Steve Barker calls for urgent VAR introduction in PSL

Barker reiterated his stance that referee Abongile Tom aided Pirates to what has become a historic three-peat at Moses Mabhida Stadium on Saturday night. 

With the game deadlocked at 1-1, the Buccaneers took a quick free-kick a few metres ahead of where the original incident took place – leading to striker Tshegofatso Mabasa scoring, and Barker believes VAR would have corrected the glaring error.

"I'm not sure, I think there had been at some stage a point that they were looking to target the final – this one – to implement VAR, but unfortunately they did not," said Barker.

"But it just seems like there's far too many big calls that are not going the right way, and I think the intervention of VAR will help.

"Refs are human, I don't think the refs go and purposefully make the mistake, it's just that a lot's happening, it's the 90th minute of a cup final, they take a quick free-kick, he suddenly looks, it's a goal.

"He's got that decision to make – do I let it stand, do I not let it stand? He's elected to let the goal stand, so [sigh] – VAR intervention, I believe, would have said, 'Listen, re-take, re-start, it wasn't taken at the right place, you were still speaking to the players.'

"He hadn't even seen what happened, hopefully sanity would have prevailed and we would have had, maybe, an interesting extra-time [period]."

The Stellies mentor, who last season guided the club to their maiden title in the Carling Knockout, refused to cast blame on Pirates, but warned they will not stop causing problems for opponents in cup competitions.

"But time heals, I also want to say congratulations to Pirates – they benefitted, but it's not them that made it happen, it's the referee that made it happen, so you can't take away that luck that they got," he added.

"So congratulations to Orlando Pirates for what they've achieved, but they must know we're knocking on the door – we're not going to stop harassing, and we're going to keep pushing, and I believe we're going to get our time soon enough."

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