James Shield's Sheffield United Column: Football is becoming a joke - and not a very funny one

“You can’t be a little bit pregnant, can you,” the guy sat next to me at Villa Park said when proof, absolute and utterly conclusive proof, reached us that Orjan Nyland had carried Oliver Norwood’s free-kick across his own line.
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And he was right. You can’t. You either are, or you aren’t. A little bit like technology works. Or it doesn’t. And Hawkeye, Sheffield United and Aston Villa discovered on Wednesday evening, falls into the latter category.

Not for the first time this season, Chris Wilder’s side have found themselves on the wrong end of a decision made following processes which, those of us who argued against their imposition were told, would rid the game of the type of clear and obvious mistake which ensured Wednesday evening’s Premier League fixture ended in a goalless draw rather than a 1-0 win for the visitors. The stakes are now so high, advocates of VAR and goal line camera systems told Luddites such as myself, that it simply no longer makes sense to allow for human error.

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However, the stupid thing is that, had we entrusted referee Michael Oliver and his assistants to make that particular call, I suspect they would have made the right one. But thanks to what Hawkeye’s manufacturers later described as an unprecedented level of “occlusion”, the buzzers on their wrists designed to tell them the strike should have been awarded didn’t go off. Oliver probably felt his eyes were deceiving him. Except they weren’t. And the same goes for everyone else inside the stadium who could tell, from the reaction of the players and Nyland’s own position, that United had taken the lead.

Twelve hours or so after this ridiculous event, which must surely cast doubt over Hawkeye’s suitability, a statement issued by the Professional Game Match Officials Limited explained why the video referee overseeing the fixture had not stepped in to help. Within seconds of the incident, it must be remembered, pictures confirming a terrible injustice had taken place, began circulating on social media.

But rather than make things clearer, the PGMOL’s explanation spread another layer of farce across what was already a slapstick-esque incident. Apparently, even though the VAR referee could see the system had failed, he didn’t intervene because Oliver and his colleagues failed to receive a signal. I know. I know. I know.

It would have taken a second to over-rule Hawkeye. Certainly a lot less than the lifetime it took for the good folk at Stockley Park to work out that John Lundstram’s little toenail had strayed offside during the build-up to David McGoldrick’s goal at Tottenham Hotspur seven months ago. Or, on one of those rare occasions when VAR worked in United’s favour, that Robert Snodgrass’ late equaliser for West Ham in January should be disallowed for a handball during the build-up.

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But no. We now find ourselves in an age where the technological tail is wagging the footballing dog.

The Star's Sheffield United writer James Shield was at Villa Park on Wednesday nightThe Star's Sheffield United writer James Shield was at Villa Park on Wednesday night
The Star's Sheffield United writer James Shield was at Villa Park on Wednesday night

We might as well all pack up, go home and let the rest of the season play out on a computer.

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Oliver Norwood of Sheffield United and Orjan Nyland of Aston Villa discuss the incident: Simon Bellis/SportimageOliver Norwood of Sheffield United and Orjan Nyland of Aston Villa discuss the incident: Simon Bellis/Sportimage
Oliver Norwood of Sheffield United and Orjan Nyland of Aston Villa discuss the incident: Simon Bellis/Sportimage

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Stay safe and take care. Thank you. James.