The real reason Rangers were awarded a penalty against Alloa Athletic in the Premier Sports Cup last night has been revealed.
In the 65th minute of the match with the scoreline sitting at 2-1 in the hosts' favour, Oscar Cortes' effort struck the hand of opposition substitute Cameron O'Donnell.
Referee Dan McFarlane initially waved the incident away, although after VAR intervened, he was asked to review it, and a penalty was given.
Speaking live on Premier Sports, although pundit Michael Stewart claimed the award of a spot-kick was harsh, he revealed that the key reason it was given was because VAR official Greg Aitken believed Cortes' effort was on target and had a chance of hitting the back of the net.
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Indeed, IFAB rules state that if a player's non-deliberate handball denies a goal or clear scoring opportunity, a penalty will be awarded.
"Just looking back at the penalty kick, the VAR official is obviously talking about that it was accidental but the ball was going on target," said Stewart.
"I was under the impression that if the arm was in a position that is a consequence of the movement you wouldn’t be punished for it. But, the officials on this occasion have seen differently.
"We are obviously listening to VAR, and that is the thing that was being spoken about - in terms of if the strike was potentially on target.
"I mean, as much as that feels not like a natural thing - if there is a shot on target that is a consequence - I think the overriding factor is he is less than a foot away from him, his arm is in what you would regard as a natural position due to the movement he is marking. So, I do think it was unfortunate, and harsh on O'Donnell and Alloa."
Rangers eventually won the match by four goals to two as they booked their place in the quarter-finals of the Premier Sports Cup, where they will take on either Livingston or Hibernian.
