with both teams dominating spells throughout the contest.
Beaton made a huge call in the first half with the hosts leading 1-0.
Alex Gogic went flying into a challenge with Aberdeen’s Shayden Morris, clearly winning the ball – but the referee showed the Buddies midfielder a straight red card.
My first reaction was one of confusion. It didn’t look like a red, as Gogic got all of the ball and only a small amount of the man.
It was a full-blooded challenge, but there wasn’t enough contact to warrant a dismissal – and, fortunately for Gogic, VAR official MacDermid suggested Beaton reconsider his decision and the red was downgraded to a yellow card.
Aberdeen’s Duk very lucky to avoid red card
There were plenty of other bookings in the St Mirren-Aberdeen game which were all easy decisions to give.
The only one I think is worthy of further discussion is the caution for the Dons’ Luis “Duk” Lopes.
Duk lunged in, in what was a moment of pure frustration, and was very lucky he didn’t actually catch his man.
It was a ridiculously-late challenge – and just a reaction to not getting a foul himself from ref Beaton.
If Duk had made proper contact, with his boot so high, it would have been a clear red card.
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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