It’s almost 48 hours after Celtic won the Scottish Cup after beating Rangers and the fallout on one controversial moment in the game will probably continue right throughout the summer.
With the Celtic fans holding the bragging rites and Brendan Rodgers holding the cup, the next six weeks of the close season is going to be a bright one for the Hoops fans and not so great for the Ibrox club.
However, there is one decision in the game that is causing most of the headlines. Surprisingly, it’s not Celtic’s case for a penalty after a handball by Ben Davies.
Instead, it’s the disallowed Abdallah Sima goal that Rangers scored midway through the second half at Hampden.
Billy Dodds takes aim at Celtic’s Joe Hart
Now, I’ll admit, at first glance of the goal I never saw anything wrong with it so this is where we give John Beaton on VAR some credit for spotting the infringement on Celtic goalkeeper Joe Hart.
But as the check was going on, former Rangers striker, Billy Dodds, questioned the foul on commentary on BBC Radio Scotland and appeared to aim his criticism towards Hart instead of the perpetrator of the foul, Nikolas Raskin.
That was until former Celtic hero, Pat Bonner, stepped in.
Dodds: “Joe Hart wants the foul but the delivery is wicked. And it’s right into an area where, is it Scales, I don’t know. But he’s missed the header and it’s come off Sima’s knee.”
Bonner: “Oh it’s a push actually. It’s a push on Joe Hart’s back from Raskin.”
Dodds: “Is it enough of a push for it to be disallowed?”
Bonner: “Well, he pushed the goalkeeper completely off the line of the ball. That’s what I’ve seen on the replay.”
Dodds: “He’s got to do better. The goalie has got to do better.”
Bonner: “Yeah I know that but when you’re up in the air and you’re trying to attack the ball, and somebody pushes you in the back…”
Dodds: “I get it, I get it but there’s a nudge and he’s got to do better. He’s missed the flight of the ball.
“See if you’re getting that nudge and he’s out the way, you’ve got to get something on it.”
Bonner: “It’s the two hands on his back and he’s pushed him. I didn’t know, I thought he was blocked off but if nobody puts his hands on his back and pushes him, then he’s blocked off and he’s got to be stronger.
“Now you’re right, he could have been stronger but I think there’s a foul.”
Now I get Dodds would have been upset at the goal being disallowed and as a Celtic fan, if that had happened to us, I would have been as well.
But if you’re at a game working and being paid to give an impartial opinion on the game, then looking at the footage, you would have to admitthe referee and VAR got the decision correct and the goal was rightly chalked off.
No doubt this will continue to rumble on for the rest of the summer but in the end it doesn’t really matter. The match officials deserve credit for making a tough, but correct, call and the Scottish Cup sits, rightly, in the Parkhead trophy room for one more season.