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New England Revolution players and fans aren't going to like this one.
In the dying moments of Saturday's game between the New England Revolution and Toronto FC, Lee Nguyen appeared to have scored the game-winner. The midfielder was there to clean up a loose ball that was served in by Femi Hollinger-Janzen. The goal was disallowed, however, as referee Edvin Jurisevic ruled that the ball had traveled out of bounds.
@RevsAE https://t.co/dTWXrnqOA7
— Soccer guy (@Revs_fan_in_USA) April 9, 2016
It was a bold call to make as it required the assistant referee to be in a perfect position. Revs head coach Jay Heaps made a similar claim in his post-game press conference, saying, "The last play of the game when we scored the goal, the referee called it out of bounds. Now I have not seen that film yet but for me, you have to be in the right position. He’s called it out by an inch so he’s got to be on the line to be able to see that."
By using photogrammetry, @OffsideModeling on Twitter deemed that the Revs' goal should have stood. Take a look for yourself.
Unfortunate for @NERevolution, ball looks a couple of inches in
— SoccerPhotogrammetry (@OffsideModeling) April 9, 2016
Tough call though, AR only human
cc @Revs_fan_in_USA pic.twitter.com/46Tvy9bCTl
And a view from the top, for good measure.
— SoccerPhotogrammetry (@OffsideModeling) April 9, 2016
cc @Revs_fan_in_USA pic.twitter.com/ArSec02SPc
As Heaps noted, the final call relied on the positioning of the assistant referee. @OffsideModeling weighs in here too, claiming that it was almost impossible for the sideline official to accurately judge the play.
And if you think that you could do better, what does this look like to you, from AR perspective
— SoccerPhotogrammetry (@OffsideModeling) April 9, 2016
cc @Revs_fan_in_USA pic.twitter.com/5h3OGe7IZV
While math seems to side with the Revolution, the club won't get the points back. They now have to look forward to next Sunday's meeting with Orlando City SC.