St Mirren were lucky to end last night’s game against Hearts with 11 men after Killian Phillips’ red card was overturned.
Hearts beat the Buddies 3-1 at Tynecastle after the visitors held a 1-0 lead at half-time through Mikael Mandron’s predatory finish. The Jambos improved after the break, equalising through James Wilson before Calem Nieuwenfoh gave them a lead with a brilliant strike from outside the box.
It was with the score at 2-1 that Phillips went crashing into Jamie McCart from a high ball, catching him on the head with his shoulder and leaving him prone on the deck with his Hearts teammates reacting furiously.
Referee Euan Anderson dished out a red card but after being asked to check again on the VAR screen, downgraded that to a yellow. The reason seemingly being that an elbow was not used.
However, two pundits have ridiculed that decision.
Michael Stewart fumes at St Mirren VAR call
Michael Stewart points out it doesn’t matter if you use an elbow or a shoulder, you can still endanger an opponent.
The former Jambos midfielder insists Philipps’ challenge would have been a sending off even in RUGBY.
And he couldn’t quite believe that the whole VAR process landed on that decision, branding it “mental.”
Speaking on BBC Sportscene, Stewart said: “It’s a red card. He knows exactly what he’s doing, he’s jumping in with force. And his mitigation is ‘I don’t catch him with my elbow, I clobber him with my shoulder.’
| Position | Team | Played MP | Won W | Drawn D | Lost L | For GF | Against GA | Diff GD | Points Pts |
| 3 |  AberdeenAberdeen | 28 | 12 | 5 | 11 | 36 | 44 | -8 | 41 |
| 4 |  HibernianHibernian | 28 | 10 | 10 | 8 | 42 | 39 | 3 | 40 |
| 5 |  Dundee UtdDundee Utd | 28 | 11 | 7 | 10 | 34 | 34 | 0 | 40 |
| 6 |  Heart Of MidlothianHeart Of Midlothian | 28 | 10 | 6 | 12 | 40 | 38 | 2 | 36 |
| 7 |  St MirrenSt Mirren | 28 | 10 | 4 | 14 | 33 | 42 | -9 | 34 |
| 8 |  MotherwellMotherwell | 28 | 10 | 4 | 14 | 32 | 47 | -15 | 34 |
“I mean, I’m sorry, that’s a red card. If that’s rugby he’s getting sent off and I think we all recognise rugby is a lot more physical than football. He’s getting sent off because he knows exactly what he’s doing, he’s clattered into Jamie McCart’s head with his shoulder.
“I cannot believe another incident where the referee makes a decision, VAR gets involved and they overturn it. It’s just mental, that’s a red card every day of the week.”
Rick Foster agreed and added: “I think if we’re going to be serious about head injuries and player safety, that has to be a red card all day long.”
Neil Critchley’s thoughts on Hearts win over St Mirren
Neil Critchley didn’t think his Hearts side were at their best despite the win but still had praise for the way his players managed to get the three points.
He said: “It was a really tough game I thought. St Mirren are not an easy opponent to play against, particularly when they go 1-0 up.
“I didn’t think we were at our best but we’re finding ways to win games of football in different ways.
“Bit of fortune for the first goal but then two really good goals after that.
“I thought we defended well as a team, limited opportunities. To score three goals against St Mirren isn’t easy.
“I just think we weren’t clean and weren’t efficient in our play. Which didn’t suit the type of game we wanted.”