Premier League referee axed after FA Cup game saw ‘worst decision ever seen’

Chris Kavanagh and his assistant referees were not appointed to Premier League matches this weekend following a series of controversial errors during the FA Cup clash between Aston Villa and Newcastle United

Chris Kavanagh has been omitted from Premier League refereeing duties this weekend following a string of errors during Aston Villa’s FA Cup clash with Newcastle last Saturday (February 14).

Kavanagh and his officials Gary Beswick and Nick Greenhalgh faced fierce criticism for their display during the FA Cup fourth-round encounter at Villa Park, where they operated without VAR assistance as per the tournament’s format for that stage.

The trio overlooked Tammy Abraham’s offside position for Villa’s opener, failed to penalise a dangerous shin-high challenge by Villa defender Lucas Digne on Newcastle’s Jacob Murphy that merited a potential red card, and awarded a free-kick for Digne’s handball despite the incident clearly occurring inside the penalty box.

Whilst Beswick has been assigned as an assistant for Sunday’s Nottingham Forest versus Liverpool fixture, both Kavanagh and Greenhalgh are absent from this weekend’s appointments.

Officials face scrutiny for their displays, with the Professional Game Match Officials (PGMO) selecting appointments based on various criteria including match performances, which are assessed afterwards by an independent key match incidents (KMI) panel, reports Chronicle Live.

Nevertheless, Kavanagh remains well-respected within the profession, having recently earned promotion to UEFA’s elite referee roster and regularly takes charge of Champions League fixtures. Earlier on Monday, Wayne Rooney suggested the mistakes made were evidence of officials becoming too dependent on VAR technology.

Rooney branded the handball decision as “one of the worst decisions he had ever seen”, whilst working as a BBC pundit for Saturday evening’s live coverage.

Speaking afterwards on the Wayne Rooney Show podcast, he elaborated: “I think there’s over-reliance on VAR.

“And unfortunately, now the officials are used to that and where they’ve been getting their help and it’s been getting them out of jail at times or they’re waiting for that to make the decision.

“With no VAR they have to make the decision and they’re probably used to keeping the flag down and that’s what’s cost the decisions yesterday.”

Former Premier League referee Graham Scott, appearing as a guest on the podcast, disagreed that referees were using VAR as a safety net. “Obviously I work with them closely and I know these guys and they’re not like that,” he said.

“It’s not how their minds work, not how their processes work. I spent half my career with VAR and half without it, the other way around of course, without it first.

“And then when I was in the Premier League I was still dropping into the Championship quite often. So you’re in and out, in and out. And your processes essentially stay the same.”

VAR will be implemented in the FA Cup from the fifth round stage. Top-flight officials are strongly urged to trust their on-field judgements.