A Dutchman in Tel-Aviv

Ref and assistants

I reiterate it time and again: Under the new situation, includind the additional assistant referees (aar), referees tend to run in a slight right-to-right diagonal instead of the old-fashined left-to-left (corner-kick to corner-kick) diagonal, thus turning their back to the assistant referee (ar). As to Vink himself, there were two main problems: A) No use at all of the advantage rule. There were too many cases where he whistled for infringements in the middle of the field, "stealing" an opportunity to move on with another player who got the ball, instead of stopping play in order to take a free-kick. B) Quetionable neutrality. After they had scored a goal (actually, aqn own goal) in the dying minutes of the first half, the Austrians put pressure on the Israeli goal in the second one. But whenever the ball was crossed into the Hapoel penalty area, the whistle went for some infringement in favour of the defense. On the other hand, whenever it seemed an Hapoel defender committed a foul on an opponent around the Hapoel penalty area (and in one case - 57`-58` minute - inside the area) the referee kept silent. As for the assistant-referees. Mr. Broonman and Mr. Van de Ven, they made some mistakes (especially Mr. Van de Ven who seemed to let the Austrian get away with an offside position in the 57` minute before he took the ball into the Hapoel penalty area where the dubious tackle/foul on him took place).