UK Edition
FA in discussions about VAR use in next year's FA Cup
The Football Association is in discussions about the use of video assistant referees in next year's FA Cup as pressure grows on the governing body to extend its use to grounds outside the Premier League.
Its absence proved particularly costly over the weekend for Swansea City who, like Millwall, were denied it for their narrow quarter-final defeats to Premier League opposition.
Swansea defender Mike van der Hoorn waded in to the row by saying the lack of VAR cost his side two goals, adding that it was "a bit rude" that it was in use for the two matches at Wolves and Watford.
However, the decision was made in line with an FA trial since the third round and the governing body has now confirmed "ongoing discussions" are taking place over how it will be used next year.
Its omission at Swansea - whose Liberty Stadium is equipped to use the technology - was particularly costly as Manchester City swept back from 2-0 down to win a soft equalising penalty and then a Sergio Aguero header which may have been ruled offside.
Swansea initially said they were "in the dark" over why they had been denied the technology, but executives later decided against complaining to the FA. "We're proud of the performance from our team," a senior club source said. "It was a disappointing decision but there's no point in showing sour grapes."
Amid angry scenes after full-time on Saturday, South Wales Police arrested three male youths for running onto the pitch at the Liberty.
A week after the Jack Grealish on-field attack by a fan there were also ugly scenes at Bournemouth's Vitality Stadium, where a female steward was left with a suspected broken nose.
Steven Baylis, a partner at the law firm Lime Solicitors, said clubs are at risk of potential "duty of care" lawsuits brought by stewards, players and fans.
"In relation to the incident at Bournemouth on Saturday, whether or not the steward who was injured has a claim against the club will be influenced by a number of factors," he told Telegraph Sport. "It will depend on whether the club had paid for sufficient policing at the match and whether there were sufficient stewards with appropriate levels of training in place. With pitch incursions by fans on the increase, clubs may need to review the strategy of making cuts in policing costs and relying more on stewards. It would seem the case that the deterrent effect of stewards might not be as persuasive as police officers, when influencing fan behaviour."