Neil Lennon has weighed in on the fallout from the contentious VAR decision in the Premier Sports Cup Final, agreeing with Willie Collum’s admission that the failure to award Rangers a penalty against Celtic was “unacceptable.”
While acknowledging the mistake, Lennon believes it’s time for Rangers to move on from the controversy and focus on their progress.
Willie Collum, the Scottish FA’s Head of Referee Operations, fronted the issue on the VAR Review Show, admitting that VAR officials Alan Muir and Frank Connor rushed their analysis of the incident and lacked the forensic detail required for such a pivotal moment.
Reacting to Collum’s comments, former Celtic manager Neil Lennon expressed his disappointment that such a critical decision was mishandled. He pointed out that, for a game of such magnitude, someone of Collum’s stature should have been present to oversee proceedings:
“If Willie is saying that, then it’s unacceptable,” said Lennon on PLZ. “You have two or three officials watching the game and slowing it down. It’s a cup final. These decisions have to be right.
“Willie has fronted it up, come out and said ‘yes, it’s unacceptable’ and I agree with him, so it has to be better. It’s alright having the Monday morning quarterback routine and calling these things out in hindsight, but they should be getting it right on the day. We were talking off-air, if Willie is the head of the referees, then, for me, should he not be there? For a big game especially. Willie or somebody of a senior standard in the referee association.”
While acknowledging Rangers’ frustration, Lennon believes the Ibrox side needs to focus on the positives and channel their energy into future challenges:
“They will have to [move on]. They put in a great performance. They have closed the gap. There will be regrets about it. It’s done now, and you have to use that as motivation, I suppose.”
The controversy erupted when referee John Beaton awarded a free kick for Liam Scales’ foul on Vaclav Cerny just outside the penalty area. VAR did not intervene to review whether the foul occurred inside the box, a decision that has since been admitted as an error by Collum. Celtic ultimately won the final 5-4 on penalties after a dramatic 3-3 draw.
