The Counter Argument to Video Technology!

Video technology is used in many sports nowadays, including rugby, cricket and tennis. In recent years, there has been more and more pressure on FIFA for video technology to be introduced in football.

On Saturday, I believe we saw the perfect reason for not having video technology in the sport.

Everton were playing Aston Villa and with the score at 1-1, Jermaine Beckford had a shot which hit the bar, bounced down and was ruled not to have crossed the line.

Villa keeper Brad Friedel collected the ball, and while replays of the incident were pored over by Sky cameras, Darren Bent latched onto the long ball and slotted past Tim Howard.

The England striker had scored a perfectly good goal, yet it also seemed that, after many replays, Beckford’s shot had just crossed the line.

The debate now begins.

If video technology was introduced, when would the referee, Mike Jones in this instance, have stopped the game?

The logical time would be next time the ball was dead but in this case that was after a goal for the opposing team. Surely when the officials have viewed the replays, they could not rule out the Villa goal and give the Everton one?

I have never been one of those who want video technology in the sport and this was my main reason why.

Football is too fast flowing for technology to work. In cricket, the ball is dead when a team refers a decision and the same goes in tennis. In rugby, the ball is also dead and once a decision is made whether a try is scored or not, there are clear restarts. Football can not have this.

Too much can happen between the time the ball comes into play and the time the play is stopped.

I could go on, but my point would just be repeated and I do not wish to bore.

Joshua Peck

http://twitter.com/joshy_peck

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