The Scottish Cup quarter-final between Rangers and Celtic required a penalty shootout to separate two sides who could not be split across 120 goalless minutes, with Tomas Cvancara’s decisive spot kick sending Celtic through 4-2. The ugly scenes that followed on the pitch have dominated the headlines, but the match itself produced several notable refereeing and VAR moments worth examining.
Referee Don Robertson had a relatively straightforward afternoon by Old Firm standards, though there were still key decisions for him and the VAR team to navigate.
The first significant incident came when a Rangers effort struck Auston Trusty on the arm inside the box. Home supporters immediately appealed for a penalty, and Premier Sports co-commentators Neil Lennon and Alan Hutton both instinctively called it a spot kick on first viewing. Both changed their minds once replays were available, and VAR confirmed the correct call was to wave play on. Commentator Rory Hamilton relayed the instruction from VAR official Andrew Dallas, who confirmed the arm was close to the body and in a natural position, making it a throw-in rather than a penalty.
Celtic had a goal disallowed in what proved to be a tight offside call. Luke McCowan’s cross was met by Liam Scales and Daizen Maeda nodded the ball into the net, but play was stopped after VAR identified that Scales’ boot had strayed offside during the build-up. Former referee Keith Hackett praised the speed and accuracy of the decision, describing it as a correct intervention.
Dujon Sterling, already on a booking, went into a challenge on Celtic substitute Joel Mvuka that Lennon described as walking a fine line. Hutton agreed, suggesting it was a tackle Sterling had no need to make. Robertson judged it a foul, which in the context of Sterling’s booking was probably the right call, if perhaps a lenient one.
Finally, Emmanuel Fernandez had a goal ruled out after VAR initiated a factual overturn. Replays clearly showed the ball had struck his arm in the build-up, leaving the officials with no option but to disallow the effort.